The Use of Video Games in Education
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University of Business and Technology in Kosovo UBT Knowledge Center Theses and Dissertations Student Work Fall 9-2019 THE USE OF VIDEO GAMES IN EDUCATION Donat Kajtazi Follow this and additional works at: https://knowledgecenter.ubt-uni.net/etd Part of the Computer Sciences Commons Programi për Shkenca Kompjuterike dhe Inxhinierise THE USE OF VIDEO GAMES IN EDUCATION Shkalla Bachelor Donat Kajtazi Shtator / 2019 Prishtinë Programi për Shkenca Kompjuterike dhe Inxhinierise Punim Diplome Viti akademik 2014 – 2015 Donat Kajtazi THE USE OF VIDEO GAMES IN EDUCATION Mentori: PhD. Krenare Pireva Shtator / 2019 Ky punim është përpiluar dhe dorëzuar në përmbushjen e kërkesave të pjesshme për Shkallën Bachelor Abstract Education is a very important aspect of our lives, a proper education system is linked closely to a better and easier life. Therefore, enhancing the education system should have a high priority for many people. A high number of lives can be improved, given the right tools to reach a desirable level of education. Many variables impact the education process, from social conditions, to mental conditions and motivation. Mixing games with education can reach many of these variables in different angles, easier for learners to grasp. This thesis provides more information to the limited research of how games can be used to enhance the education process. This thesis will discuss the effect that games can have to improve the education process, how learners can be motivated to spend more time learning while having fun at the same time. i Table of content LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... iv Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 1. LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................................ 2 1.1 Definitions ........................................................................................................................ 2 1.1.1 What is a game? ........................................................................................................ 2 1.1.2 History of games ....................................................................................................... 2 1.1.3 Learning .................................................................................................................... 3 1.1.4 Gamification ............................................................................................................. 3 1.1.5 Edutainment .............................................................................................................. 4 1.1.6 Game-based learning ................................................................................................ 5 1.1.7 Discussion ................................................................................................................. 5 1.2 Game types and analysis .................................................................................................. 7 1.3 The various approaches of gaming in education ............................................................ 16 2. PROBLEM DEFINITION ........................................................................................................ 28 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 28 2.2 Aim ................................................................................................................................. 28 2.3 Objectives ....................................................................................................................... 28 3. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................ 29 3.1.1 Design ..................................................................................................................... 31 3.1.2 Implementation ....................................................................................................... 31 4. DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE “IMAGINARY DUNGEON” PROTOTYPE ............................................................................................................................... 32 4.1.1 Story and plot .......................................................................................................... 33 4.1.2 Topics ...................................................................................................................... 34 4.2 Implementation............................................................................................................... 37 4.2.1 Benefits of Unity ................................................................................................. 37 4.2.2 Disadvantages of Unity ....................................................................................... 38 4.2.2.1 Version control system ........................................................................................ 38 4.2.2.2 Code and technicality .......................................................................................... 38 5. DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................................ 41 CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................................... 42 6. REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 43 ii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. A puzzle icon ................................................................................................................... 8 Figure 2. Zelda II: The adventure of Link game character ............................................................. 9 Figure 3. A corsair representing FPS games. ................................................................................ 10 Figure 4. Two swords representing RTS games. .......................................................................... 11 Figure 5. Magenta Magnet screenshot. ......................................................................................... 11 Figure 6. The knight from Chess representing board games. ....................................................... 12 Figure 7. Screenshot from Vim Adventures ................................................................................. 13 Figure 8. Screenshot from Ruby Warrior. .................................................................................... 15 Figure 9. Screenshot from The Foos ............................................................................................. 19 Figure 10. Screenshot from Human Resource Machine ............................................................... 20 Figure 11. A screen shot from Lightbot ........................................................................................ 21 Figure 12. A screen shot from Picobot ......................................................................................... 22 Figure 13 Project methodology/Workflow ................................................................................... 29 Figure 14. Design and implementation tables ............................................................................... 30 Figure 15 Screenshot from Imaginary Dungeon. .......................................................................... 32 Figure 16. Variables topic story flow. .......................................................................................... 34 Figure 17. If statements topic story flow. ..................................................................................... 35 Figure 18. For loop topic story flow. ............................................................................................ 36 Figure 19. Screenshot from State class. ........................................................................................ 39 Figure 20. Screenshot from Game class. ...................................................................................... 40 iii LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Comparison between gamification, game-based learning and edutainment. .................... 7 Table 2. Topics covered in the research [4] .................................................................................. 18 iv Introduction As of 2018, there are more than 2.3 billion gamers in the world according to [41]. The industry is growing very rapidly, and with so many people interested in video games, a lot of research is aiming to analyze how gaming can impact the education process besides being only entertaining. Educational games have been spread on multiple platforms, including mobile devices, therefore according to a study made by “project tomorrow” [6], 48% of teachers in USA are using game- based methods in their classrooms. This statistic shows us the importance of studying and researching educational games, in order to optimize them for more practical uses. It is very important for a game to meet certain criteria when it comes to pleasuring, challenging, developing creativity, etc. Being driven by the need to make the educational process more enjoyable and encouraging, this thesis tries to contribute