A Decade of Research on Teacher Education in Game-Based Learning: Advancements and Trends From 2008–2018

• In Event: 79.050 - MTCC Roundtable Session 36
  In Roundtable Session: 79.050-6 - Teachers as Learners: Unearthing the Black Boxes of Computer-Supported Technological and Pedagogical Innovations

Abstract

Leading scholars in the field have theorized digital games as contexts with potential to promote “situated understandings, effective social practices, powerful identities, shared values, and ways of thinking of important communities of practice” (Shaffer, Squire, Halverson & Gee, 2005, p.7). Recent qualitative review studies have highlighted the expansive range of roles teachers play before, during, and after game-based learning interventions; as such, urging researchers to focus on teachers’ professional development as pivotal to successful and meaningful introduction of technological pedagogical innovations such as games in schools (Kangas, Koskinen, & Krokfors, 2016; Molin, 2017). However, national reports and survey studies studies have concluded that pre-service and in-service teachers are deprived of systematic professional development opportunities that can empower them to systematically adopt GBL in their practice in formal and informal settings (Fishman, Riconscente, Snider, & Plass, 2014; Ruggerio, 2013; Takeuchi & Vaala, 2014). This presentation reports findings from a review of literature that was conducted to answer the following question, “What is the status of research on teacher education in game-based learning?”. The review of literature was initially conducted as part of a doctoral study on developing and assessing pre-service teachers' competence in GBL (Shah, 2015). It was expanded upon to ascertain the advancements and trends research in the area of teacher education in GBL from 2008-2018 and to include both pre and in-service teachers. Initial findings suggest that pre-service and in-service teachers are less prepared to incorporate game-based learning in their practice when they lack knowledge and skills to analyze and integrate games, and address conditions impacting game use in classrooms (Devlin-Scherer & Sardone, 2010; Kenny & Gunter, 2011; Kennedy-Clark, Galstaun, & Anderson, 2013). Few studies have defined the knowledge and skills that are germane for teachers to leverage the potential of well-designed games for promoting students’ connections between in-game and personal experiences to big ideas in and across disciplines; thus, shaping not only what students know but also who they come to be (Foster, Shah & Duvall, 2015; Hanghoj & Brund, 2011; Shah & Foster, 2015). Other scholars have developed typologies that can help teachers’ identity games and to a certain extent their content and pedagogical characteristics (Jong & Shang, 2015; Wu, 2015). A handful studies have illustrated the process of supporting teachers’ motivation to incorporate games in their practice (Chee, Mehrotra & Ong, 2015; Shah & Foster, 2018; Sanchez-Mena et al., 2017). Examining the emergent status of research on teacher education in game-based learning (GBL) is crucial to support teachers’ growing interest in employing games for teaching, learning and assessment and educational research on games and learning at large (Shah, 2018). In the absence of comprehensive approaches for supporting teachers to innovate in their practice using games, teachers are likely (a) to not consider all aspects of games that can impact student learning, (b) to resort to using games as standalone tools for review and practice but not as ecosystems of designed experiences for students to explore their interests in.

Author

• Mamta Shah, Drexel University