Www.europeanschoolnet.org - Question & Answer Process EUN, Brussels, 30 September 2010 Caroline...

www.europeanschoolnet.org - www.eun.org

Question & Answer ProcessEUN, Brussels, 30 September 2010

Caroline Kearney, Education Research Analyst

Knowledge-Building Team


Selected elaborate question

Q2) What evidence is there that digital games can contribute to increasing students’ motivation?

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Sub questions – focus points

• What aspects of digital games and games based learning can contribute to increasing students’ motivation?

• How does raising students’ motivation through games based learning impact on their academic achievement?

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Preliminary framing – content of answer

• Define motivation in this context (restricted scope - motivation to learn & not necessarily linked to any output, difficult to measure, mostly based on student self-perception and teachers’ opinions)

• Analyse motivating game features

• Analyse what aspects of the game based learning experience can be motivating for students

• Underline that such features will not have the desired effect without necessary teaching/learning conditions

• Describe academic studies & GIS case studies where motivation has been scientifically monitored & shown to increase with game use

• Explore possible relationship between increasing motivation and increasing attainment (even if no strict relationship motivation can be considered as an end in itself to improve the learning experience for pupils of all abilities).

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EBSCO & ERIC Search Databases

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Following University of Helsinki’s suggestions & our own investigation, EUN has subscribed to the Research Complete ESCO search database, to further invest in our increasing knowledge-based activities.


Key Words & search terms

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Electronic games

Computer games

Video games

Pupils

Age 6 - 18

Synonyms:

Engagement

Learning

Search has been monitored via a search report to catalogue the number of hits, combination of key words and final results after selection.


Results – abstract reading

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• Large number of hits for all combinations of key words

•Process of abstract reading to filter results – monitoring of included & excluded articles & why

•Criteria used: relevance to elaborate question, coverage of sub questions, focus on school children aged between 6 and 18 years, academic robustness/reliable evidence – peer reviewed & mostly empirical evidence

•Selected and discarded research results on this basis – final result of 38 articles (in addition to GIS)


Analysis of selected literature

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• Starting point: Re-reading all GIS reports

Establish what we already know on this topic

Highlight main points to use as a checklist to seek confirmation or contradiction in other academic literature

• Read each academic paper selected fully with these points in mind to build on what we already know, but also be open to new aspects

• After a thorough analysis of each individual paper followed by cross-analysis, re-visit original elaborate/sub questions as well as framing & alter as necessary.


Drafting answers in different formats

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Each format has a different goal and therefore will be useful in different contexts

•Long answer: Including methodology, footnotes & references (Content of answer based on framing shown. For users searching for evidence with in depth explanations).

•Short answer: Summary of long answer with no methodology, footnotes or references. (For users with less time searching for written summarized results)

•PowerPoint: (Useful for presentation of summarized results)

•Video: (to demonstrate concrete findings taking place live in the classroom context – e.g. collaborative learning)

•Visual map: (to illustrate ideas & services graphically)


Difficulties/lessons learned 1

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• Avoiding ‘yes’ and ‘no’ questions (unsuitable for research)

• Exhaustion of all key words and combinations for the search – need to monitor!

• Literature review brings out new aspects not yet considered in preliminary framing – sometimes need to change elaborate/sub questions

• Literature review for one question (often related to others) necessarily has an impact on other questions – so revision needed everywhere

• Very difficult to work on one answer at a time - presently have partial drafts addressing certain aspects for each question, but no question fully completed


Difficulties/lessons learned 2

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•Time needed for thorough search, reading, follow-up of authors’ other related work, and cross analysis of articles (EUN less experience than Helsinki)

• Must not over-rely on GIS study, but need to recognize what is already known and to build on this knowledge, adding something new

• Need to keep in mind both policy maker and teacher target groups, as the readers of the same outputs, yet requiring different language and interested in different areas (original problem discussed at kick-off).

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