A Game-Based Approach to Examining Students' Conceptual Knowledge of Fractions

: Manuel Ninaus, Kristian Kiili, Jake McMullen, Korbinian Moeller

: Rosa Bottino, Johan Jeuring, Remco C. Veltkamp

: 5th International Conference, GALA 2016

Publisher: SPRINGER INT PUBLISHING AG, GEWERBESTRASSE 11, CHAM, CH-6330, SWITZERLAND

: 2016

: Games and Learning Alliance: 5th International Conference, GALA 2016, Utrecht, The Netherlands, December 5–7, 2016, Proceedings

: GAMES AND LEARNING ALLIANCE, GALA 2016

: LECT NOTES COMPUT SC

: Lecture Notes in Computer Science

: 10056

: 37

: 49

: 13

: 978-3-319-50181-9

: 978-3-319-50182-6

: 0302-9743

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50182-6

Considering the difficulties many students and even educated adults face with reasoning about fractions, the potential for serious games to augment traditional instructional approaches on this topic is strong. The present study aims at providing evidence for the validity of a serious game used for studying students' conceptual knowledge of fractions. A total of 54 Finnish fifth graders played the math game on tablet computers using tilt-control to maneuver an avatar along a number line for a total of 30 min. Results indicated that most of the hallmark effects of fraction magnitude processing as identified in basic research on numerical cognition were successfully replicated using our serious game. This clearly suggests that game-based approaches for fraction education (even using tilt-control) are possible and may be effective tools for assessing and possibly promoting students' conceptual knowledge of fractions.