Development of a game in the form of software for game-based learning poses significant technical challenges for educators, researchers, game designers, and software engineers. The game development consists of a set of complex processes requiring multi-faceted knowledge in multiple disciplines such as digital graphic design, education, gaming, instructional design, modeling and simulation, psychology, software engineering, visual arts, and the learning subject area. Planning and managing such a complex multidisciplinary development project require unifying methodologies for development and software quality evaluation and should not be performed in an ad hoc manner. This dissertation presents such methodologies named: GAMED (diGital educAtional gaMe dEvelopment methoDology) and IDEALLY (dIgital eDucational gamE softwAre quaLity evaLuation methodologY). GAMED consists of a body of methods, rules, and postulates and is embedded within a digital educational game life cycle. The life cycle describes a framework for organization of the phases, processes, work products, quality assurance activities, and project management activities required to develop, use, maintain, and evolve a digital educational game from birth to retirement. GAMED provides a modular structured approach for overcoming the development complexity and guides the developers throughout the entire life cycle. IDEALLY provides a hierarchy of 111 indicators consisting of 21 branch and 90 leaf indicators in the form of an acyclic graph for the measurement and evaluation of digital educational game software quality. We developed the GAMED and IDEALLY methodologies based on the experiences and knowledge we have gained in creating and publishing four digital educational games that run on the iOS (iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch) mobile devices: CandyFactory, CandySpan, CandyDepot, and CandyBot. The two methodologies provide a quality-centered structured approach for development of digital educational games and are essential for accomplishing demanding goals of game-based learning. Moreover, classifications provided in the literature are inadequate for the game designers, engineers and practitioners. To that end, we present a taxonomy of games that focuses on the characterization of games. / Ph. D.

Le phénomène du décrochage scolaire est encore très présent dans notre société, particulièrement chez les garçons. Notre mémoire s’intéresse à la question et vise à mieux comprendre la dynamique motivationnelle d’un échantillon (N=11) d’élèves masculins considéré comme étant « à risque » de décrochage au 3e cycle d’une école primaire de Montréal. De plus, notre expérimentation vise spécifiquement à décrire l’influence de l’utilisation d’une activité pédagogique dite « motivante » : le jeu éducatif numérique « Math en Jeu » sur la dynamique motivationnelle à apprendre en mathématiques. Il s’agit d’une étude de cas avec une approche mixte de collecte de données. Nos résultats révèlent quatre profils de dynamique motivationnelle chez les élèves de notre échantillon : 1) les élèves en difficulté en mathématiques, 2) les élèves démotivés et 3) les élèves démotivés et en difficulté en mathématiques, puis, 4) des cas plus complexes. Notre analyse montre que « Math en Jeu » suscite un grand intérêt chez tous les élèves de notre échantillon. L’influence du jeu sur la dynamique motivationnelle semble toutefois mieux convenir aux élèves avec des dynamiques motivationnelles de type « démotivé » ou « démotivé et en difficulté en mathématiques » et dans une certaine mesure, certains élèves catégorisés comme étant des « cas complexes ». Nos résultats indiquent que le jeu pourrait notamment avoir une certaine influence sur le sentiment de compétence à réussir de l’élève. Toutefois, pour être en mesure de mieux décrire et analyser ces influences, il serait préférable de mener des recherches sur une plus longue durée, dans un contexte naturel de classe et sur un échantillon d’élèves plus grand. / The phenomena of school dropouts remains an area of grave concern in North American society, and one that is particularly present among boys. Our research aims to better understand the motivational dynamics of elementary school boys considered “atrisk” (Student Subjects = 11). Our research, both theoretical and practical, analyses the influence of an educational video game called "Math-a-Maze" on the motivational dynamics of boys at-risk, when learning mathematics. This is a case study with a mixed approach to data collection. Our sample of students represents four types of motivational dynamics : 1) Students that struggle in mathematics, 2) Students that are disengaged, 3) Students that are disengaged and that struggle in mathematics, and, 4) More complex cases. Our analysis revealed that “Math-a-Maze” generated great interest and enthusiasm among all students in our sample. The influence of this learning tool on the motivational dynamics of our subjects was more pronounced for students displaying motivational dynamics 2 and 3, "disengaged" or “disengaged and struggling in math” and some students of more complex cases. For example, our results indicate that this educational game could have a positive influence on the student’s sense of competency, and thus, their self-confidence in the subject. In order to more thoroughly explore the possible influences of this teaching method however, more in-depth research is suggested, over a longer period of time, in a natural classroom environment and with a larger sample of students at-risk.

Growing knowledge in the field of cognitive science can significantly improve the way we learn. Several methods and principles are being repeatedly confirmed by numerous studies as effective for learning. They include spaced repetition, test-enhanced learning, and desirable difficulty principle. With the continual spreading of ICT technologies, diverse software is being developed as well, some of which more and some of which less successfully employs the methods and principles outlined. Memrise, Purpose Games and Drill and Skill, web platforms which are examined in this thesis, belong to this software family. In the first phase, i conducted several interviews with teachers who were using Drill and Skill as part of their science teaching at elementary schools and a junior grammar school (all of them were teaching children approx. 11-15 years old). After this, i worked with a class from a grammar school (age around 16). i made several groups of educational games to help the students practice the topics studied in their biology lessons. Each group of games was reviewed during a group interview. Recordings from these interviews as well as from the interviews with the teachers were transcribed and these transcripts underwent qualitative analysis, which is an important part of the thesis. Drawing on all...

Le phénomène du décrochage scolaire est encore très présent dans notre société, particulièrement chez les garçons. Notre mémoire s’intéresse à la question et vise à mieux comprendre la dynamique motivationnelle d’un échantillon (N=11) d’élèves masculins considéré comme étant « à risque » de décrochage au 3e cycle d’une école primaire de Montréal. De plus, notre expérimentation vise spécifiquement à décrire l’influence de l’utilisation d’une activité pédagogique dite « motivante » : le jeu éducatif numérique « Math en Jeu » sur la dynamique motivationnelle à apprendre en mathématiques. Il s’agit d’une étude de cas avec une approche mixte de collecte de données. Nos résultats révèlent quatre profils de dynamique motivationnelle chez les élèves de notre échantillon : 1) les élèves en difficulté en mathématiques, 2) les élèves démotivés et 3) les élèves démotivés et en difficulté en mathématiques, puis, 4) des cas plus complexes. Notre analyse montre que « Math en Jeu » suscite un grand intérêt chez tous les élèves de notre échantillon. L’influence du jeu sur la dynamique motivationnelle semble toutefois mieux convenir aux élèves avec des dynamiques motivationnelles de type « démotivé » ou « démotivé et en difficulté en mathématiques » et dans une certaine mesure, certains élèves catégorisés comme étant des « cas complexes ». Nos résultats indiquent que le jeu pourrait notamment avoir une certaine influence sur le sentiment de compétence à réussir de l’élève. Toutefois, pour être en mesure de mieux décrire et analyser ces influences, il serait préférable de mener des recherches sur une plus longue durée, dans un contexte naturel de classe et sur un échantillon d’élèves plus grand. / The phenomena of school dropouts remains an area of grave concern in North American society, and one that is particularly present among boys. Our research aims to better understand the motivational dynamics of elementary school boys considered “atrisk” (Student Subjects = 11). Our research, both theoretical and practical, analyses the influence of an educational video game called "Math-a-Maze" on the motivational dynamics of boys at-risk, when learning mathematics. This is a case study with a mixed approach to data collection. Our sample of students represents four types of motivational dynamics : 1) Students that struggle in mathematics, 2) Students that are disengaged, 3) Students that are disengaged and that struggle in mathematics, and, 4) More complex cases. Our analysis revealed that “Math-a-Maze” generated great interest and enthusiasm among all students in our sample. The influence of this learning tool on the motivational dynamics of our subjects was more pronounced for students displaying motivational dynamics 2 and 3, "disengaged" or “disengaged and struggling in math” and some students of more complex cases. For example, our results indicate that this educational game could have a positive influence on the student’s sense of competency, and thus, their self-confidence in the subject. In order to more thoroughly explore the possible influences of this teaching method however, more in-depth research is suggested, over a longer period of time, in a natural classroom environment and with a larger sample of students at-risk.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:48:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 JuvaneNM_DISSERT.pdf: 3311977 bytes, checksum: 023a258e0578754a9e4d7c47a88ef0ca (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-02-24 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / The use of technology tools for teaching and learning has grown increasingly in our daily life. In this context, a branch that has had tremendous growth is the area of teaching and learning language through computational tools. The study of CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning), accomplished in this research, aims to evaluate existing tools in this context, focused specifically on the Japanese language; and from this study, accomplish the development of a new computational tool that can assist teaching/learning of the Japanese language. As results, we present a wide survey on the subject in various technologies/devices, as well as the complete development process of a new tool, the Karuchā Ships Invaders game, that proposes to teach basic concepts of the language, blended with entertainment, and still, focusing on the Brazilian students of Japanese language audience. We will present all the concept phases of the game and its evolution through the research, as well as an interface evaluation. Still, we present proposal and validation of a method to evaluate motivational aspects of computational tools with educational focus, and results extracted from an experiment accomplished with prospective users / O uso de ferramentas tecnol?gicas para apoiar o processo de ensino-aprendizagem de diversas ?reas do conhecimento ? not?rio e vem crescendo a cada dia, inclusive, no contexto de aprendizado de idiomas. O estudo de Aprendizado de Idioma com Aux?lio de Computador Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) realizado nesta pesquisa teve o intuito de avaliar as ferramentas existentes nesse contexto, focadas especificamente no idioma japon?s e, a partir desse estudo, realizar o desenvolvimento de uma nova ferramenta que auxilie o ensino da l?ngua japonesa. Como resultados, apresentamos um abrangente levantamento sobre o tema nas mais diversas tecnologias, bem como, descrevemos todos os passos do desenvolvimento do jogo Karuchā Ships Invaders, que se prop?e a ensinar conceitos b?sicos do idioma, mesclando-se ao entretenimento, ainda com foco no p?blico de estudantes brasileiros de japon?s. Ser?o apresentadas as fases de concep??o do jogo e sua evolu??o ao longo da pesquisa, bem como a avalia??o de sua interface. Ainda, apresentamos um m?todo para avaliar aspectos motivacionais de ferramentas computacionais com foco educacional e resultados de um experimento realizado com usu?rios em perspectiva

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:07:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FERRAZ_JUNIOR_Wilton_2015.pdf: 16420702 bytes, checksum: 618d7c194c6a9fff0f67ef9767ad5f99 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-06-29 / This work aims to develop a novel method to design educational games, following Extreme Programming and Scrum Agile Methods and screenplays under the dilemmas and mechanical game re-guise concepts, which are already widely accepted in the literature. Workshops using the proposed method were conducted in order to identify the demands of educators and students from elementary and middle school and also the viability in the implementation of the method as a support tool to the teaching process. The validation results and the method acceptance were evaluated by statistical tests, which are also widely explored in the literature for similar samples. The final remarks show the successful methods evolution and their validation results under the considered classrooms context. / Este trabalho tem por objetivo desenvolver um novo método para a produção de jogos educativos, baseado nos métodos ágeis Scrum e Extreme Programming, além de utilizar conceitos de produção de roteiros baseados em dilemas e utilização de técnicas de rerroupagem de mecânicas de jogos já existentes e amplamente aceitas pela literatura. Foram realizadas oficinas, que utilizaram versões do método proposto, para identificar as demandas de professores e alunos do ensino médio e fundamental, e verificar qual delas apresentavam viabilidade de implantação como ferramenta de apoio ao processo de ensino-aprendizagem. Os resultados obtidos, tanto em relação à aceitação do método e como em relação à melhora dos indicadores de aprendizagem dos conceitos apresentados durante as oficinas, foram analisados utilizando testes estatísticos específicos, amplamente explorados na literatura. Os resultados dos testes permitiram o aprimoramento e a validação do método proposto dentro do contexto de sala de aula.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2016-02-25T17:40:15Z No. of bitstreams: 1 gevaschaeferpereiramartins.pdf: 2682934 bytes, checksum: 33ec1a1ae839b115cb034d5d0518f377 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2016-03-03T13:32:32Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 gevaschaeferpereiramartins.pdf: 2682934 bytes, checksum: 33ec1a1ae839b115cb034d5d0518f377 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-03T13:32:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 gevaschaeferpereiramartins.pdf: 2682934 bytes, checksum: 33ec1a1ae839b115cb034d5d0518f377 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-09-03 / As vantagens da utilização de jogos com objetivos educacionais podem ser consideradas como um consenso entre professores e alunos. No entanto, jogos sérios constituem-se objetos multimídia complexos e caros de se produzir. A natureza multidisciplinar dos jogos educacionais pressupõe o envolvimento e coordenação de uma equipe especializada. Com o objetivo de auxiliar no desenvolvimento de jogos educacionais é proposto o modelo computacional BROAD-PLG. O modelo é composto por uma arquitetura de alto nível, modelagens de domínio baseadas em características que descrevem três diferentes tipos dos jogos educacionais, e uma ferramenta de engenharia de aplicação, que permite instanciação de um arcabouço pronto para ser utilizado no desenvolvimento desses tipos de jogos. A separação de interesses divide o domínio de jogos educacionais em conjuntos de características que englobam aspectos educacionais, mecânica de jogos e elementos de gamificação. Ao final do trabalho são construídos três exemplos distintos de aplicações demonstrando esses três aspectos. Avaliando-se os exemplos pode-se concluir que o BROAD-PLG, apesar de estar na versão inicial, demonstra grande potencial para ser utilizado como uma ferramenta tanto na forma de geração de aplicações, quanto como referência na modelagem de domínio do problema. / The advantages of using games for educational purposes can be considered as a consensus among teachers and students. However, serious games constitute complex and expensive to produce multimedia objects. The multidisciplinary nature of educational games requires the involvement and coordination of a specialized team. With the objective of assisting in the development of educational games is proposed the computational model BROAD-PLG. The model consists of a high-level architecture, domain modeling based on features that describe three different faces of educational games and application engineering tool that allows instantiation of a framework ready to be used in game development. The separation of concerns splits the domain of educational games into sets of features that include educational aspects of game mechanics and gamification elements. At the end of the work three different application examples are constructed demonstrating these three aspects. In reviewing the examples it can be concluded that the broad-PLG despites being in the initial stage shows great potential to be used as a tool in generating applications as reference in modeling the problem domain.

The final thesis deals with the form and function of an educational game to be used in the 4th and 5th grades of primary school. It will deal with appropriate educational games for these pupils based on their emotional, intellectual and social development. Additionally, it will describe the method for how to categorize different kinds of educational games and how to include them in educational process. In the practical component, there is a comparison of opinions about an educational game between newly qualified and experienced teachers. The opinions of pupils and their evaluation of the specific games are also included. It includes a file of educational games as well which is based on a classification from the theoretical part.

The study of landscape structure and configuration is firmly established as integral to the continued advancement of ecology. The configuration of resource patches can have far-reaching implications for biodiversity, metapopulation dynamics, community structure, and habitat quality. Human activities, such as forestry, agriculture, and residential construction alter patch configuration by breaking larger patches into smaller fragments. This frequently results in pronounced, unforeseen consequences for species. The fragmentation and shrinking of habitat patches can lead to changes in the environmental conditions within the remaining patches (e.g., degradation), prompting responses from local populations. These responses can, in turn, cause changes to the metapopulation structure on large spatial scale.<br>I examined the relationship between the degree of habitat fragmentation (edge density), and forewing lengths of the ebony jewelwing damselfly (Calopteryx maculata Beauvois, Odonata: Calopterygidae). I used correlated random walks to determine the biologically relevant landscape area over which forest fragmentation was calculated. Then, I used Moran’s I to determine the spatial scale of wing length response to fragmentation. I found that wing lengths increased with edge density. I also found that wing lengths were spatially autocorrelated at distances below 5 Km. These findings suggest that damselflies adapt to changes in forest fragmentation at a relatively small spatial scale.<br>Next, I assessed the slime mold Physarum polycephalum’s usefulness as a microcosm of dispersal in fragmented landscapes. Slime mold plasmodia were placed in dishes with oat patches of varying sizes and distances. The probability of each patch type being colonized first was compared to predictions of patch occupancy based on C. maculata. Patches that were nearer or larger were likely to be colonized before patches that were more distant, or smaller. Observed patch occupancy matched model predictions when only patch distance was varied, but not when patch size was varied. These results suggest that P. polycephalum has the potential to serve as a useful microcosm of dispersal in patchy landscapes. However, more testing is needed to develop the microcosm system. <br>Finally, a lesson plan was developed to teach high school students about the concepts of landscape ecology and connectivity. An emphasis was placed on using active learning techniques, which have been demonstrated to result in greater understanding than traditional lecture formats. The lesson plan incorporates an education boardgame, Humans & Habitats, that I developed to illustrate how the conflicting goals of resource managers impact habitat connectivity. It also incorporates a scientific inquiry activity that uses P. polycephalum to test predictions about the effect of altered connectivity. The lesson plan and materials will be available to members of the public, free of charge.<br><br>

<p>У дисертацији су приказани развој мултимодалног<br />система за образовну игру Луграм и истраживања<br />везана за његову примену у области редовног и<br />специјализованог основношколског образовања.<br />Извршено је испитивање утицаја Луграма на<br />повишење ефеката учења геометрије у редовној<br />разредној настави, испитивање да ли његову<br />прилагођену мултимодалну верзију могу да користе<br />слабовида и слепа деца и да ли се она може<br />користити за њихову обуку за самосталну употребу<br />рачунарске аудио верзије Луграма.<br />Утврђено је да Луграм има утицаја на пораст успеха<br />у учењу геометрије и да се прилагођена аудио-<br />тактилна верзија може користити у сврху обуке<br />слабовиде и слепе деце за самостално коришћење<br />аудио верзије игре.<br />Резултати истраживања су показали оправданост<br />приступа развоју Луграма као мултимодалног<br />система за игру и усмерили његов даљи развој ка<br />асистивном мултимодалном систему који поседује<br />способност говорне интеракције са корисником и<br />могућност прилагођења различитим категоријама<br />корисника.</p> / <p>U disertaciji su prikazani razvoj multimodalnog<br />sistema za obrazovnu igru Lugram i istraživanja<br />vezana za njegovu primenu u oblasti redovnog i<br />specijalizovanog osnovnoškolskog obrazovanja.<br />Izvršeno je ispitivanje uticaja Lugrama na<br />povišenje efekata učenja geometrije u redovnoj<br />razrednoj nastavi, ispitivanje da li njegovu<br />prilagođenu multimodalnu verziju mogu da koriste<br />slabovida i slepa deca i da li se ona može<br />koristiti za njihovu obuku za samostalnu upotrebu<br />računarske audio verzije Lugrama.<br />Utvrđeno je da Lugram ima uticaja na porast uspeha<br />u učenju geometrije i da se prilagođena audio-<br />taktilna verzija može koristiti u svrhu obuke<br />slabovide i slepe dece za samostalno korišćenje<br />audio verzije igre.<br />Rezultati istraživanja su pokazali opravdanost<br />pristupa razvoju Lugrama kao multimodalnog<br />sistema za igru i usmerili njegov dalji razvoj ka<br />asistivnom multimodalnom sistemu koji poseduje<br />sposobnost govorne interakcije sa korisnikom i<br />mogućnost prilagođenja različitim kategorijama<br />korisnika.</p> / <p>The dissertation presents the development of the multimodal system for the educational game Lugram and the research related to its application in the regular and specialized primary education. The examination of the effect which Lugram has on the improvement in learning geometry in the primary education is done, as well as the testing weather its adapted multimodal version can be used for the training of partially sighted and blind children for the independent use of the computer audio version of Lugram. It is established that Lugram has an influence on the improvement in learning geometry and that adapted audio-tactile version can be used for the training purposes for partially sighted and blind children. Results of the research have justified the approach in the development of Lugram as a multimodal system for the game. Moreover, they focus further development toward assistive multimodal system which has ability of the voice interaction with the user and also ability of adaptation to the different kind of users.</p>