Since Bunker and Thorpe (1982. A model for the teaching of games in secondary schools. "Bulletin of Physical Education," 18(1), 5-8.) introduced Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU), there has been a growing recognition of advocating approaches to pedagogy that addresses participant learning with games-based approaches (GBA)…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to propose a model for integrating microgames in teaching primary Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and illustrate the application of the proposed model in teaching integrated mathematics, arts, technology and language in primary ESD. Design/methodology/approach: The model was based on conceptual…

Early arithmetic skills, and in particular the understanding of the part-whole relationship, are currently considered crucial for future arithmetic achievement. They are complex skills extending far beyond the mastery of counting procedures. In order to develop these arithmetic skills in kindergarten children, we developed a game-based approach…

This study aimed to investigate the impact of Learning Trajectories (LT[superscript 2])-based games on the mathematical learning of four-year-old kindergarteners. The research employed the ADDIE paradigm, incorporating a pre-test, post-test, and a control group experimental design. The sample group comprised 30 children--15 in the experimental…

Alphabet training of primary school students is an essential, but challenging activity. Alphabet knowledge is an important fundamental literacy skill which has been found to directly impact the future academic success of students. Game-based learning and the use of multimodal engagement activities have been found to be effective intervention…

Empirical research highlights the benefits for the development of children's mathematical competencies when they play linear number board games with dice and receive feedback. We, therefore, investigated mathematical competencies in two training studies with six sessions and a 3 × 2 design. The sample in the first experiment consisted of N = 79…

This study examines Swedish teachers' perceptions of the PAX Good Behavior Game for students with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream classrooms. Data were collected through interviews and focus groups with a total of 22 teachers across five schools and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Teachers generally perceived PAX as…

This document describes the game ThunderHawk, intended for use in the first and second cycles of basic education (1st to 6th grade). The game was developed as didactic material to reinforce the fundamental operations of addition and subtraction.

Game-based learning (GBL) is increasingly recognized as an effective tool for teaching diverse skills, particularly in science education, due to its interactive, engaging, and motivational qualities, along with timely assessments and intelligent feedback. However, more empirical studies are needed to facilitate its wider application in school…

This study examines the effectiveness of a collaborative support method in enhancing programming learning outcomes in a serious game. The game Code Hasp was developed to facilitate the comparison between two support methods, worked examples and a collaborative peer support approach. A total of 111 elementary school students participated, divided…

Given the connection between problem-solving and computational thinking (CT), studying the connections between these two constructs is critical. This study focused on students' computational problem-solving strategies, specifically how they applied conditional logic to solve CT-related puzzles within a game-based learning environment called…

Background: The Situated Game Teaching Through Set Plays (SGTSP) model, a newly proposed curricular model, extends the previous game-based approaches by adopting the "Theory of Situated Learning" as a framework to focus on the relational and situational nature of the changing relations of all game parameters in a specific momentary game…

This dissertation follows a manuscript-style format, beginning with an introduction and literature review, followed by three distinct studies and a concluding section. All three studies use "Lucky Codes," an educational board game designed to foster computational thinking skills in elementary students, as the intervention. The first…

Longitudinal studies on mainstream children and training studies in the dyslexic population suggest that visual attention span (VAS) abilities contribute to reading acquisition. We evaluated to what extent VAS training in beginning readers might enhance later literacy skills. A large cohort of 453 children was followed from the beginning to the…

Australian primary school teachers have reported that they use games frequently in teaching mathematics. In this paper, the authors discuss the game mechanics of five types of whole-class games that can be particularly powerful for supporting mathematical thinking and student engagement in mathematics.