Physics Playground: History and Overview

• In Event: 18.057 - Physics Playground, a Game for Learning: Demonstration and Posters

Abstract

Physics Playground—Version 1

Physics Playground (PP) is a 2D physics game designed to enhance qualitative physics understanding. The original version of PP used stealth assessment (Shute, 2011) to measure player’s conceptual understanding of physics related to: (1) Newton’s laws of force and motion, (2) potential and kinetic energy, and (3) conservation of angular momentum (Shute et al., 2014). The original version of PP had only one game type—the sketching interface. The sketching levels require players to draw simple machines (i.e., lever, ramp, pendulum, and springboard) to guide a green ball to hit a red balloon—the goal in all levels. Players can win a silver (any solution) or gold (optimal solution) trophy for solving a level, but not for failures. In the Chocolate Factory level (see Figure 1), players who solve it within two steps get a gold trophy.

Over the past decade, we have conducted empirical studies testing the effectiveness of PP on a range of competencies including physics understanding, creativity and persistence. We consistently found that (1) PP can foster motivation and learning, and (2) the embedded stealth assessment measures are reliable and valid—significantly correlated with external measures (see Shute et al., 2015). The next step was to enhance the game by including targeted in-game learning supports. This led to new funding (NSF and IES) to design, develop, and test both cognitive and affective stealth-assessment-based adaptive learning supports.

Physics Playground—Version 2
Over the past two years, we have been designing and testing the effectiveness of a variety of learning supports in PP to foster deeper and more formal understanding of Newtonian Physics, without disrupting flow. We are working towards developing an adaptive stealth assessment-based level selection algorithm.


New Competency Model
With our two physics experts, we selected primary and secondary physics competencies to be assessed in PP (Figure 2). We also identified salient game behaviors (or “indicators”) that can provide evidence of the proficiency status of each competency. The model serves as the foundation for subsequent design phases.

New Task Types and Levels
New task types were required to elicit evidence of this more elaborated set of physics concepts. The new manipulation tasks had the drawing disabled, instead players moved three sliders (i.e., gravity, mass, and air resistance) and added external forces (i.e., static/dynamic blowers and puffers) to solve a level.

Specific Learning Supports
We developed and tested 8 different learning supports for the game: (1) worked examples, (2) animations, (3) interactive definitions, (4) formulas, (5) Hewitt videos, (6) glossary, (7) hints, and (8) interactive tutorials. Clicking the help button triggers a pop-up window showing three options: “Show me the Physics,” “Show me a Solution or a Hint,” and “Show me Game Tips”.  The three options provide paths to both learning and gameplay supports. Currently support access is player-controled but upcoming studies will examine the effects of game-controled supports).

Author

• Valerie J. Shute, Florida State University