Learning support with conceptual and/or procedural knowledge for problem solving is a powerful and frequently used approach to help students improve their academic achievement in GBL. The study is warranted in the body of research on how to design learning support with conceptual and/or procedural knowledge for problem solving in GBL environments in the domain of math learning. A pretest-posttest experimental design was used to examine the effects of the type of learning supports (supports with conceptual and/or procedural knowledge) for mathematical problem solving in GBL on students’ in-game performance measured by on-task time and time of attempts, mathematical achievement, and game flow. The study incorporates three conditions that are identical with respect to learning objectives (game-based math problem solving) and the learning environment (the GBL environment) but differ in only one variable: learning support. Forty-five participants were recruited from four sixth-grade classes of a charter school in the western United States. Participants in each class session were randomly assigned to three experimental conditions: (a) learning support with procedural knowledge only game playing, (b) learning support with conceptual knowledge only game playing, or (c) learning support with both conceptual and procedural knowledge game playing. Of these recruited 45 participants, 42 completed the entire four-day experiment, but one of them did not complete all the tests and the game flow survey. Thus, data from 42 participants were used to answer the first research question, and data from 41 participants, who completed the entire four-day experiment and finished all tests and surveys, were used to answer the second and the third research questions in the statistical analysis. No significant differences were found among three learning conditions in students’ in-game performance measured by on-task time and number of attempts, and game flow experience. The results indicated that learning support with procedural knowledge only, compared with learning support with both conceptual and procedural knowledge, and that with conceptual knowledge only, was the most significantly effective in promoting students’ math test scores. The current study revealed that different types of learning supports embedded in a game-based learning environment have different effects on the knowledge acquisition of mathematical problem solving. Learning support should be carefully designed and incorporated in the GBL environment. Furthermore, additional learning support is not always beneficial for reaching game flow, and may further interrupt what is enjoyable about the game, which may have a negative effect on learning in a GBL environment. The findings of the current study indicated that participants in the condition of learning support with procedural knowledge only performed better in the post-gaming math tests than the students who were given learning support with both conceptual and procedural knowledge and those with conceptual knowledge only. Moreover, it is important to provide students with learning support that can balance the acquisition of content-specific knowledge and that of content-generic knowledge and diminish the negative effects of players’ technical skills on in-game performance, particularly in a GBL environment that emphasizes high keyboard control (e.g. a 3D game). / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / 2019 / October 28, 2019. / conceptual and procedural knowlege, game-based learning, game-based math problem solving, game flow, in-game performance, learning support / Includes bibliographical references. / Fengfeng Ke, Professor Directing Dissertation; Motoko Akiba, University Representative; James Klein, Committee Member; Vanessa Dennen, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_752451 |
| Contributors | Pan, Yanjun (author), Ke, Fengfeng (professor directing dissertation), Akiba, Motoko (university representative), Klein, James D. (committee member), Dennen, Vanessa P., 1970- (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Education (degree granting college), Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems (degree granting departmentdgg) |
| Publisher | Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text, doctoral thesis |
| Format | 1 online resource (106 pages), computer, application/pdf |
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