Design Archives - Gedankenspiele

Screen Time in an Era of Social Isolation

Posted by Jan L Plass on March 20, 2020 in Design, Research, Theory into Practice 2 Comments

I’m a parent of two teenage boys who are obsessed with playing video games. I’m also a researcher who studies game-based learning. My partner thinks technology is a soul-sucking menace. You can imagine the lively conversations about screen time we have at home.

Something changed, however, when we decided to practice social isolation to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. No more school, no more soccer practice, no more hanging out with friends, cancelled birthday parties and social gatherings, and no more movies, bars, and restaurants. A new question presented itself… How can we make sure that such physical isolation does not lead to social isolation?

Living in this new “wartime” reality, we should reconsider what the rules regarding Screen Time for teens should be.

Some basic rules, such as no phones at mealtime, no screen time before and during bedtime, or determining what games or apps are appropriate for your child, should of course persist. The Mayo Clinic approach to screen time is especially useful to establish your own rules. However, I believe that the focus on screen Time is counterproductive, especially now that our familiar ways of life are being interrupted. We should instead focus on Screen Content Limits.

But which contents should be favored? Here are some benefits of digital media that we should consider when deciding what our teenagers get to do on ‘screens‘ and for how long. Over the next weeks, I will elaborate on each of these in separate posts.

Interest-Driven Learning

If you are like me, then your children’s long stories about what prank their favorite YouTuber played on others makes you question why any screen time should be allowed at all. But then again, my 14-year old recently showed me the Synthesia version he found of Khachaturian’s Waltz, which he is learning on the piano, and my 16-year old taught himself how to use FL Studio, a digital audio workstation, to produce his own rap songs. Clearly, this interest-driven, on-demand learning is something we should encourage, not limit.

Social Connections

In the videogames research conducted in the CREATE research lab that I direct at New York University, we have time and again observed how the notion of the socially isolated teenage video game player who dwells in their parents’ basement is outdated. Nowadays, teens like to play games that connect them to others, and where they can practice 21st Century skills such as communication, team collaboration, creativity, and the like. I would not go so far as Jordan Shapiro, who believes children should start using social media at much younger ages, but research has shown the social benefits of teens playing games with friends. In addition, I’ve found that when I take the time to play games with my kids, I find new ways to relate to them that other media, such as TV, do not allow.

Emotional Design for Learning

As I described in a previous post, emotion and learning are tightly connected , and video games are exquisitely designed to emotionally engage players. We have studied emotional design for learning for many years and have found that positive emotions induced by the design of the learning materials enhance learning outcomes for science learning as well as for cognitive skills training. Other benefits are that games allow teens to practice emotion regulation, i.e., their ability to effectively manage and respond to an emotional experience, which is something we can all benefit from when we shelter in place.

Mental Health Benefits

Relatedly, limited opportunities to see friends, move around, or in general follow our usual routine is something we are not accustomed to. Being exposed to some of these restrictions, however, reminds us of the thousands of children who are refugees from war-torn areas such as Syria, or from genocide, such as Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar, who experience these restrictions on a daily basis. In our research with Syrian refugee children in Turkey we found that playing Minecraft over the course of a month-long intervention resulted in significant improvements in children’s positive outlook on life. When your real life affords very little control over your circumstances, being able to design a world in which you have full control is an important part of mental well-being.

Cognitive Benefits

Games also have important cognitive benefits. As my colleague Daphne Bavelier has found in her research, even the most violent video games can improve our visual perception skills, such as contrast resolution, object tracking, and peripheral vision. We developed three games to train cognitive skills and have found that they can improve brain functions. These games are available for free in the AppStore and on Google Play.

Other benefits of games include increased physical activity, increased empathy, and reduced stress, among others, which I will discuss in future posts.

Having said all of this, my partner reminds me that there is so much more to life than apps and games, and that real connection to our world and each other far outweighs any online benefits. I completely agree, but given we may be stuck in our home for some time, I take solace in the fact that, when my boys are once again in their rooms and on their screens, they use games, apps, and digital media than can actually benefit them and may help them grow creatively and yes, even socially.

CrushStations, a Game to Train Working Memory

Posted by Jan L Plass on March 20, 2020 in Design, Research 2 Comments

CrushStations is a game designed to train working memory, a subskill of executive functions. Updating involves holding information in mind and mentally working with it to solve a problem.

In this game, players need to save sea creatures that vary in type and color from a hungry octopus. Children free the creatures by identifying the type of creature and its color when it passes behind an opaque bubble. To do this requires children to hold in mind the features of the creatures, which requires working memory.

Download for free: AppStore | Google Play

All You Can ET is part of SMART Suite, a set of games to train executive functions (also including All You Can ET and Gwakkamole) that has been developed by the CREATE lab at New York University in collaboration with researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara and The Graduate Center, CUNY. Published, peer-reviewed research with hundreds of students has validated the efficacy of SMART Suite for training executive functions (see bibliography), including the Handbook of Game-Based Learning.

Gwakkamole, A Game to Train Inhibitory Control

Posted by Jan L Plass on March 20, 2020 in Design, Research 2 Comments

Gwakkamolé is a game designed to train inhibitory control, a subskill of executive functions. Inhibition involves controlling your attention, thoughts or behaviors to stop from doing something that you are primed to do, because of a habit or external lure, in order to achieve a goal.

In this game, players need to quickly smash avocados that have no hat or that tip their hat, but avoid smashing avocados with spiky hats or with electrified hats. To do this, children must avoid the tendency to smash everything that appears, which requires them to use inhibition.

Download for free: AppStore | Google Play

All You Can ET is part of SMART Suite, a set of games to train executive functions (also including All You Can ET and CrushStations) that has been developed by the CREATE lab at New York University in collaboration with researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara and The Graduate Center, CUNY. Published, peer-reviewed research with hundreds of students has validated the efficacy of SMART Suite for training executive functions (see bibliography), including the Handbook of Game-Based Learning.

Bibliography

Homer, B. D., Plass, J. L., Raffaele, C., Ober, T. M., & Ali, A. (2018). Improving high school students’ executive functions through digital game play. Computers & Education, 117, 50-58.

Homer, B.D., Ober, T.M., Rose, M.C., MacNamara, A.P., Mayer, R. & Plass, J.L. (2019). Speed Versus Accuracy: Implications of Adolescents’ Neurocognitive Developments in a Digital Game to Train Executive Functions, Mind, Brain & Education, 13(1), 41-52.

Homer, B.D., Plass, J.L., Rose, M.C., MacNamara, A.P., Pawar, S., & Ober, T.M. (2019). Activating adolescents’ “hot” executive functions in a digital game to train cognitive skills: The effects of age and prior abilities. Cognitive Development, 49, 20-32.

Ober, T. M., Brooks, P. J., Plass, J. L., & Homer, B. D. (2019). Distinguishing Direct and Indirect Effects of Executive Functions on Reading Comprehension in Adolescents. Reading Psychology, 40(6), 551–581.

Parong, J., Mayer, R. E., Fiorella, L., MacNamara, A., Homer, B. D., & Plass, J. L. (2017). Learning executive function skills by playing focused video games. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 51, 141-151.

Plass, J. L., Homer, B. D., Pawar, S., Brenner, C., & MacNamara, A.P. (2019). The effect of adaptive difficulty adjustment on the effectiveness of a game to develop executive function skills for learners of different ages. Cognitive Development, 49, 56-67.

Plass, J.L, Homer, B.D., Pawar, S., & Tam, F. (2018). Connecting Theory and Design Through Research: Cognitive Skills Training Games. In S. Göbel et al. (Eds.): Joint Conference on Serious Games 2018, pp. 1–14, 2018. Spring Nature, Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02762-9_15

Plass, J.L., Homer, B.D., MacNamara, A.P., Ober, T., Rose, M.C., Hovey, C.M., Pawar, S., & Olsen, A. (2019). Emotional Design for Digital Games for Learning: The Affective Quality of Expression, Color, Shape, and Dimensionality of Game Characters, Learning and Instruction.

Plass, J.L., Mayer, R. & Homer, B.D. (Eds.) (2020) Handbook of Game-based Learning. MIT Press.

Sirin, S., Plass, J.L., Homer, B.D., Vatanartiran, S. & Tsai, T. (2018). Digital game-based education for Syrian refugee children: Project Hope. Vulnerable Children & Youth Studies, 13(1), 7-18. doi: 10.1080/17450128.2017.1412551

Vacca, R. Bromley, M., Leyrer, J., Sprung, M., & Homer, B.D. (2014). Designing Games for Emotional Health. In Schrier, K. (Ed), Learning, Education, and Games (pp. 123-142). ETC Press.

All You Can ET, A game to train Cognitive Flexibility

Posted by Jan L Plass on March 19, 2020 in Design, Research 1 Comment

All You Can ET is a game designed to train task shifting (cognitive flexibility), a subskill of executive functions. Shifting involves effectively switching between different tasks, rules, or goals.

In this game, players need to apply frequently changing rules to give differently colored aliens, who have different numbers of eyes, the correct food or drink. As the levels progress, the rules get more complex. To succeed in this game, children must be able to adapt to the new sets of rules, which requires shifting, or cognitive flexibility.

Download for Free: AppStore | Google Play

All You Can ET is part of SMART Suite, a set of games to train executive functions (also including Gwakkamole and CrushStations) that has been developed by the CREATE lab at New York University in collaboration with researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara and The Graduate Center, CUNY. Published, peer-reviewed research with hundreds of students has validated the efficacy of SMART Suite for training executive functions (see bibliography), including the Handbook of Game-Based Learning.

Bibliography

Homer, B. D., Plass, J. L., Raffaele, C., Ober, T. M., & Ali, A. (2018). Improving high school students’ executive functions through digital game play. Computers & Education, 117, 50-58.

Plass, J.L., Mayer, R. & Homer, B.D. (Eds.) (2020) Handbook of Game-based Learning. MIT Press.

Vacca, R. Bromley, M., Leyrer, J., Sprung, M., & Homer, B.D. (2014). Designing Games for Emotional Health. In Schrier, K. (Ed), Learning, Education, and Games (pp. 123-142). ETC Press.

What do Emotions have to do with Learning?

Posted by Jan L Plass on March 21, 2017 in Design, Innovation, Research, Theory 2 Comments

Emotions? Aren’t they something to ignore during learning so we can focus on important things, such as meaning making and knowledge construction? If we look at current theories of learning with multimedia, we would indeed get the impression that emotions have no bearing on learning. And even when we ask practitioners, the most commonly cited connection between emotion and learning is test anxiety.

But wait – can we really turn off our emotions during learning?

As it turns out, emotions and cognition are intertwined on a neuro-physiological level that makes it unlikely that they could be separated on a functional level. Emotion and learning, we now realize, are inherently connected and deeply impact one another: Cognition elicits emotion, and emotion guides and modulates cognition. Interestingly, this is what allows us to adapt to the changes in our environment. It is also something progressive educators have known for centuries, we just seem to have forgotten with the dawn of the industrial revolution.

What is Emotional Design for Learning?

Taking advantage of this connection of emotion and cognition, we have begun exploring how the design of our digital learning environments can impact emotions. We use the term Emotional Design to describe the use of information design (visuals, sound), interaction design, and other methods, to induce emotions with the goal to facilitate learning. In fact, we were able to show that by redesigning learning materials simply by using round shapes and warm colors, we were able to induce positive emotions and enhance learning (Um, Plass, Hayward, & Homer, 2011).

How do I apply Emotional Design to my Projects?

The goal for emotional design is to impact learners’ emotion without changing the learning content itself. That means we use design features such as the shape of objects or their color: Round shapes and warm colors induce positive emotion, square shapes and neutral colors do not. In some of our most recent games, we use the game characters shown in the figures for the same purpose. Here we can use features such as their expression (sad, neutral, happy) or even their dimensionality (2D v. 3D).

Conclusion

The Cognitive Revolution in the 1950s has argued that learning is a cognitive process. Later, the Constructivist Revolution has introduced the notion that learning is a socio-cultural process. Is it time for the next revolution – the Emotional Revolution?

artwork by Keisha Milsom, NYU CREATE

Gamification v. Game-based Learning v. Playful Learning

Posted by Jan L Plass on March 15, 2017 in Design, Theory 0 Comment

As somebody who works in the field of games and learning, I often get asked about gamification versus game-based learning. Is there a difference? Should there be one? To be sure, no broadly accepted definitions exist for either of these terms, but at the Games for Learning Institute at NYU and in my CREATE lab we believe gamification and games for learning represent two very distinct approaches to designing learning experiences. There are other views, of course, such as described by our friends at Filament Games.

Gamification

We think of gamification as an attempt to apply specific game features to an existing learning environment in order to make it more motivating. Learning environment here could even mean a worksheet – often not the most interesting (or effective) way to learn. In order to get learners to engage in these activities anyway, gamification involves adding incentives such as stars, points, or rankings to encourage the learner to expend effort on the otherwise boring task. The learning task itself, however remains largely unchanged.

Game-based Learning

This is where Game-based learning comes into play. Going back to the example of the worksheet, when taking a game-based learning approach we ask whether worksheets are really the best way to learn about potentially interesting and certainly relevant topics such as the electoral college, the popular vote, estimating crowd sizes, or how wiretapping works, to name a few random ones that come to mind. In the games for learning approach, we go back to the drawing board of learning design and ask: How can we design game-based activities that are more interesting, meaningful, and, ultimately, more effective for learning than the existing task? In other words, we think about learning mechanics – the recurring activities in which learners engage while they play the game. We ground the design of these activities in discipline-specific applications of research from the Learning Sciences and related fields. The result is usually a new way of learning–and if we are really really lucky, learners actually agree that it is a good game. An example are our brain training games All you can E.T. and Gwakkamole, available for free on our DREAM platform. And as it turns out, the game mechanic itself, perhaps with the help of a narrative, is so interesting and engaging that we often don’t even use extrinsic rewards such as points or stars.

Playful Learning

Do we always have to design a game when we want to redesign a learning task? Through our work over the past decade we have come to believe that there is a highly interesting middle ground, which we describe as playful learning. When we take a playful learning approach, we may redesign the learning activity to make it more interesting and meaningful, but we use game features only in subtle ways, creating a playful learning experience rather than a full-blown game. An example can be seen in the StatsSims project, in which we used playful elements for the design of simulations for Intro to Statistics courses for high schools and colleges.

Summary

In summary, we use the terms gamification, game-based learning, and playful learning to describe three related yet distinct approaches to the design of learning experiences. Each has their place, but where gamification does not prioritize the redesign of the learning activity, game-based learning and playful learning are approaches that recognize that in many cases, we can do much better in designing activities for learning than worksheets.

Learning Mechanics and Assessment Mechanics

Posted by Jan L Plass on June 18, 2016 in Design, Theory 0 Comment

When we design digital learning opportunities, we often spend most of our effort on designing the right interactions that facilitate learning – learning mechanics. Often, learners actions, captured in user logs, are then used to assess learning outcomes. However, there is a deep philosophical difference in how we act when we learn v. how we act when we are being assessed. We therefore propose to differentiate another type of interaction – assessment mechanics. Unlike learning mechanics, which focus on facilitate learning and are based on learning theoretical considerations, assessment mechanics focus on the measurement of learning outcomes and are based on test theoretical concerns.

Suggested reading about this topic

Plass, J. L., & Homer, B.D. (2011). Learning Mechanics and Assessment Mechanics for Games for Learning. G4LI White Paper 01-2011.