Mobile Learning Game Effectiveness in Cognitive Learning by Adults: A Comparative Study

Background. The effectiveness of digital game-based learning is an important issue. Mobile learning games (MLG) are rapidly growing trends among the digital game-based learning genre. Although many studies have been conducted and mobile games have been shown to have an unquestionable potential as a learning method, their effectiveness has not been fully proven, and the positive impacts and outcomes of mobile learning games with respect to learning have yet to be investigated. Aim. The study aimed at capturing the cognitive learning outcomes and the process of knowledge acquisition. The study has demonstrated both positive and negative cognitive learning effects of using mobile learning game in comparison with the textbook learning process. Methodology. This article presents a comparative study conducted on a group of 160 freshman students majoring in management and finance. The participants of the study, divided into subgroups, were taught using either textbook-based learning or a mobile learning game. Three tests were applied to measure their performance: a pre-test at the beginning of the experiment, and two post-tests, the first administered directly after the learning process and the second 2-3 weeks after the initial learning. Results and recommendations. MLG have been proven to create many positive effect for learning. It is as effective in transferring factual knowledge as textbook learning, when measured directly after the learning process. In longer term, the effects are blurred because the affective effects interfere with the measurement.

[1]  Traci Sitzmann.  A META-ANALYTIC EXAMINATION OF THE INSTRUCTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS OF COMPUTER-BASED SIMULATION GAMES , 2011 .

[2]  Birgit Schmitz,et al.  Mobile Games for Learning: A Pattern-Based Approach , 2014 .

[3]  Nigel Marlow,et al.  The role of student learning styles, gender, attitudes and perceptions on information and communication technology assisted learning , 1999, Comput. Educ..

[4]  William V. Wright,et al.  A Theory of Fun for Game Design , 2004 .

[5]  Michelle F. Wright,et al.  Computer Gaming and Interactive Simulations for Learning: A Meta-Analysis , 2006 .

[6]  Marina Papastergiou,et al.  Digital Game-Based Learning in high school Computer Science education: Impact on educational effectiveness and student motivation , 2009, Comput. Educ..

[7]  Cheryl I. Johnson,et al.  Adding Instructional Features That Promote Learning in a Game-Like Environment , 2010 .

[8]  P. Wouters,et al.  A meta-analysis of the cognitive and motivational effects of serious games , 2013 .

[9]  Jesse Schell,et al.  The Art of Game Design: A book of lenses , 2019 .

[10]  M. Baker,et al.  Integrating computer-supported collaborative learning into the classroom: the anatomy of a failure , 2012, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[11]  L. S. Vygotskiĭ,et al.  Mind in society : the development of higher psychological processes , 1978 .

[12]  Igor S. Mayer,et al.  The Gaming of Policy and the Politics of Gaming: A Review , 2009 .

[13]  R. Duke,et al.  Policy games for strategic management , 2004 .

[14]  J. U. Hense,et al.  Theory-oriented evaluation for the design of and research in gaming and simulation , 2006 .

[15]  R. Joiner,et al.  Digital Games, Gender and Learning in Engineering: Do Females Benefit as Much as Males? , 2011 .

[16]  Simon Egenfeldt-Nielsen.  Overview of research on the educational use of video games , 2006 .

[17]  Yi-Shun Wang,et al.  Investigating the determinants and age and gender differences in the acceptance of mobile learning , 2009, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[18]  Fengfeng Ke.  Computer games application within alternative classroom goal structures: cognitive, metacognitive, and affective evaluation , 2008 .

[19]  FurióD.,et al.  Mobile learning vs. traditional classroom lessons , 2015 .

[20]  Dorian Peters,et al.  Interface Design for Learning: Design Strategies for Learning Experiences , 2013 .

[21]  Gwo-Jen Hwang,et al.  A contextual game-based learning approach to improving students' inquiry-based learning performance in social studies courses , 2015, Comput. Educ..

[22]  H. Yau,et al.  Gender Difference of Confidence in Using Technology for Learning , 2012 .

[23]  Herre van Oostendorp,et al.  A meta-analytic review of the role of instructional support in game-based learning , 2013, Comput. Educ..

[24]  Randy J. Pagulayan,et al.  User-centered design in games , 2012 .

[25]  Jacob Cohen.  Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences , 1969, The SAGE Encyclopedia of Research Design.

[27]  Jan L. Plass,et al.  Interplay of prior knowledge, self-regulation and motivation in complex multimedia learning environments , 2016, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[28]  Eric Jamet,et al.  Digital game-based learning: Impact of instructions and feedback on motivation and learning effectiveness , 2013, Comput. Educ..

[29]  Geertje Bekebrede,et al.  Reviewing the need for gaming in education to accommodate the net generation , 2011, Comput. Educ..

[30]  Robert T Hays,et al.  The Effectiveness of Instructional Games: A Literature Review and Discussion , 2005 .

[31]  Anissa All,et al.  Measuring Effectiveness in Digital Game-Based Learning: A Methodological Review , 2014, Int. J. Serious Games.

[32]  Jean Écalle,et al.  Serious games as new educational tools: how effective are they? A meta-analysis of recent studies , 2013, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[33]  D. Crookall.  Serious Games, Debriefing, and Simulation/Gaming as a Discipline , 2010 .

[34]  G. Cumming.  Understanding the New Statistics: Effect Sizes, Confidence Intervals, and Meta-Analysis , 2011 .

[35]  AllAnissa,et al.  Assessing the effectiveness of digital game-based learning , 2016 .

[36]  Maria del Carmen Juan Lizandra,et al.  Evaluation of learning outcomes using an educational iPhone game vs. traditional game , 2013, Comput. Educ..

[37]  Eric Klopfer,et al.  Augmented Learning: Research and Design of Mobile Educational Games , 2008 .

[38]  Wilfried Admiraal,et al.  Mobile game-based learning in secondary education: engagement, motivation and learning in a mobile city game , 2009, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[39]  Stephan J. Franciosi.  Acceptability of RPG Simulators for Foreign Language Training in Japanese Higher Education , 2016 .

[40]  M George,et al.  Get real. , 1999, Nursing standard (Royal College of Nursing (Great Britain) : 1987).

[41]  Fengfeng Ke,et al.  A Qualitative Meta-Analysis of Computer Games as Learning Tools , 2009 .

[42]  Andy Koronios,et al.  How Do Students Use Their Mobile Devices to Support Learning? A Case Study from an Australian , 2015 .

[43]  Mariano Alcañiz Raya,et al.  Learning in serious virtual worlds: Evaluation of learning effectiveness and appeal to students in the E-Junior project , 2010, Comput. Educ..

[44]  Joseph Wolfe,et al.  Putting Theory-Oriented Evaluation Into Practice , 2009 .

[45]  S. Cole,et al.  Improvement in cancer-related knowledge following use of a psychoeducational video game for adolescents and young adults with cancer. , 2007, The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine.

[46]  SuC-H.,et al.  A mobile gamification learning system for improving the learning motivation and achievements , 2015 .

[47]  Marian Aleson-Carbonell,et al.  Serious games and learning effectiveness: The case of It's a Deal! , 2012, Comput. Educ..

[48]  Anissa All,et al.  Assessing the effectiveness of digital game-based learning: Best practices , 2016, Comput. Educ..

[49]  Anthony Anderson,et al.  Engaging first-year students through online collaborative assessments , 2010, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[50]  Diana G. Oblinger,et al.  The Next Generation of Educational Engagement , 2004 .

[51]  Maria Virvou,et al.  Combining Software Games with Education: Evaluation of its Educational Effectiveness , 2005, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[52]  C.-H. Cheng,et al.  A mobile gamification learning system for improving the learning motivation and achievements , 2015, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[53]  Maria del Carmen Juan Lizandra,et al.  Mobile learning vs. traditional classroom lessons: a comparative study , 2015, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[54]  James E. Driskell,et al.  Games, Motivation, and Learning: A Research and Practice Model , 2002 .

[55]  Willy Christian Kriz,et al.  Creating Effective Learning Environments and Learning Organizations through Gaming Simulation Design , 2003 .

[56]  Benjamin S. Bloom,et al.  A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives , 2000 .

[57]  Liyan Song,et al.  Digital Game-Based Learning , 2014 .

[58]  Ryan Shaun Joazeiro de Baker,et al.  Modeling how incoming knowledge, persistence, affective states, and in-game progress influence student learning from an educational game , 2015, Comput. Educ..

[59]  A. C. K. Lee,et al.  Undergraduate students' gender differences in IT skills and attitudes , 2003, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[60]  Patricia Santos,et al.  Ideas in Mobile Learning , 2015 .

[61]  Roland Klemke,et al.  Attuning a mobile simulation game for school children using a design-based research approach , 2015, Comput. Educ..

[62]  James M. Boyle,et al.  A systematic literature review of empirical evidence on computer games and serious games , 2012, Comput. Educ..

[63]  Sylke Vandercruysse,et al.  Game-Based Learning: A Review on the Effectiveness of Educational Games , 2012 .

[64]  Atsusi Hirumi,et al.  The effects of modern mathematics computer games on mathematics achievement and class motivation , 2010, Comput. Educ..