Overview

Background

Interest in Digital Learning Games (DLGs) has flourished at all levels of education. They are effective tools to support learner centered teaching practices. However, the design, development and uses of DLGs remain an issue due to the gap between teachers, game developers and researchers.

Project Goals

The goal of the co.LAB project is to improve the design, development and uses of Digital Learning Games. This goal will be achieved by the development of a collaborative methodological framework associated with a collaborative digital platform dedicated to co-design, co-development and co-evaluation of DLGs.

Research questions (RQ)

  • RQ1: What methodology is needed to support collaborative DLG design and development?
  • RQ 2: What are the digital platform features necessary to support the collaborative DLG design and development process?
  • RQ 3: What are the effects of the methodology and digital platform on development cost and duration (efficiency)?
  • RQ 4: What are the effects of the methodology and digital platform on the quality of DLGs produced (relevance and effectiveness)?
  • RQ 5: What are the drivers for adoption of the methodology and digital platform by the educational, game developer, and research communities?

 

WorkPackages

WP1: Design of the Methodological Framework

WP 1 aims at design of the methodological framework, with guidelines, tools and recommendations for the co-design, co-development and co-evaluation of DLGs.

WP2: Development of the Collaborative Digital Platform

Based on the results of WP1, development of the digital co-design platform, improvement of the co-development platform and development of the evaluation and dissemination modules. The co-development platform will be built on top of the existing open-source Wegas platform.

WP3: Tests in Naturalistic Contexts

Development, use and assessment of two use-cases of DLGs. Tests will involve all stakeholders of the project: game developers, teachers, students, and educational researchers.

The two tests DLGs will be selected based on our previous experiences and partnerships: Evolution of the “Computational thinking game” at secondary school, new game in medical education at the University of Applied Sciences.

Results will include the developed serious games and a report with an evaluation of the quality of the games, an evaluation of the collaborative process and recommendations for the improvement of the methodology.

WP4: Dissemination

Dissemination of project results to target audiences, through online availability, publications in peer reviewed conferences and journals, presentation in professional conferences and seminars.

 

Latest News

Game-Based Learning Weeks in Fort-de-France

December 22, 2023
Published by
LIP/TECFA

From December 11 to 16, Eric Sanchez was invited by CANOPE and INSPE de la Martinique to take part in edutainment week. The program included :

- a conference for the CANOPE network on the theme of game-based learning , given both in person and remotely. The conference was attended by over 200 teachers and education professionals.

- A hackaton on game design for teachers in Martinique and students in the INSPE Master's program in Education and Training. During this Hackaton, which used the co.LAB platform, prototypes of nearly 20 games were designed on the themes of secularism for secondary education and fractions for primary education. The design also relied heavily on the use of generative AI for the design of graphics and game pitches.

Retrospective on the EIAH2023 workshop

September 27, 2023
Published by
LIP/TECFA

The members of the project were in Brest in June 2023 to take part in the biennial EIAH2023 conference. For this occasion, we proposed a workshop on the theme of conducting collaborative design-oriented research (CDOR) in the field of digital learning games (link to the workshop).

This workshop welcomed 19 participants and 3 facilitators (Estelle Prior, Mariem Jaouadi and Eric Sanchez).

After a few introductory words, we gave the floor to five researchers and doctoral students (Iza Marfisi-Schottman, Gaëlle Guigon, Benoit Martinet, Bertrand Marne and Mathieu Vermeulen) who presented their own methods for designing learning games. This was followed by a time of exchange with the other workshop participants.

In the second part of the workshop, participants were divided into five groups. They discussed the roles of the players involved in the collaborative design of digital learning games, and possible solutions to difficulties identified during the design process. These exchanges took place around a game designed by two students from the Concordia MALTT Master's program (Sébastien Coupez and Ana Rajic), the Ra^Khetep game. A debriefing was then held with each of the groups to discuss the proposed solutions.

Lastly, the co.LAB project platform was presented, with a view to responding to the difficulties proposed in the Ra^Khetep game.

At the West Switzerland Emergency Medicine Day

May 25, 2023
Published by
AlbaSim, MEI (HES-SO)

A serious game designed with the co.LAB methodology, with the purpose to train to the pre-triage of victims during major events, was used as part of the SIMCUP during the "Emergency medicine day": Twelve inter-professional teams (doctors, nurses, paramedics) competed in different simulated scenarios.

Subscribe to