Game based learning’s impact in learning achievement: a systematic review

Abstract

Business Simulation Games are increasingly used in learning process, allowing participants to exercise real world skills and providing them all necessary feedback in order to learn from their mistakes in a “safe” environment. Current research has quite controversial results concerning the learning outcomes business simulation game’s users attain. Moreover, there is a lack of studies concerning the cognitive practices students employ when playing a game. This study discusses business simulation games and their impact in learning outcome, associated with Critical Thinking Dispositions (CTD), Motivation (MOT) and Team Skills (TS), as well as the impact of pc skills, gender and hours of game playing per week. This work expands current research by (1) recording game based learning’s impact for each cognitive level of Bloom’s SOLO taxonomy, (2) searching the possible impact of motivation combined with CTD may have in learning achievement and (3) testing whether educational games can improve CTD. Eighty (80) university students used McGraw Hill’s Education “Practice Marketing”, a Simulation Game used for practising a business marketing plan. A pre and post theory test based on Bloom’s Solo taxonomy was used in order to measure learning achievement. A pairedsamples t-test was conducted to evaluate the impact of the game's practice on Student's scores, and a statistically significant increase in test scores was found. Data was collected through a self-administered Likert-style questionnaire that was distributed to all students before and upon completion of the simulation. A multiple linear regression was calculated for Test scores based on perceived Critical Thinking Dispositions (CTD) and Motivation (MOT) and were both not found significant predictors of Test scores. A paired-samples t-test was conducted to evaluate the impact of the game's practice on Student's CTD and no statistically significant increase was found. The relationship between perceived team skills and game scores was investigated using Pearson product – moment correlation coefficient and a strong, positive correlation was found. A two way between groups analysis of variance was conducted to explore the impact of gender, pc skills and hours of game play per week on learning achievement and no significant main effect or interaction effect was found in the overall analysis.