Learner Engagement in the use of Individual and Collaborative Serious Games

Abstract

This chapter aims to advance in the analysis of the learner engagement and performance in the use of computer-based games, also known as Serious Games (SG). The chapter describes the learner engagement in relation to the use of SG in individual and collaborative learning activities. The SG learning experience considers the learner engagement in the individual activities observed through their real use of the game and their perceptions of the usefulness of the game and the time-on-task spent. The collaborative use of SG considers additional mechanisms of engagement related to the intragroup relationships – relationships within the same members of the group – and intergroup relationships – relationships between the different groups – such is the degree of interdependence and the degree of competition in the game. The state of the art in the learner engagement in the use of individual and collaborative SG is based in a literature review, and completed by the study case of the individual and the collaborative use of the eFinance Game or eFG (MetaVals) in ESADE Business & Law School. We analyse the current challenges and transfer the knowledge created through the eFG case for the practitioners aiming to promote learners’ engagement through the use of individual and collaborative SG.

Citation

Romero, M. (2012), "Learner Engagement in the use of Individual and Collaborative Serious Games", Wankel, C. and Blessinger, P. (Ed.) Increasing Student Engagement and Retention Using Immersive Interfaces: Virtual Worlds, Gaming, and Simulation (Cutting-Edge Technologies in Higher Education, Vol. 6 Part C), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 15-34. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2044-9968(2012)000006C004