Integrating culture into digital learning environments: studies using cultural educational games

The research presented in this paper focuses on the importance of culture as a design feature in educational learning environments. The significance, benefits and barriers of adopting culturally-oriented approaches are discussed together with recommendations from the literature for overcoming challenges. In this paper, we describe the details of an exploratory study and an experimental study undertaken using culturally-oriented educational games built in accordance with the recommendations for enculturated learning systems. The results and findings of both studies are outlined, and evidence is presented in support of the viability and utility of cultural inclusivity in educational game-based learning environments.

[1]  Kevin Oxland,et al.  Gameplay and design , 2004 .

[2]  C. McLoughlin,et al.  Designing Learning Environments for Cultural Inclusivity: A Case Study of Indigenous Online Learning at Tertiary Level. , 2000 .

[3]  Claude Frasson,et al.  Easy Creation of Game-Like Virtual Learning Environments , 2006 .

[4]  Teresa Dillon,et al.  Adventure Games for Learning and Storytelling A Futurelab prototype context paper : Adventure Author , 2006 .

[5]  Anastasios A. Economides,et al.  Culture-Aware Collaborative Learning. , 2008 .

[6]  D. P. Subramony.  Instructional Technologists' Inattention to Issues of Cultural Diversity Among Learners , 2004 .

[8]  Tammy Schellens,et al.  Cultural differences in the perception of a social-constructivist e-learning environment , 2009, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[9]  Andrea Edmundson.  Globalized E-Learning Cultural Challenges , 2006 .

[10]  Phaedra S. Mohammed,et al.  Sugar Coated Learning: Incorporating Intelligence into Principled Learning Games , 2008 .

[11]  James W. Neuliep,et al.  An examination of the content of high school teachers' humor in the classroom and the development of an inductively derived taxonomy of classroom humor , 1991 .

[12]  Permanand Mohan,et al.  Combining Digital Games with Culture: A Novel Approach towards Boosting Student Interest and Skill Development in Computer Science Programming , 2010, 2010 Second International Conference on Mobile, Hybrid, and On-Line Learning.

[13]  R. Hoosain,et al.  Culture, motivation, and learning : a multicultural perspective , 2007 .

[14]  S. Wilson.  What Video Games Have to Teach Us about Learning and Literacy , 2006 .

[15]  Permanand Mohan,et al.  Student Attitudes towards Using Culturally-Oriented Educational Games to Improve Programming Proficiency: An Exploratory Study , 2009, Edutainment.

[16]  Lyn Henderson.  Theorizing a multiple cultures instructional design model for E-learning and E-teaching , 2007 .

[17]  Stephen H. Edwards,et al.  Improving student programming skills by developing program comprehension abilities: panel discussion , 2005 .

[18]  Christopher Robbins.  Providing cultural context with educational multimedia in the South Pacific , 2006, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[19]  Marilyn Fleer,et al.  Reflecting Indigenous Culture in Educational Software Design. , 1989 .

[20]  Patricia A. Young.  Integrating Culture in the Design of ICTs , 2007, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[21]  M. Habgood.  The effective integration of digital games and learning content , 2007 .