The mapping of Learning Mechanics- Game Mechanics (LM-GM) has been explored to better understand the relationships between pedagogical constructs and game-play mechanics. The mapping has also been used to inform the design of a game and the trans-disciplinary approach employed is reflected in a paper published in the British Journal of Educational Technology (BJET) journal.
This post is about another perspective of the mapping inspired by the importance of self-directed learning being one of the key aims for the use of game-based techniques and technologies in learning. The use of game techniques can potentially enhance engagement, promoting agency and sustaining participation in a learning process.In the paper that has just been accepted for publication in the Simulation and Gaming journal, we are looking at the mapping of these two key elements under the lens of the self-determination theory.
Title: Learning mechanics and game mechanics under the perspective of self-determination theory to foster motivation in digital game based learning.
Authors: Jean-Nicolas Proulx1, Margarida Romero1, Sylvester Arnab2
1 Université Laval, Québec, Canada
Jean-Nicolas.Proulx.1@ulaval.ca, Margarida.Romero@fse.ulaval.ca
2 Disruptive Media Learning Lab, Coventry University, UK
s.arnab@coventry.ac.uk
Abstract: Using digital games for educational purposes has been associated with higher levels of motivation among learners of different educational levels. However, the underlying psychological factors involved in digital game based learning (DGBL) have been rarely analyzed considering the self-determination theory (SDT, Ryan & Deci, 2000b); the relation of SDT with the flow experience (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) has neither been evaluated in the context of DGBL. Evaluating DGBL under the perspective of SDT can improve the study of motivational factors in DGBL. In this paper, we aim to introduce the LMGM-SDT theoretical framework, where the use of DGBL is analyzed through the Learning Mechanics and Game Mechanics mapping model (LM-GM, Arnab et al., 2015) and its relation with the components of the SDT. The implications for the use of DGBL in order to promote learners’ motivation are also discussed.
Keywords: Digital game based learning, motivation, self-determination theory, learning mechanic, game mechanics, LM-GM, SDT, flow.
There is also another paper that is currently under proof with BJET, which has expanded on the LM-GM mapping in order to understand the key relationships between the granularity of a learning process with game-play based on the development of a game aiming to foster inquiry-based teaching and learning. Will blog about this later.
Sylvester Arnab 