Video Game Design and Interactivity: the Semiotics of Multimedia in Instructional Design
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Video Game Design and Interactivity: The Semiotics of Multimedia in Instructional Design Kristopher Blair Alexander A Research-creation Thesis in the Department of Education Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Education) at Concordia University Montreal, Quebec April 2016 © Kristopher Blair Alexander, 2016 CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY School of Graduate Studies This is to certify that the thesis prepared By: Kristopher Blair Alexander Entitled: Video Game Design and Interactivity: The Semiotics of Multimedia in Instructional Design and submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philsophy (Educational Technology) complies with the regulations of the University and meets the accepted standards with respect to originality and quality Signed by the Final Examining Committee: ___________________________________ Chair Carolina Cambre ___________________________________ Examiner Giuliana Cucinelli ___________________________________ Examiner Robert M. Bernard ___________________________________ Examiner Juan Carlos Castro ___________________________________ Examiner Jacques Viens ___________________________________ Supervisor Vivek Venkatesh Approved by _____________________________________________________ Richard Schmid, Chair _________________ 2016 __________________________________________ Abstract Video Games and Interactivity: The Semiotics of Multimedia in Instructional Design Kristopher Blair Alexander, Ph.D. Concordia University, 2016 This creation-as-research thesis examines the semiotics of multimedia and interactivity within the context of instruction, focusing on theoretical and practical representations in video game design, and the cultural models therein. This is further articulated through the planning, creation, development and delivery of a 15-week online post-secondary course entitled Gaming, Interactive, and Multiplatform media, a course that teaches video game design principles, while emulating those design principles as part of the instructional platform. The course is a manifestation of the findings in this thesis, which suggests that video games, through their innate interactivity via the inclusion of multimedia as part of their design, hold critical implementation frameworks for course-based instructional design, when multimedia is used as part of the instructional process. iii Acknowledgements and Dedication This thesis is dedicated to Naomi, Elena, and Celeste, the three women who entered my life throughout this PhD process, and have supported me throughout this journey. I dedicate this win to you: my beautiful Wife, and daughters. You helped push me through this simply by becoming my new family. Oh yes… Mom, Dad, Dwight, & Khandi, the first family to teach me that I can do anything, because of how I was raised. I’d also like to acknowledge all of my committee members, who supported me throughout this journey: Philip Abrami, Saul Carliner, David Waddington, Giuliana Cucinelli, Robert Bernard, and especially my supervisor, Vivek Venkatesh. Know that this process would not have been possible without your support. iv Table of Contents Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 1 Creation-as-research Components .......................................................................................................... 4 This Written Document ........................................................................................................................... 4 The Gaming, Interactive, and Multiplatform Media Course ................................................................... 4 15 Module Summary Videos ................................................................................................................... 6 The Creation-as-research Dissertation Presentation ............................................................................. 6 Contextual Aesthetic Fields (Zettl, 1998) ........................................................................................... 7 Aesthetic and Associative Contexts (Zettl, 1998) ............................................................................... 7 Cognitive and Affective Mental Maps (Zettl, 1998) ........................................................................... 8 Literature Review ................................................................................................................................... 10 Defining “multimedia” – The Semiotics of the Term ............................................................................ 11 Unpacking “multimedia” – Semiotics, Utterance-type & Utterance-form ........................................... 13 Semiotics. ......................................................................................................................................... 13 Utterance-type Meaning ................................................................................................................... 14 Utterance-form meaning................................................................................................................... 17 McLuhan’s four laws of media in video game design ........................................................................... 25 Enhance, or Intensify........................................................................................................................ 26 Render Obsolete, or Displace ........................................................................................................... 26 Retrieved from Obsolescence. .......................................................................................................... 27 Produce or Become When Pressed to an Extreme ............................................................................ 27 Learning Theories ................................................................................................................................... 28 Cognitive Load ..................................................................................................................................... 29 Cognitive load theory ....................................................................................................................... 30 v Germane Cognitive Load ................................................................................................................. 32 Cognitive Overload .............................................................................................................................. 33 Affordance Theory .................................................................................................................................. 34 Affordance in Instruction ...................................................................................................................... 34 Affordance in Multimedia Instruction ................................................................................................... 35 Affordance Core Constraint Categories ............................................................................................... 36 Physical constraints .......................................................................................................................... 36 Logical constraints ........................................................................................................................... 37 Cultural constraints .......................................................................................................................... 38 Matching Multimedia with Pedagogy in Simulation ............................................................................ 38 Matching form with function – Methods, Approaches & Storytelling.............................................. 38 Video Games as an Exemplar of Multimedia Instructional Design .................................................... 44 Creation-as-Research: Consumable Artifacts ...................................................................................... 47 Online Course: Gaming, Interactive, and Multiplatform Media ........................................................... 47 Course Walkthrough: Gaming Interactive, and Multiplatform Media .................................................. 47 Methodology ............................................................................................................................................ 48 The Four Categories of the Research-Creation Methodology .............................................................. 48 Research-for-creation ....................................................................................................................... 48 Research-from-creation .................................................................................................................... 49 Creative Presentations of Research .................................................................................................. 49 Creation-as-research ......................................................................................................................... 49 Interactivity Model ............................................................................................................................... 50 Consumer Interactivity ..................................................................................................................... 50 Processor Interactivity