Play & learn: designing engaging educational games for children

Abstract

The use of computer games as common vehicles for education, as opposed to pure entertainment, has gained immense popularity in recent years. In this paper, we investigate the appealing characteristics of engaging computer games for children, and whether embedding these characteristics into an educational tool enhances children’s learning. We present the results of an evaluation study done with 120 primary school children over a period of two weeks. The study used an educational tool to teach children numeracy and embedded the characteristics we discovered in the first part of the research. The effectiveness of the educational tool was measured using a pre-test and a post-test, as well as other indicators such as the frequency and duration of time interacting with the tool. The results showed that the modified version of the tool with our features embedded was more effective in enhancing children’s learning.