IT 16 031
Examensarbete 30 hp Juni 2016
Can a diary, rats and a magical walkie-talkie help teach children about source criticism?
Jessica Brewster
Institutionen för informationsteknologi
Department of Information Technology
Teknisk- naturvetenskaplig fakultet UTH-enheten
Besöksadress:
Ångströmlaboratoriet Lägerhyddsvägen 1 Hus 4, Plan 0 Postadress:
Box 536 751 21 Uppsala Telefon:
018 – 471 30 03 Telefax:
018 – 471 30 00 Hemsida:
http://www.teknat.uu.se/student
Abstract
Can a diary, rats and a magical walkie-talkie help teach children about source criticism?
Jessica Brewster
This thesis explores the potential that surrounds educational gaming in teaching source criticism to primary school students. It investigates if the introduction of a constructivist guide increases the level of skills in this field and whether historical source criticism can be taught through a computer game. Designed as an addition to an existing game created by the Education Technology Group (ETG) were two versions; one of which contained the addition of constructivist teaching methods.
Testing was conducted with two classes of students, who played the game and completed pre and post testing, evaluating their knowledge of source criticism.
According to the data collected, no significant difference in knowledge existed after the game had been played, however several ideas about how source criticism could be utilised within educational games can still be suggested.
Keywords: source criticism, educational games, history, experiment, pre and post-test design, constructivism
Tryckt av: Reprocentralen ITC IT 16 031
Examinator: Anders Jansson Ämnesgranskare: Mats Lind Handledare: Agneta Gulz
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Acknowledgements
My sincere thanks for their invaluable help with this project must go, equally, to two groups of people. The first to the ETG and my supervisors, Agneta &
Annika, who somehow allowed me to join their project and conduct
experiments on it, meaning I could combine history and HCI in one thesis. Also for their subsequent advice on, not only their game, but on essentially
everything to do with testing classrooms of children and how they might best enjoy the experience. Further thanks also to the rest of the ETG, particularly Magnus, Erik, Carolina and Irene for your input, work and guidance.
My second group to thank are those from Uppsala University, including my colleague Ivar, whose unique Swedishness meant we could test on more students and whose translations skills made this project far easier (and far more fun). And lastly, thank you to Mats Lind, our reviewer, whose invaluable spontaneous lectures and data analysis skills formed much of our thesis and meant far more than cookies could ever repay him for!
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Table of Contents
Acknowledgements ... 1
Table of Contents ... 2
1. Introduction ... 4
1.1. Parallel Study ... 5
1.1.1. Method collaboration ... 5
1.1.2. Written ... 5
2. Purpose ... 6
2.1. Research Questions ... 6
2.2. Limitations ... 7
2.3. Scope ... 7
3. Background ... 9
3.1. Educational games ... 9
3.2. History Games ... 10
3.3. Designing Educational Games ... 11
3.4. Pedagogy ... 12
3.4.1. Teaching History ... 12
3.4.2. Teaching source criticism ... 13
3.5 Constructivist teaching theory ... 14
3.5.1. Scaffolding during discovery ... 15
3.5.2. Effective Questioning ... 15
3.5.3. Reflection on Content ... 15
3.6. Elaborative Rehearsal ... 16
3.7. Historiens Väktare ... 16
3.7.1. Game Structure ... 16
4. Method ... 18
4.1 Adaptations to Historiens Väktare ... 18
4.1.1. Finding a Historical Event ... 18
4.1.2 Mind map of chosen historical event ... 18
4.1.3. Brainstorming how to include SC in a game ... 19
4.1.4. Workshop ... 19
4.1.5. Grouping of aspects from the Mind Map ... 20
4.1.6. Sketching of scenes based on chosen sources and characters ... 20
4.1.7. Dialogue scripting in parallel with creation of Pre and Post-test questions to match scene content. ... 20
4.1.8. Feedback and revision until final version ... 20
4.1.9. Difference of the two game versions ... 20
4.1.10. Implementation of graphics and coding ... 21
4.2. Evaluation of HV ... 21
3
4.2.1 Participants... 21
4.2.2 Equipment ... 21
4.2.3. Testing setup ... 22
5. Results ... 24
5.1 Adaptations to Historiens Väktare ... 24
5.1.1. Finding a Historical Event ... 24
5.1.2 Mind map of Great Plague of London ... 25
5.1.3. Brainstorming how to include SC in a game ... 26
5.1.4. Workshop ... 26
5.1.5. Grouping of aspects from the Mind Map ... 28
5.1.6. Sketching of scenes based on chosen sources and characters ... 28
5.1.7. Dialogue scripting in parallel with creation of Pre and Post-test questions to match scene content. ... 29
5.1.8. Feedback and revision until final version ... 29
5.1.9. Difference of the two game versions ... 29
5.1.10. Implementation of graphics and coding ... 30
5.1.11. Final Design ... 30
5.2. Evaluation of HV ... 41
5.2.1. Pre and post-testing ... 41
5.2.2. Observations ... 43
6. Discussion ... 45
Reference List ... 48
Appendix A : Pre and Post-test Questions: Source C riticism ... 51
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1. Introduction
Within the field of history, source criticism is amongst the most important skills to learn. This thesis aimed to discover if it was feasible to teach source criticism skills within a game setting. A secondary question was also posed to explore if a guide utilising constructivist teaching methods would be a positive aid in this process.
The introduction of computer games into education has been expected and, in the case of the students themselves, greatly looked forward too. Whilst games about maths and computer science are widespread, games within the
humanities are far more limited, with fewer resources or studies being utilised for their development.
Students, particularly primary-‐aged ones (who are the focus in this study), are generally adaptable when it comes to games. They are both comfortable with the technologies and intuitive in figuring them out, making games a familiar medium for them to use. Games therefore have the potential to engage
ǯ
teaching methods. In the field of history, it also offers the opportunity to present an unfamiliar world and an immersive environment for children to learn about the past. Travelling through time has definitely become far easier!
This project utilised an existing history game designed by the Educational Technology Group (ETG). The ETG is made up of academics from Lund and Linköping Universities and is headed by Agneta Gulz, the supervisor of this thesis, along with Annika Silvervarg. The history game, called Historiens väktare (HV), is designed for Swedish students aged 10-‐12 and teaches them about Discoveries and Inventions from 1400-‐1780, in accordance with the Swedish syllabus. The ETG wanted to include a mission in their game that could teach children about source criticism (SC), the catalyst for the project to begin. Part of this study involved testing a newly designed game on a group of 40 students based at two schools in Helsingborg.
Note: Whenever there is a quote or example from the tests or the games in English, this is not what was given to the students during testing. All content was
5 created in English and then translated to Swedish before being incorporated into
the game.
1.1. Parallel Study
The study was partly completed with another Masters student, Ivar Särner.
Whilst two Masters theses have been produced as a result of this study, they each focus on different theories and aspects of history teaching. Much of the practical work, as well as some of this report, was completed conjointly.
1.1.1. Method collaboration
Within the study, a significant proportion of the physical work was conducted in collaboration with Särner. This included the methodology outlined below, predominately concerning the design and creation of the game and the experiment.
1.1.2. Written
As this thesis was conducted alongside ¡ǯ, the documentation of some of the work was done together. A more detailed breakdown of this can be seen below. Any section not included below was written uniquely for the purpose of this thesis. Any sections not mentioned can be presumed to be written individually, for the purpose of this thesis.
Extent of collaboration Sections Identical, written conjointly 4.1, 5.1, 5.2.2.
Similar foci, written independently 1.1, 3.3, 3.6, 3.7, 4.2.
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2. Purpose
The aim of this present study was to create a mission within an educational computer game that focused on teaching students source criticism. This was mainly concentrated on the source criticism skills of identification and an analysis of sources. Aspects of constructivist theory were implemented in an attempt to further improve a studentǯs understandings of these concepts. At a more basic level though, the study aimed to see if learning source criticism within a game was possible.
2.1. Research Questions
- Can the use of a historical computer game teach primary school students about source criticism?
- Does the introduction of a constructivist element increase a primary studentǯs aptitude for source criticism?
To answer these questions, a study of existing literature about a number of topics was conducted. These included historical pedagogy with a focus on source criticism, educational games and their design, and eventually, constructivist teaching methods.
After an in-‐depth exploration of the background research available, the decision was made to design the game around a specific historical event, the Great Plague of London in 1665. Consequently a significant amount of time was also dedicated to researching the plague and its sources. As the study needed to answer the questions posed by two theses, both factual data and source criticism skills were included within the game. The knowledge gained during the background research phase was utilised during the design process to ensure the game would be appropriate for the age group and meet
curriculum requirements.
To analyse any potential increase in knowledge, an experimental test was conducted with two classes of primary school ǯ aged 10-‐12. Ultimately 40 students completed pre and post-‐testing and played the newly designed missions in between, half of the students playing one version of the game and the other half playing an experimental version, which tested aspects of a learning theory. This was designed to include aspects of elaborative rehearsal
7 and ǡ ǯ
guide them into a reflection of the content, thereby enhancing knowledge construction. The pre and post-‐ǯ
about source criticism and about facts concerning the plague.
2.2. Limitations
As this thesis was completed within an existing project, there are a few limitations that have been taken into consideration.
x The game and tests were designed for Swedish students and were
consequently presented to the students in Swedish. As an English language speaker who does not speak much Swedish, this was a limiting factor during this study. However, all designs were initially completed in English before being translated into Swedish, with both the English and Swedish versions being checked by the ETG. Whilst testing, I was observing the children and making notes based on my translations of their comments. These were later checked by Ivar Särner, who was also present during testing and thus could correct the translations if needed.
x The design of the game was somewhat limited due to the need for the new missions to maintain the look and interaction of the existing versions of the game.
x The Swedish syllabus needed to be consulted so that the skills and level of education involved were at the correct level. This required us to stay within the boundaries set by the syllabus, and consequently by the ETG.
x The level of language needed to be appropriate for all students in the study.
x The test was only performed on two classes of students.
x The only educational game that was tested during this study was Historiens Väktare.
2.3. Scope
The design and testing of this game was all conducted within the scope of this thesis. However, the graphic design work was completed by Carolina Ekström and the programming and implementation for the game by Erik Anderberg.
Their work was completed after a number of discussions regarding the scenes and the interactions that would be required. Both individuals work regularly with the ETG and were involved in the HV project previously. Also, within the
8 Background research for this project, not all aspects of educational gaming or
education were investigated. This was due to the extensive amount of studies that exist for a range of subjects. An in-‐depth look into all of them would have been unnecessary for the purposes of this study.
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3. Background
It is probably safe to say that children today are quite comfortable playing computer games. With hundreds of games being released daily, there has never been more of an opportunity for children to play games. Research into these games is extensive to say the least. Entire journals are now dedicated to their study, such as the International Journal of Computer Game Research, Games and Culture and Entertainment Computing, etc. To limit the research scope, and to ensure that the most relevant information was gathered for this study, papers involving primary school aged children (particularly from 10-‐13 years of age) were prioritised. However, as most studies involve secondary or tertiary school students, this was not always possible. An attempt was also made to focus purely on source criticism related games. However, as this study is amongst the first attempting this, it was not exactly feasible.
Note: In the sections below, games should be assumed to refer to computer games.
3.1. Educational games
The popularity of educational games has increased dramatically and is no longer restricted to maths and computer science. Research has been spread across numerous academic fields, exploring how educational games should be designed, tested and utilised in the classroom. One can find research on everything from studies on maths (Husain, 2015) and programming (Mathrani, 2016) to geography (Tüzün, 2009). Whether these educational games have been proven as pedagogically effective is a factor that is still under discussion, though this is exactly what recent studies indicate (Girard 2012, p.
207). For instance, a study completed by researchers from Massey University explored the potential of a game teaching programming constructs to students who were either beginning to learn or had just completed a module on
programming. Overall they found that the game was effective in teaching programming constructs and in assisting those who already had some knowledge in improving their knowledge of the work (Mathrani 2016, p. 15).
Another study reviewed over 300 articles about gaming and education performance, finding that there was an improvement for students playing some games, but these improvements were more commonly found in games
10 about languages or physical education. Educational game studies about maths
and science were found to be less successful, even though there were often increases in student interest or motivation (Young 2012, p. 72). This could, however, just be an indication that the methods used have not yet been perfected. Games have also been proven to improve cognitive ability and enhance the reasoning skills of students (Blumberg & Fisch 2013, p. 3).
3.2. History Games
When focusing on history in particular, games are being used more and more in the classroom. As a subject, History is one that has the potential to be quite subjective. Many historical events have a range of sources from all
perspectives, meaning that there is the potential to argue any side of a debate,
Ǥ ǯ
potential to engage anyone curious enough to truly explore it. This is why some teachers have begun using popular games such as Minecraft or Civilisation in history teaching (McCall 2012, p. 14). These games allow students to interact, explore or create historical scenes or civilisations (Squire 2005, p. 4). This makes sense for anyone who has studied history. The
difficulty with the subject is often in trying to contextualise certain events, being a world away from what we are used to today. What these simulation
Ǯǯ Ǥ they are immersed in the environment they can see the changes that occur due to their actions and perhaps assist them in creating links to their own lives. A common theme among these games however, is that they are regular computer games, not designed specifically for the classroom. Whilst some teachers have
ǡǯant to mention that most of those available are still works of historical fiction and are utilised as such (McMichael 2007, p. 217). It should also be mentioned that in regards to source criticism, few games have been designed specifically for this purpose.
Ǯǯǡ a Danish game designed for students in grade 4-‐6. This game aims to teach students about certain historical events from the ͳͳͲͲǯǡ given by different characters (Østergaard-‐Andersen, 2011).
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3.3. Designing Educational Games
In conjunction with the rise in educational games, the desire to design them effectively is, of course, an important area of study. Whilst there are now even university courses you can take in creating educational games, the most effective way to design them is still part of an ongoing debate in academics.
Perhaps this is due to the range of theories that can be implemented, or, because the range of subjects available is so broad, they simply ǯ
taught in the same way. It could also be because of a misunderstanding about whether games should be fun or educational, rather than both.
Explaining all of the current ideas about designing educational games would take more than a few papers to achieve, and even longer to analyse which is most effective. Therefore, this section will focus on three main categories suggested in Malone (1980). His heuristics, though suggested for instructional computer games (but adapted easily to education), attempt to answer the
Ǯ ǯǤhighlighting three essential ǡǮ ǡ ǯȋͳͻͺͲǡǤͳʹȌǤ Creating a game that is challenging, especially one for children, could be seen as quite simple. In regards to education, this design suggestion is quite logical as it makes sense to set goals and give children something to aim for. It can also allow educators to track the knowledge progression of their students by seeing which goals they have reached. Challenging games also involve
different levels of difficulty, features which could further encourage a player to continue, providing them with the motivation to get to the next level (Malone 1980, p. 163).
Fantasy, as a genre in itself, is an important one within educational gaming.
Within history especially, fantasy will always be a feature, mainly as we can never be entirely sure of the accuracy of any historical representation. Fantasy is important as it allows the player to be immersed in another environment.
Some studies have indicated that total immersion assists in making the player feel more comfortable and they are consequently more motivated to achieve whatever goals have been set (Annetta 2010, p. 107). Immersion (and fantasy) include aspects like narrative and character development. Incorporating engaging characters can encourage a player as they might require sympathy,
12 or a helping hand to get through a task, providing further motivation to the
student. Many primary students view fantasy Ǯǯȋ
et al 2011, p. 287). Without a bit of imagination, the game can just reflect what they may be doing in a textbook.
ǯ Ǥ enhances motivation even further, as the player needs to be interested enough in the goals and their surroundings to explore it. By including elements of surprise: an unexpected animation or character, a hint towards a hidden element or perhaps just by receiving feedback, the player will be inspired to continue their exploration of the environment (Malone 1980, pp. 165-‐166).
There are obviously many aspects that one needs to consider when designing a game, notwithstanding the essentials like programming and graphics.
Ultimately though, they should be able to produce the same thing, a fun game.
3.4. Pedagogy
The following sections outline the basics regarding the teaching of history and source criticism; particularly in regards to changes in history didactics and how the Swedish curriculum integrates source work for students aged 10-‐12.
3.4.1. Teaching History
For some students, History has the unfortunate moniker of being dull. It was
Ǯ Ǥ
ǯȋ ͳͻͻȌǤ
textbooks have encouraged an apathy surrounding the history that is taught in schools. This though, is a remnant of a time when historical teaching was based on rote learning historical facts and figures. Learning the dates of battles and the names of Kings was the basis for passing a history subject as the emphasis relied on historical knowledge. Now, however, teachers have
Ǯǯ
(Barton 2005, p. 746). This coincides with the understanding that there is not just one correct way to teach historical events. How could there be, when so many different people have views, records and sources about it? History is not
ǮǯǮǯǢǯ encourages debate, assuming there is evidence to support the argument. Students are now encouraged to see the links between topics; how one event impacted another.
13 For instance, how the end of World War 1 impacted on the outbreak of World
War 2. Or they learn about social history, an attempt to empathise with people of the past and draw links to ǯ ȋʹͲͳͳȌǤTeaching historical thinking develops critical thinking skills, as students need to analyse the reasons why something happened, rather than just being informed of the events that took place (McCall 2011, p. 9). Teaching history requires sources to be read and integrated, whether they are primary or secondary sources.
The following section investigates how this area is taught for students aged 10-‐12 in Sweden.
3.4.2. Teaching source criticism
Within history teaching, source criticism has altered drastically in the past few decades, largely due to the change in the historical mindset mentioned above.
With the new emphasis on interpretation and historical thinking, the
importance of teaching source criticism has increased. Whilst this approach is being widely adopted, it is important that sources be utilised in the right way.
Within the Swedish History Curriculum, there are only a few syllabus points that specifically address source criticism and related skills for grades 4-‐6.
These are:
x ǮWhat historical sources, such as letters and other documents, can tell us about similarities and differences in the living conditions of children, women and men compared with today.
x How historical persons and events, such as Queen Kristina, Karl XII and the trials of witches, have been presented in different ways through different interpretations and different time periods.
x What the following concepts mean Ȃ change, similarities and differences, chronology, cause and consequence, sources and interpretation, and how they are used in historical contextsǤǯ (Skolverket 2011, p. 166-‐167)
In addition to this, the curriculum notes that the most basic level of knowledge required to pass on to the next stage (years 7-‐9) is Grade E. In relation to
ǡǮǯ
Ǯ
ǯ ǡy simple reasoning to the usefulness
14
ǯȋʹͲͳͳȌǤȋȌǡ
Ǯ ǯ ǯ
Ǯt sources and
ǯȋʹͲͳͳȌǤ
in this stage (4-‐6) is not particularly high in relation to source criticism, though the wording used is quite broad. This could be due to the
understanding that sources need to be used throughout History classes, perhaps complementing more traditional techniques. For example, if a student were tasked with learning about World War 1, it would be useful to have both background knowledge and read some first hand accounts. For the student to read all accounts from this time is impractical, so a combination of primary sources with secondary sources, e.g. textbooks, is a sensible option (Barton 2005, p. 749).
It has also been noted that the use of primary sources can encourage a more immersive experience for the student, especially when they need to learn about social or living conditions. Particularly if the source is a letter or diary, the personal touch can be easier to relate to than an old law document (Barton 2005, p. 752). This, once again, speaks for the importance of including sources within historical teaching.
3.5 Constructivist teaching theory
When considered in an educational framework, constructivism is a learning theory that encourages learning to be based upon personal experience and social discovery (Oulasvirta 2005, p. 196). It often links exploration with reflection, and encourages students to discuss their findings with classmates, the teacher serving as a guide to this discovery. Facilitation is often a key word
ǡǯ
education of the students. As the teachers are the facilitators in this transaction, it is the students who are responsible for acquiring the
knowledge. As they will possess it, the internal associations the children form are more in-‐depth and longer lasting (Pressley 1992, p. 3). Jean Piaget, who conducted several studies regarding child psychology, developed most theories about constructivism in education and how children learn. His
findings represent the constructivist beliefs that children learn best if they can experience something and make their own associations with it, whether it be a
15 toy, or a concept in a history game (Piaget 1930, p. 253). There are a few
elements of constructivism in particular which are often applied successfully in constructivist classrooms: scaffolding, effective questioning and reflection.
3.5.1. Scaffolding during discovery
Scaffolding in constructivism is essential as it allows a teacher to gently guide a student through the learning process. A student blindly trying to learn about a topic without any guidance is probably eventually going to get side-‐tracked or lost, especially in a free-‐range environment like the Internet (Pressley 1992, p. 19). Scaffolding allows the teacher to set certain guidelines or
signposts that the student can reach, yet still maintain the need for the them to actively search for and understand the information.
3.5.2. Effective Questioning
Providing effective questioning within a constructivist framework
complements scaffolding and is one of the main techniques used by teachers.
It requires the educator to ask the students what they are thinking and the reasons for it, rather than just asking what they know and anǯ
right or wrong. In a traditional classroom setting, teachers ask if a student knows an answer to a question. They are either wrong or right in their response and the dialogue is ended. Effective questioning asks more of the student. It encourages them to explain why they believe something is correct and extend their knowledge, linking new information to existing frameworks.
It is the responsibility of the teachers to ask questions that cause the student to reflect on ǯǡther scaffolding their knowledge (Chin 2004, p. 818).
3.5.3. Reflection on Content
Another aspect of constructivism that is necessary to utilise, alongside the two concepts mentioned above, is the encouragement of reflection. Students must be encouraged to reflect on the knowledge learnt, but more importantly their
Ǣ Ǥ ǯ
imperative for them to think about where they went wrong, and highlight any
ǯǤ ese themselves, the chance they will
ǯǡ
is far higher than if the teacher was to tell them directly (Pressley 1992, p. 20).
16 Reflection on a learning activity after its completion also helps to
ǡ ǯ
and what it could be used for (De Freitas 2006, p. 18).
3.6. Elaborative Rehearsal
Elaborative rehearsal is a theory which has some links to constructivism, and is the focus of the parallel study within this project, completed by Ivar Särner.
The theory emerged from the framework created by Craik and Lockhart (1972), concerning the importance between processing information and memory encoding. Their theory focuses on introducing two levels of processing, shallow and deep, which result in an increase in aptitude for memory encoding. Whilst shallow processing focuses on the practices of maintenance rehearsal, deep processing is linked with elaborative rehearsal.
For education, this is important as it allows information to be stored more effectively within long-‐term memory. By increasing the understanding and connection of the information, both to long-‐term memory and with other knowledge, the understanding of the original information is more concrete.
This would allow the learner to recall the information as needed, as it is more strongly embedded in the long-‐term memory (Benjamin and Bjork 2000, p.
640).
3.7. Historiens Väktare
Historiens väktare (HV) is a computer game designed by the ETG for testing and educational purposes. It aims to teach students aged 10-‐12 about historical events, particularly in the area of discoveries and inventions from 1400-‐1780. It is a web-‐based game and has, thus far, served as a method of testing theories surrounding Teachable Agents (see further studies by the ETG).
3.7.1. Game Structure
The HV game has quite a simple set of point and click interactions. At the beginning of the game, the player is introduced to the Castle of Time, along with a time-‐elf who needs to find out information about various historical events and characters by time travelling. As the elf ǯȋ-‐
sickness), the player must discover the required information so the elf can learn all it needs to, in order to succeed the retiring Guardian of Time
17 (Chronos). After the player has received a knowledge-‐based mission from
Chronos, the player travels back in time. Whilst there, they can interact with a
ǡ ǯ
achievements. The dialogues with the characters are all pre-‐defined and the students merely have to click through the options once they have finished reading the text. They could, for example, visit Isaac Newton in Oxford or Galileo Galilei in Florence. The players then return to the present to complete
ȋǮǯȌ
information gathered. The tests are usually in one of three formats, a concept map, timeline or a sorting activity. Once the player receives enough correct answers, they are able to finish the test and receive another mission.
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4. Method
The methods outlined below have been split into two parts, the adaptations made to the HV game, and the experiment conducted to test the theories.
4.1 Adaptations to Historiens Väktare
As HV is an existing game, most of the work completed in regards to game design is more easily related to the adaptations that needed to be
implemented for the purposes of this study (hence the title of this chapter).
The rest of this chapter outlines the steps and methods that were used in the development of the new missions within HV, that is, the adaptations made to the game. The results of these methods can be found in Chapter 5.1.
4.1.1. Finding a Historical Event
As the game needed to take place within a historical context, an appropriate historical event needed to be selected. To simplify this task, there were criteria provided by the ETG that needed to be followed. The event needed to take place:
x Between 1400-‐1780
x In a country HV had previously visited: France, Germany, England, Italy, Poland and Denmark.
As the missions concerned source criticism, the event also needed to have a number of sources, preferably from different viewpoints or about different theories. They also needed to be available for use within an educational context.
In order to find an appropriate event, a web-‐based search was conducted, finding options that fit within the criteria listed above. These were then assessed according to the sources available for each event, before a selection was made.
4.1.2 Mind map of chosen historical event
On the basis of the extensive research completed, a mind map was created.
This was done in order to gain a generalised understanding of the facts of the event and identify possible sources to be utilised. This would provide the basis for the processes of:
19 x Creating the narrative and dialogues on which the game would be based
upon
x Constructing the pre and post-‐test questions
x Deciding on which sources would be best suited to the game.
4.1.3. Brainstorming how to include SC in a game
As we needed to teach the students about source criticism, we conducted a brainstorming session which enabled us to suggest a number of ways that would allow students to interact with historical sources. These ideas were all based on commonly accepted history pedagogy that encourages interpretation and historical thinking regarding an event and its sources.
4.1.4. Workshop
In order to make the most educated assessment and decide on the sources and methods which would be best suited to our aim, a workshop was conducted at Lund University. This workshop was attended by Agneta Gulz and Annika Silvervarg (our supervisors), Magnus Haake (ETG member) and Irene
Andersson (History didactics expert), as well as Ivar Särner and Jess Brewster.
Over the course of a day, we presented our initial ideas from the
brainstorming sessions and discussed which ones would be best suited for the purpose of the study.
The topics discussed at this workshop included:
x Aspects of SC and facts to be included. This was in order to decide what aspects of source criticism should be included, as well as how best to incorporate the facts.
x How the skolsal-‐test should be designed. This was to determine which of the many possibilities could be used in the game-‐
x What is the general narrative. The artefacts and characters that the students interacted with needed to be carefully chosen so they would fit within one (or more) of three categories:
Helped answer the mission questions
Was an excerpt or the author of a specific source
Answered questions that were included in the pre and post-‐
tests.
20 x The narrative of the game was to follow the existing format of missions
already existing within HV, therefore our chosen characters and artefacts needed to be placed within this context.
x What the difference between the two versions of the game would be: This was an important aspect that needed to be discussed, as both constructivism and elaborative rehearsal needed to be taken into account.
4.1.5. Grouping of aspects from the Mind Map
This was done in order to classify the necessary content into different groups.
These groups were based on different characters, theories, sources and any additional points we needed to include. From this, it was hoped that facts could easily be attributed to specific sources and a definitive list of the characters and sources was visually identifiable.
4.1.6. Sketching of scenes based on chosen sources and characters
Basic sketches using pen and paper methods were chosen as a simple way of communicating our ideas for each scene. This needed to be done in order to have both a visualisation for ourselves, and to send it to members of the ETG who would be assisting with the design and programming of the game.4.1.7. Dialogue scripting in parallel with creation of Pre and Post -‐test questions to match scene content.
The questions for the testing were written alongside the game dialogues, so all necessary information could be included within the game. Whilst the
questions needed to represent two theories, they were still written conjointly, as the content for each set of questions needed to be included seamlessly into the game.
4.1.8. Feedback and revision until final version
This was the next step completed, as all content needed to be approved in English and Swedish before it could be implemented. Multiple versions of all of the game content was created and evaluated by the authors and members of the ETG.
4.1.9. Difference of the two game versions
In order to test the theories of elaborative rehearsal and constructivism, two versions of the game were constructed. One of these needed to be a control
21 version, whilst the other applied elements of each of the theories to serve as
an experimental version. As both theories are quite broad, it would have been unrealistic to include all aspects of either one, nor would that be completely feasible in a game setting. Consequently, the background research completed about each theory was used to focus on those points that would assist in this game context. This occurred following extensive discussions and comparisons between both theories. Consideration was also given to the interactions found in the existing game, that constricted the choices we would be able to
realistically implement. The choice also needed to fit within the narrative.
4.1.10. Implementation of graphics and coding
This was the last step taken before testing began and was undertaken by members of the ETG who built the game within the existing structure.
4.2. Evaluation of HV
The evaluation completed for this study was an experiment that was conducted in the form of pre and post-‐tests after playing the designed missions. The following sections outline the setup of the experiment.
4.2.1 Participants
The participants of this study were 44 primary school students aged 10-‐12 years old. All students were from two classes, located at one of two schools in Helsingborg. One class had 17 students and one teacher (called Class 1 in subsequent discussion). The other class had 27 students and two teachers (Class 2). Overall, 4 students did not complete the tests, leaving 40 students in total.
4.2.2 Equipment
The pre and post tests were all completed on Chromebooks, using Google Forms. The Chromebooks were provided by the schools and the students had experience using them. Google forms was utilised for the tests as, on the advice of the ETG (and in deference to our own opinions), it was believed a computer-‐based test would be more engaging to students as opposed to a standard pen and paper test. Images related to the plague were also included within the quiz to attract interest.
22 The game itself was also played on the Chromebooks, through an internet
browser, as the game was placed on a server. The students accessed this through a URL, emailed to them by their teachers.
4.2.3. Testing setup
Testing Groups
Prior to any testing beginning, the students were all split into groups, in order to test our theories effectively. Within each class, the students were randomly assigned to two groups, the control group who would play the control version of the game and the experimental group that would play the experimental version. These groups were then randomly halved again, with half the
students receiving one set of pre and post-‐tests (version 1), and the other half receiving the second set of the pre and post-‐tests (version 2). This essentially left us with 4 test groups.
Two versions of the pre and post-‐tests were created in order to increase the validity of the test and to reduce the chance the students would remember the questions. Version 2 contained the same answers as version 1 but had
rephrased questions. 22 students were allocated to receive each version. Half would receive version 1 as the pre-‐test, followed by version 2 as the post-‐test.
The other half would receive version 2 as the pre-‐test, followed by version 2 as the post-‐test. The randomisation of students within the control and experimental groups was done to counteract any potential difference in the two test versions and increase the chance of measuring accurately any learning difference.
Procedure
Each class was visited over a 3-‐day period for 40-‐60 minutes per day. The timetable for the testing was as follows:
Day 1: Pre-‐ǯͳ& Part 2.
Day 2: Play Source Criticism mission
Day 3: Post-‐test with Othello played between Part 1 and Part 2.
Prior to our arrival on the testing days, an email with a URL containing either the tests or the game had been sent to all students, according to the groups
23 they had been placed into. This step was completed by the class teachers and
ensured the classes were prepared in order to make the most of the time available.
Observations were recorded throughout the testing, with notes on the comments and behaviours of the students recorded discreetly on a laptop.
Pre and Post-‐testing
The testing in this study was a traditional pre and post-‐test made up of 24 questions. 14 of the questions tested knowledge about historical facts regarding the The Great Plague of London, of which 1 out of the 6 multiple-‐
choice responses was correct. One mark was given for each correct response.
The remaining 10 questions were all about source criticism, requiring the students to give 2 answers out of 5 responses for each question, resulting in a non-‐normal distribution. This is due to the fact that, if selecting two answers at random for each question, the chance of getting a 0 score is 0.3, the chance of getting 1 is 0.6 and to the chance to get a score of 2 is 0.1. For the source criticism questions, one mark was given for each correct response. The source criticism and fact questions were also randomised to give some variety.
As the test had 24 questions, the ETG advised that this would be too many questions for the participants to answer in one test. This was mainly due to the potential for the students to lose concentration and become tired of reading the questions. As the source criticism questions in particular were quite long and in some instances required the students to analyse excerpts, it was important that the students remain fresh and attentive. Consequently the test was split into two parts, the students playing a short game, unrelated to ours, between each one. None of the knowledge or skills that could be gained from these games was found in the tests.
