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Earthquake Rebuild: a Game for the Stealth Learning of Middle School Math Danial Smith

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Earthquake Rebuild: a Game for the Stealth Learning of Middle School Math Danial Smith Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2014 Earthquake Rebuild: A Game for the Stealth Learning of Middle School Math Danial Smith Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE EARTHQUAKE REBUILD: A GAME FOR THE STEALTH LEARNING OF MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH By DANIAL SMITH A Thesis submitted to the Department of Scientific Computing in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2014 Copyright c 2014 Danial Smith. All Rights Reserved. Danial Smith defended this thesis on November 14th, 2014. The members of the supervisory committee were: Gordon Erlebacher Professor Directing Thesis John Burkhardt Committee Member Fengfeng Ke Committee Member Shachin Shanbhag Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the thesis has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ListofTables.......................................... ... v ListofFigures ......................................... ... vi Abstract............................................. vii 1 Motivation 1 1.1 USMathematics ...................................... 1 1.2 VideoGames ........................................ 2 1.3 Educational Games . 3 1.3.1 Tangential Learning Opportunities in Games . 4 1.3.2 Gamification . 4 1.3.3 ThePerfectBlend ................................. 5 2 Game Background 6 2.1 GameTheme ........................................ 6 2.1.1 Earthquakes..................................... 7 2.1.2 Temporary Buildings . 7 2.2 Newton’s Playground . 7 2.3 EvidenceCenteredDesign . 8 2.3.1 CompetencyModel................................. 8 2.3.2 EvidenceModel................................... 8 2.3.3 TaskModel..................................... 8 3 Game Development 9 3.1 Team............................................. 9 3.1.1 FengfengKe..................................... 9 3.1.2 Gordon Erlebacher . 9 3.1.3 ValerieSchute ................................... 9 3.1.4 Kathleen Clark . 10 3.1.5 Anne Taylor . 10 3.1.6 MatthewVentura.................................. 10 3.2 Process .......................................... 10 3.2.1 BiweeklyMeeting................................. 10 3.2.2 WeeklySubgroupMeeting............................. 11 3.2.3 WeeklyTasks.................................... 11 3.3 Technology . 12 3.3.1 Graphics ...................................... 12 3.3.2 Game Engine . 13 3.3.3 Versioning...................................... 14 3.3.4 Code......................................... 15 iii 4 State of the Game 16 4.1 Story............................................. 16 4.2 Mechanics......................................... 17 4.2.1 GameObjects ................................... 17 4.2.2 Adventure...................................... 22 4.2.3 Building....................................... 23 4.2.4 Menu ........................................ 30 4.3 Mathematics ........................................ 31 4.4 PreviousVersions................................... 32 4.5 ClassOverview ..................................... 34 4.5.1 AdventureMode .................................. 34 4.5.2 BuildingMode ................................... 35 4.5.3 Other ........................................ 37 4.5.4 NGUI . 38 5 Play Testing 39 5.1 DataCollection...................................... 39 5.2 Reception ......................................... 39 5.3 Analysis........................................... 40 6 Conclusions 42 6.1 FutureWorks....................................... 42 6.1.1 PlayerModeling .................................. 42 6.1.2 Procedural Generation . 42 6.1.3 Player Adaptation . 43 6.1.4 Educator Toolbox . 43 6.1.5 Multi-playerModes ............................... 43 6.2 WrapUp .......................................... 44 Bibliography .......................................... 45 BiographicalSketch ..................................... 47 iv LIST OF TABLES 4.1 Familysizesandspacerequired. 22 5.1 Playeractions ...................................... 40 v LIST OF FIGURES 3.1 The whiteboard during one our weekly meetings showing ideas for a level map with windandlightbeingafocus. ............................. 12 3.2 Workflow of programs used in Earthquake Rebuild. 13 4.1 Game modes and actions. 18 4.2 Collectible items in Earthquake Rebuild from the Top, Side, and Front. A)Container B)Panel C)Plank D)Pillar E)Small Rubble F)Medium Rubble G)Large Rubble . 19 4.3 Left: A family before it has been found. Right: A family after it has been found. 21 4.4 Screenshot from the adventure mode of Earthquake Rebuild. 23 4.5 Screenshot from the building mode of Earthquake Rebuild. 24 4.6 Cutting tool used on plank to cut at 4 meters. 26 4.7 Scaling tool used on pillar to scale by 50 percent. 27 4.8 Measuring tool checking the length of a container. 28 4.9 Screenshot of the menu in the adventure mode of Earthquake Rebuild. 29 4.10 Screenshot of the menu in the building mode of Earthquake Rebuild. 29 4.11 Old versions from oldest to newest: top to bottom . 33 5.1 Four player’s position with a map reference . 41 vi ABSTRACT The United States has fallen below many countries in international assessments of middle school aged students in the fields math and science. At the same time, computer games have only grown in popularity. In the last few decades with the average time spent playing increasing as well. Educational games try to recapture some of this time that may otherwise be wasted, but many have failed to preserve the main reason people are drawn to them, the sense of fun. Earthquake Rebuild is a game being developed to assist teachers in the presentation of the common core standards in mathematics in a fun and engaging way without telling the player they are learning. The game is being developed for students in grades six through eight. The setting and story line are motivated by the Fukusima earthquake. Rebuilding a village after its destruction by an earthquake will be the main goal of the player. Earthquake Rebuild follows a progression from using temporary structures, such as the container mall found in Christchurch, New Zealand. Traditional permanent structures will be built using smaller parts as the difficulty increases. These buildings will also be inspired by famous architecture. Earthquake Rebuild is being developed by a small group of students and educators. A proof of concept demo is completed, with classes to score and track players, as well as classes that will shorten the development cycle of the next version. Results from a handful of students has been analyzed, and will be discussed. vii CHAPTER 1 MOTIVATION Mathematics competency in the United States is no longer what it used to be. Compared to other nations that participated in studies like the Program for International Student Assessment(PISA) American 15-year-old students scored below average in mathematics in 2003, 2006, 2009, and 2012[19][18][17][16]. The same tests showed average results for reading. One contributing factor to this deficiency may be disinterest. In surveys by the tested students ”Only 50% of students in the U.S. agreed or strongly agreed that they are interested in learning mathematics: 53% of boys and 47% of girls.” [19]. Tools that may combat this disinterest are computer games. People spend hours each day playing games on their phones, PC’s or game consoles. Some see this as wasted time, but it actually presents educators with an opportunity. Dr. Rick Nauert states ”A com- mon viewpoint is that playing video games is intellectually lazy. New research however, suggests such play actually may strengthen a range of cognitive skills such as spatial navigation, reasoning, memory and perception.”[4] Given that most games guide the player towards the skills needed to complete the game, our goal is to make these skills applicable to learning mathematics. By com- bining these math and game skills, Earthquake Rebuild can break down one of the largest barriers of learning mathematics. Proper learning of math involves developing a set of skills that must reach the subconscious level. To reach this part of the mind a number of repetitions are required. Because everyone learns at different rates the number of repetitions will vary. While necessary for understanding, students lacking interest in math will find the repetition boring. Forcing a bored student to focus on math will further diminish interest in mathematics. 1.1 US Mathematics The United States is a wealthy country, and it spends roughly one trillion dollars yearly on education[2]. Although the US spends more money per student than all but four countries in the PISA[19], that money does not translate into mathematical proficiency the way most would hope. Throwing money at the problem has yet to solve it. New and innovative techniques and 1 tools are in great need. Although the world has changed, the approach to student education has remained essentially unchanged. Students sit in class rooms and listen to lectures and are forced ot memorize information to reproduce on assessments. The need for memorization is decreasing as information becomes more readily available. Because Earthquake Rebuild targets middle-school- aged children, it follows that the mathematical concepts incorporated into the game should also target this age group. It is currently accepted that the introduction
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