This study investigates the perceptions and observations of teachers regarding the implementation of Game-Based Learning (GBL) for students with special needs, with a focus on ADHD, mainly in the Swedish educational system. Utilizing a qualitative research methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with six educators experienced in special education and GBL. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis, guided by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), to identify key themes related to the benefits, challenges, and attitudes towards GBL. The findings indicate that GBL significantly enhances student engagement and motivation, facilitates easier and more permanent learning, and improves academic performance. However, challenges such as inadequate teacher training, limited resource access, and scepticism among educators were also identified. These results underscore the need for targeted professional development and better resource allocation to maximize the potential of GBL in supporting students with special needs and ADHD. This research contributes to the existing literature by providing valuable insights into the practical implementation of GBL and its impact on students with special needs and ADHD.

Digitala spel i dagens samhälle blir allt vanligare och har de senaste åren börjat användas inom utbildning och undervisning runt om i världen. Att använda spel och teknologi inom en utbildning har både positiv och negativ påverkan på eleverna så väl som skolan. Teknikens positiva delar leder till en ökad motivation och engagemang bland eleverna men kan samtidigt leda till mer negativa delar, till exempel social isolering, dyra kostnader eller en distraktion som kan leda till att det påverkar andra kurser inom utbildningen negativt. Denna rapport syftar till att vara ett stöd vid val av utbildningsverktyg som ska användas i syfte för Game Design Based Learning (GDBL). Detta stöd består av en utvärderingsmodell som kan användas av exempelvis lärare som vill tillämpa GDBL i sin utbildning. Arbetet har utförts med stöd av forskningsstrategin design och skapande, där utvecklingen och framtagandet av en artefakt har skett. Utvärderingsmodellen har utformats med hjälp av den aktuella forskningsstrategin. Datainsamlingen för arbetet har skett genom sökning efter utbildningsverktyg, bland annat, på sökmotorn Google Search tillsammans med relevanta termer för arbetet, till exempel drag & drop. Vid tillämpning av GDBL samt valet av utbildningsverktyg gäller det att ta hänsyn till både de möjligheter som GDBL ger men även de negativa risker som finns. Utvärderingsmodellen har också testats på fem olika utbildningsverktyg för att validera utvärderingsmodellen. Dessa fem utbildningsverktyg är Scratch, Kodu Game Lab, Kahoot, Quizizz och Twine. Slutligen kom vi fram till att två av utbildningsverktygen passar bäst i ett utbildningssyfte. Dessa var Kahoot och Quizizz som är simpla frågesportsspel, det vill säga att dessa inte kräver utbildning eller programmering för att användas inom en undervisning. Detta baserades på ett påhittat scenario vilket var att hitta ett utbildningsverktyg för ett program som inriktar sig på grafisk design. / Digital games in today's society are becoming more common and have in the past few years been used in education and teaching around the world. Using games and technology in an education has both positive and negative impact on the students as well as the school. The positive aspects of technology lead to increased motivation and commitment among the students, but at the same time can lead to more negative factors, such as social isolation, expensive costs or a distraction that may adversely affect other courses in education. This report aims to be a support in selecting educational tools to be used for Game Design Based Learning (GDBL). This support consists of an evaluation model that can be used, for example, by teachers who wish to apply GDBL in their education. The work has been carried out with the support of the research strategy design and creation, where the development and the production of an artefact has taken place. The evaluation model has been designed using the current research strategy. The data collection for the work has been done by searching for training tools, including the search engine Google Search, along with relevant terms for the work, such as drag & drop. When applying GDBL and the choice of training tools, it takes into account both the opportunities offered by GDBL, but also the negative risks that exist. The evaluation model has also been tested on five different training tools to validate the evaluation model. These five training tools are Scratch, Kodu Game Lab, Kahoot, Quizizz and Twine. Finally, we found that two of the training tools are the most suitable for educational purposes. These were Kahoot and Quizizz, which are simple quiz games, that is, they do not require education or programming to be used in a classroom. This was based on an established scenario, which was to find a training tool for a program that focuses on graphic design.

This study intends to find out how two different teaching methods affect pupils'communicative ability in the problem-solving process. This through the use of smallgroup work. This study also has a comparative aspect and intends to compare atraditional teaching method with the innovative Game-based learning theory, whichadvocates that learning can take place through gamification. In order to achieve theaim of the study, an inquiry was carried out in four different small groups in gradefour (ages 10–11). The result of the inquiry indicated that the mean value of thenumber of communication clusters presented per minute was higher in the groupsthat worked with traditional learning than those that worked with gamified learningthrough the use of Escape room. / Denna studie har för avsikt att ta reda på hur två olika undervisningssätt påverkarelevers kommunikativa förmåga inom problemlösningsprocessen. Detta genomanvändandet av smågruppsarbeten. Studien har även en jämförande aspekt somhandlar om att jämföra ett traditionellt undervisningssätt med den nytänkandeGame-based learning theory som förespråkar att lärande bör ske genom spelifiering.För att uppnå syftet med studien genomfördes en undersökning i fyra olikasmågrupper i årskurs fyra (ålder 10–11 år). Resultatet från undersökningen pekadepå att medelvärdet av antal uppvisade kommunikationskluster per minut var högrehos grupperna som arbetade med traditionellt lärande än de som arbetade medspelifierat lärande genom användandet av Escape room.

Playing video games is a common hobby for many Swedish teenagers. Bystanders might think that excessive exposure to video games will cause harm for the youth, but what is lesser known is that the games can help develop several cognitive functions. For example, many of the popular games today have an economic dimension to them, where players will need to learn the proper way to manage their money in a certain game. With this in mind, is there a possible correlation between the amount of time spent playing video games and financial capability? This study examines that question with a quantitative approach. A survey was sent out to swedish high school students, asking them questions about their habits in regards to video games as well as questions to measure their financial capability. The findings point towards a slightly negative correlation between hours spent per week playing video games and the students financial capability. The lowest negative number was from Spearman’s rho - 0.214, and was found in the attribute positive financial behaviour. Important to note is that the significance from the p-values has indicated that the results are not significant. Apart from the analysis, the pivot tables that showcased the answers from the survey exhibited some interesting patterns for the group that played more than 15 hours per week. For example, the object scenario shows that 15 of 39 respondents would choose an aesthetic non-functional item insted of an item which has a functional advantage in the game. These patterns could be researched further under different circumstances than the current study. / Playing video games is a common hobby for many Swedish teenagers. Bystanders might think that excessive exposure to video games will cause harm for the youth, but what is lesser known is that the games can help develop several cognitive functions. For example, many of the popular games today have an economic dimension to them, where players will need to learn the proper way to manage their money in a certain game. With this in mind, is there a possible correlation between the amount of time spent playing video games and financial capability? This study examines that question with a quantitative approach. A survey was sent out to swedish high school students, asking them questions about their habits in regards to video games as well as questions to measure their financial capability. The findings point towards a slightly negative correlation between hours spent per week playing video games and the students financial capability. The lowest negative number was from Spearman’s rho - 0.214, and was found in the attribute positive financial behaviour. Important to note is that the significance from the p-values has indicated that the results are not significant. Apart from the analysis, the pivot tables that showcased the answers from the survey exhibited some interesting patterns for the group that played more than 15 hours per week. For example, the object scenario shows that 15 of 39 respondents would choose an aesthetic non-functional item insted of an item which has a functional advantage in the game. These patterns could be researched further under different circumstances than the current study.

The field of game-mediated L2 learning has grown exponentially, and much has been discovered about the potentials of game-mediated interactions for L2 development, yet the fine-grained dynamics of player-game interactions and how they come to facilitate and afford L2 development are still largely underexplored. To address this gap in the literature the current project presents 2 studies that examined the activities and fine-grained interactional learning dynamics of 7 learners of Arabic as a FL playing the simulation-management video game Baalty. A convenience sample was recruited at the University of Arizona to participate in the project voluntarily due to the scarcity of Egyptian Arabic learners. Qualitative case study design was used to offer a think description of the activities and fine-grained dynamics that comprise player-game interaction (Dörnyei, 2007). Ecological approaches to L2 learning (Van Lier, 2004) were used as a theoretical framework to underline the complex of factors that mediate and/or shape game-mediated L2 use. The study employed a variety of data collection instruments, including thinkaloud protocols, stimulated recall interviews, field observations, questionnaires, walkthroughs, gaming journals, and debriefing interviews, to collect data about participants' gaming activities and game-mediated languaging on cognitive, sociocultural, and virtual dimensions. The underlying reasoning for that approach is that each bit of data presents fragmented information about a specific facet of player-game interaction, and that by examining and organizing these pieces of information player-game interaction can be re-constructed. Data were coded both thematically and categorically according to a custom-made coding scheme. Data were then triangulated and analyzed for patterns and trends. Data analysis and interpretation demonstrated that player-game interaction is a dynamic multi-dimensional activity embedded in the gaming ecology and constituted by the player's participation in iterative levels of mutually constituted activity composed of languaging, play, and narration. The data further revealed that dynamic interaction between languaging and play activities situated in-game discourses in gameplay and offer opportunities for extended languaging and situated L2 development.

Walking outdoors requires one to deal with a wide range of visual and cognitive perturbations, i.e., multiple object tracking and making timely decisions while ignoring irrelevant information, etc. Using dual-task gait paradigm, the purpose of this thesis was to evaluate the age effects of different types of visuospatial cognitive tasks, i.e. designed cognitive game tasks and commercial computer games on gait and cognitive performances in older adults as compared to the younger adults. A standardized dual-task assessment approach, i.e. objectively evaluating both gait and cognitive performances simultaneously, has potential to be the screening tool to detect gait and cognitive impairments in early stages. Further, evaluating the training value of commercial computer games by comparing them with the designed cognitive games with objective outcome measures will help in developing multimodal dual-task intervention platform to treat and prevent age-related physical and cognitive impairments. / October 2016

An increasing amount of attention has been brought to language learning through digital games. Incidental learning through different media types such as in print and online have also seen an increased amount of research done in recent years. This study examines the amount of incidental learning that occurs across three media types (in print, online, and in a digital simulation game) as well as participants' perceptions of how enjoyable and helpful these media types are. Results suggest that of the three media types, incidental learning occurred most through the online reading. Furthermore, although not statistically significant, participants in the present study found the reading in print to be most enjoyable and helpful.

Edutainment refers to curriculum and instruction designed with a clear educational purpose, including multi-faceted virtual learning game design. Tools such as the Jacob's Ladder pre-production design tactic have been developed to ensure that voices of both engineers and educators are heard. However, it is unclear how development team members experience and perceive their collaborative work while designing a virtual game using such tactics. This phenomenological study examined the experiences of agile software team members using Jacob's Ladder pre-production design as an interdisciplinary collaboration tool while designing a virtual learning game. Seven design team members (3 educators and 4 engineers) participated in semi-structured interviews and transcripts were analyzed via an inductive coding process that led to the development of key themes. Findings indicated that using Jacob's Ladder design tactic influenced the experience of the team by keeping the team focused on common goals and learner needs, organizing the team work, supporting interdisciplinary collaboration, and promoting shared understandings of the software platform limitations. Individuals played various roles, appreciated diverse views, recognized prior experience and idea sharing, and felt the design tactic supported flexibility for interdisciplinary collaboration. By linking integration strategies to interdisciplinary collaboration, findings from this study may be used by organizational leaders to consider best practices in team building for virtual learning game design, which will further support the development of effective games and growth of the edutainment industry.

In contemporary world, there is a constant need for leadership development. Technological advancements, excessive uncertainty and severe hostility on one hand and high expectations from subordinates, pressure from stakeholders on another hand force leaders to develop more skills and competencies in order to succeed. Leadership competencies represent a set of behaviours that are seen to be crucial to deliver desired outcomes. Organisations design competencies models that are used for diverse reasons within human resources management, such as employee selection, career development, succession planning, performance management and employee development. The current most common practices in leadership competencies development applied by organisations include coaching and mentoring, 360‐degree feedback, specific job assignments, networking, action learning, corporate case studies, computer simulations, experiential learning and of course classroom‐type leadership training. However, the future generation of employees are the nowadays youngsters whose life is widely influenced by technology. A specific interest among them is in online and computer-based games, on which they spend a considerable amount of time per week. Games in general were proven to be an effective tool for education among children and young adults, and were discussed to be useful for adults as well. Presented research is performed with the goal to create an understanding of the game-based learning approach to leadership competencies development. Our first ambition for the research was to find out what leadership competencies are most likely to be developed though GBL approach. We came to the results that GBL approach can be effective in developing social interaction competencies such as motivation, facilitation, coaching, effective communication, collaborative negotiation, effective teamwork and such cognitive competencies as strategic thinking, decision making, problem solving and technical competency. Our second aim for the research was to draw on a conceptual framework in form of an experiment to answer to the question of how effective is game-based learning for development of leadership competencies. The experiment model proposed in this conceptual paper was designed by us by putting together elements in form of such games as "Spaghetti Tower"; "Strategic thinking game with 8 players" for measurement and "Acquire" board game for development of the "strategic thinking" leadership competency.

Summary Aliona Pavliukova Alternation of the complex game-based activity and musical activity in the first – the third forms of the primary school The content of the Postgraduate work comprises the analysis of a child’s activity alternation orientated towards his/her self-expression. Learning becomes a new and basic activity at an elementary schools stage. This kind of practice requires the new content of the activity, experience, intellectual efforts and thinking from the child. The learning must be based on the natural child’s activity integrating a certain amount of knowledge in it. The learning experience and demand to learn start to ripen. At a junior school stage the key activity corresponding the characteristics of the child’s maturity, his experience, inner world is the one of the complex game-based activity. It means that the activity is orientated towards the child’s self-expression. When the child grows up and starts to gets mature, his needs, interests change together with the self-expression’s potentiality. The complex game-based activity step by step turns into the musical activity. The musical activity is available only by keeping the child’s natural activity and integrating the knowledge of the Art discipline in it. The activity should be supplemented with the Art expression means, sequentially changing the quality of the content of the activity and accumulating the experience of the self-expression. The artistic-musical activity remains not only crucial... [to full text]