(MENAFN- IssueWire)
Plano, Texas Jan 11, 2024 (Issuewire )
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Juego Studios - Game Development and Game Art Studio
Juego Studios is a renowned game development and art design service provider, known for creating a wide range of games such as RPGs, MMORPGs, puzzles, and action games. We serve a diverse clientele including Fortune 500 companies, indie developers, and various businesses in industries like gaming, entertainment, and finance. With a global reach in areas like the US, UK, India, and Australia, Juego Studios is celebrated for its extensive portfolio and consistent delivery of high-quality work.
The idea of using games for teaching began in the early 1980s. Probably after Jean Piaget's groundbreaking learning theory, where he suggests playing is an integral part of cognitive development in children.
That time around, video games were highly popular among children. Hence, many started considering games as a possible way to enhance learning behavior in children.
The 80s and 90s saw the release of a few educational games that taught basic math, science and puzzles. These games were quite well received by parents and teachers. Some of these games include Reader Rabbit, Number Muncher, etc.
Though children loved these games at first, they started to lose interest after some time. Because the games were not fun enough. For years, game developers have been struggling to tackle this problem.
But with the advent of recent technological developments, it has now become possible to build games that are both engaging and educational. Puzzle games, simulation games, AR/VR games, strategy games, and quiz games are some of the most popular types of educational games at present.
Educational games have become a medium to teach students in schools, and colleges, and even train corporate employees in jobs. Hence, educational institutions and businesses hire game developers to build learning games, revolutionizing the learning atmosphere.
Games – An Effective Medium For Learning
Many studies have been conducted in collaboration with universities and schools to understand the relationship between gamification and education. Surprisingly, results suggest that incorporating game design strategies into formal education can enhance intrinsic motivation among children.
Like textbooks and educational videos that are used for teaching, games should also be used as an innovative medium to teach academics. It is high time that we understand that game-based learning is the crucial next step in innovative teaching methods.
Education games should include playful learning principles in game design. Rather than adding learning principles to an already existing game design, you need to plan in such a way that the game design itself should act as a strategy to teach students.
Here, while we stress the importance of game-based learning and gamification, there is a striking difference between them.
Before further moving into the topic, it is important to understand them.
Gamification and Game-Based Learning
Gamification is the process of applying game elements or frameworks to motivate players in a game without really changing the nature of the gameplay. On the other hand, game-based learning expects a desired outcome, where the game itself is strategically designed to teach a skill or a concept.
Psychology Behind Educational Games
Jean Piaget, a renowned psychologist, observed that kids' thinking capacity is equal to that of adults; it is the way they think that is different. In his theory, he classified learning into four stages, suggesting that children need to play and actively engage to learn something better.
The student's learning curve should not be passive but an actively engaging experience, allowing them to apply them in real life. This helps students to retain memory for a long time.
Memory plays a crucial role in learning for students, predominantly involving two types: working memory and long term memory. The working memory retains information for a short time. Then it converts the important information to long-term memory based on the previous experience.
This is what game designers should be focusing on when they develop educational games.
They need to design games that will focus on making the concept understandable and allow them to apply it in real-life situations. It will also help them retain the knowledge for a long time.
Benefits Of Educational Games
Teachers can use education games as a medium to teach complex topics to students in a fun and engaging way. Studies have proved that educational games enhance learning experiences, help solve problems, and drive intrinsic motivation. It also helps in retaining memory for a long time.
Most importantly, they help to chase away boredom and help have a collaborative learning approach.
Another important aspect of gameplay is that it instills a growth mindset among the students. When you fail a level in a game, you can retry it and win the next time, which is not possible in the traditional assessment methods.
Fundamental Game Elements In Educational Games
Game design elements used in building a game include learning mechanics, assessment mechanics, rewards systems, creative design, storyline, and audio. These are the fundamental elements of educational video games.
With the proper use of these elements within the game, you can offer an engaging learning experience for your players. This also helps motivate them to stick with the game for a long time.
By skillfully designing the game, you could enhance the learning behavior among the students. You can hire game designers who have extensive experience in educational game tech and a deep understanding of human's learning behavior.
Studies suggest that human cognition functions effectively when people use more than one learning style simultaneously.
How Do Humans Learn?
Basically, humans learn via audio, video, and text. When a learning method involves two or more channels at the same time, it is said to improve the cognitive function of the brain. Thus retaining the memory for a longer period of time.
Precisely, this is why video games are a very good educational medium. For instance, take video games; they actively engage players with the video and suitable music or voice. It also uses text to convey feedback, instructions, etc.
Combining gaming and education, you can take advantage of all three learning modes, making students actively participate in learning.
Balancing Engagement and Learning Is The Key
As a game designer, it is easier said than done. Though strategically using various learning channels and managing to balance engagement and learning sounds brilliantly interesting, it has certain challenges too.
For starters, the most common problem a game developer faces is cognitive overload. It is a concept where a person's brain receives too much information at the same time, and it becomes very hard for it to process it all.
You see, making an engaging game and making an educational game are not the same thing. But blending them both and striking the right balance between them is the key to building a successful game.
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