GAMIFICATION IN INTRODUCTORY COMPUTER SCIENCE by KARA ALEXANDRA BEHNKE B.A., University of Colorado Boulder, 2010 M.A., Michigan State University, 2014 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado Boulder in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy ATLAS Institute 2015 This thesis entitled: Gamification in Introductory Computer Science written by Kara Alexandra Behnke has been approved for the ATLAS Institute ____________________________________ John K. Bennett ____________________________________ Dirk Grunwald ____________________________________ Clayton Lewis ____________________________________ Jane Prey ____________________________________ Doug C. Sicker ____________________________________ Diane E. Sieber Date _____________ The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline. IRB protocol # 15-0018 IRB protocol # 15-0119 Behnke, Kara Alexandra (Ph.D., ATLAS Institute) Gamification in Introductory Computer Science Thesis directed by Archuleta Professor of Computer Science and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Dr. John K. Bennett This thesis investigates the impact of gamification on student motivation and learning in several introductory computer science educational activities. The use of game design techniques in education offers the potential to make learning more motivating and more enjoyable for students. However, the design, implementation, and evaluation of game elements that actually realize this promise remains a largely unmet challenge. This research examines whether the introduction of game elements into curriculum positively impacts student motivation and intended learning outcomes for entry-level computer science education in four settings that apply similar game design techniques in different introductory computer science educational settings. The results of these studies are evaluated using mixed methods to compare the effects of game elements on student motivation and learning in both formal and non-formal learning environments. The first chapter of this thesis introduces the focus of the research. The second chapter discusses the related work on introductory computer science education and gaming culture. The third chapter introduces the conceptual and theoretical framework that forms the basis of this work. Chapter four introduces the research design. Chapter five presents the first case study, which investigated how a “gamified” class impacts student motivation and learning outcomes in an undergraduate computer science course. Chapter six discusses the second case study, which examined how the design techniques informed by the first case study support high school students learning introductory computer science in an extracurricular program. Chapter seven details the third case study, which examined how game elements influence children learning in a robotics workshop. Chapter eight discusses the final case study, which briefly examined how online tutorial websites facilitate introductory programming through gaming. The final chapter summarizes the key findings and discusses opportunities for future work in gamifying computer science education. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful for my advisor, Dr. John K. Bennett, who first believed in my ability. I am profoundly thankful for all my committee members: Dr. Diane Sieber for her insight in gaming and passion for the humanities in engineering; Dr. Clayton Lewis, whose work in both teaching and research continues to inspire me in all my academic endeavors; Dr. Dirk Grunwald, who helped connect me to the computer science education committee both in Boulder, CO and abroad; Dr. Doug Sicker, for the invigorating talks about policy and technology; and Dr. Jane Prey, your work at both the National Science Foundation and Microsoft Research is something I aspire for in my professional ambitions. Thanks to each of you for helping me accomplish the most challenging task I have ever sought out to do. I would not be who I am today, nor made it through this doctoral journey, without my Chosen Family. Zander, my husband and life partner, whose love, encouragement, and grounded reassurance helped me pull myself through many tough times. Dan, who has helped me grow in more ways than I thought possible, and for helping me manage my data. Julia, experiencing this academic journey alongside your own has been a privilege in its own right. Thank you to my Consigli and Behnke families for many happy memories and much needed home-cooked meals. My gratitude for the ATLAS Institute and its community are beyond words. I never felt that I fit in anywhere academically or professionally until I found this inspiring community of creative, talented, fantastic misfits. I want to especially thank Brittany Ann Kos, the best TA and second coder I could have hoped for. Special thanks to Dr. Meg Ambrose, Dr. Katherine Goodman, Dr. Joanne White, Dr. Leslie Dodson, and Dr. Heather Underwood, who each in turn inspired and encouraged me throughout this process. I would also like to thank the National Science Foundation GK-12 ECSITE Program, who offered me the graduate funding and professional support to help me finish my doctorate. Special thanks to Jessica Feld, Dr. Debra Goldberg, the other ECISTE Fellows, and the magnificent high school teachers I worked with during my time as a Fellow—I learned more about teaching students and teaching computer science than I could have imagined. Thank you to everyone who helped make this journey become an “Epic Win!” iv CONTENTS CHAPTER I .............................................................................................................................................................. 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................... 1 I. BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION ...................................................................................................... 1 II. PRIOR RESEARCH ...................................................................................................................................... 3 III. RESEARCH GOALS ................................................................................................................................... 7 IV. METHODS ..................................................................................................................................................... 8 CHAPTER II ......................................................................................................................................................... 11 RELATED WORK .............................................................................................................................................. 11 I. INTRODUCTORY COMPUTER SCIENCE EDUCATION ............................................................. 11 II. GAMING: BEYOND ENTERTAINMENT .......................................................................................... 23 CHAPTER III THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ..................................................................................... 34 A. SELF-DETERMINATION THEORY .................................................................................................... 34 CHAPTER IV RESEARCH DESIGN & METHODOLOGY ................................................................. 45 I. RESEARCH STRATEGY .......................................................................................................................... 45 II. THEORETICAL DESIGN ........................................................................................................................ 49 III. MIXED METHODS .................................................................................................................................. 54 CHAPTER V CASE STUDY ONE: VIRTUAL WORLDS ...................................................................... 62 I. SITE SELECTION ....................................................................................................................................... 62 II. RESEARCH DESIGN ................................................................................................................................ 63 IV. IMPLEMENTATION ............................................................................................................................... 70 V. INSTRUMENTATION & EVALUATION ......................................................................................... 100 VI. CASE STUDY ONE FINDINGS .......................................................................................................... 103 VII. DISCUSSION .......................................................................................................................................... 166 v VIII. CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORK ...................................................................................... 169 CHAPTER VI CASE STUDY TWO: TECHNOVATION ..................................................................... 171 I. SITE SELECTION ..................................................................................................................................... 172 II. RESEARCH DESIGN .............................................................................................................................