WHAT MAKES A GAME 'EDUCATIONAL'? An interview study about teachers’ perceptions of educational games and game based learning

Abstract

The discourse of educational games and game based learning is comprised of a diverse cluster of arguments, expressed by commercial actors, researchers and educators. This thesis has explored how teachers relate to the discourse of arguments surrounding educational games and game based learning, with a focus on what teachers consider to be 'educational' regarding games and what they view as meaningful usage of games in educational settings. Twelve teachers in the Swedish school system, ranging from preschool teachers to upper secondary school teachers, were interviewed. They were encouraged to approach educational games and game based learning from their perspectives and personal experiences. The interviewees’ answers were interpreted using a qualitative content analysis, and the results reported in the form of thematically organized chapters, to highlight similarities and differences in their arguments. The arguments expressed were analyzed from a game design perspective, to uncover how teachers reason in regard to what importance the design has for games’ ability to lead to meaningful learning. The findings suggest that teachers perceive the boundary between what can be considered educational and non-educational games as indistinct and fuzzy. The teachers rarely see that the design of a game can make it more or less suitable for learning purposes. Instead, how games are used by a teacher during a lesson is regarded as more important than what specific games are used and how such games are designed. The findings also confirm that the interviewees carry many of the arguments and perspectives that are commonly expressed in the popular discourse that surrounds educational games and game based learning.