Case Study: Citizen Science
Squire created an educational game called Citizen Science, in which players would travel to a world in the future, discover that the lake was eutrophic, and then go back in time to try to save the lake. Players would talk to people, collect evidence, and make arguments for how they believe the lake should be adapted to solve the problem. Then players would use tools real scientists would have to take samples on the boat and measure the lake's improvement. The game was designed so that students would become more involved in the ecology and civic engagement, and understand they could have an impact on the future.
Squire studied students to see whether playing the game helped improve interest and, ultimately, test scores. All students were pre-tested on Day 1. On Day 2, half of students had the packet and half the game. There was a mid-test following this activity or reading. On Day 3, the two groups switched and the other half of students had the packet and the other half played the game. On Day 4, the final test showed that the experimental group who had the game first had scores that rose dramatically, while the control group, who had the packet first, wasn't as interested in the lake. Squire concluded that the game caused interest in the lake that led students to care about the subject and thus retain the knowledge gained. (Squire, K., & Durga, S.)
Squire studied students to see whether playing the game helped improve interest and, ultimately, test scores. All students were pre-tested on Day 1. On Day 2, half of students had the packet and half the game. There was a mid-test following this activity or reading. On Day 3, the two groups switched and the other half of students had the packet and the other half played the game. On Day 4, the final test showed that the experimental group who had the game first had scores that rose dramatically, while the control group, who had the packet first, wasn't as interested in the lake. Squire concluded that the game caused interest in the lake that led students to care about the subject and thus retain the knowledge gained. (Squire, K., & Durga, S.)