GAF: from design to explanation of the learning process using an economics gaming intervention

Abstract

The Game Analysis Framework (GAF), which was created to provide a visual representation of ‘how’ and ‘why’ undergraduate students learn from the playing of educational economics games at tertiary level. The seeds of educational environmental transformation lie in the transition of the traditional passive economics lecture into a setting where student participation is key to the process of learning beyond merely listening and taking notes. This means that the classroom evolves into an active learning environment where the students become co-constructors of knowledge and take ownership of their learning. For this to occur we need to thoroughly examine the opportunities provided by an economics gaming intervention and GAF provides the lens through which we can explore the dynamic, active and tangible learning environment created by educational games. In any educational game design consideration has to be given to the learning outcomes which need to be embedded within the curriculum and the DNA of the game for the intervention to facilitate deeper conceptual understanding of the economics topics. GAF brings a unique perspective on the potential of games to provide a rich and complex learning environment because it focuses on the learning occurring within the game space. By introducing deliberative activity via an economics gaming intervention, the students become behaviourally, emotionally and cognitively engaged which enables them to move theory from being abstract to meaningful tools for deciphering economic reality.