Abstract:

This article reports on the longitudinal development of a computer-programming course designed to meet the needs of students who enrolled in a specific game development programme during the period of 2006 to 2010. The students came from three different arts and design-related strands of the programme, and had that in common that very few had taken advanced science classes as part of their upper-secondary education. This again meant that they were rather poorly equipped for tapping into the full potential of the interactive and creative processes which their computers allowed for but which demanded knowledge of higher-level mathematics and physics. In order to enhance the students’ artistic, computer-related work the programming course was designed in a way that combined the task of creating a computer game with the teaching of the mathematics and physics necessary in order to fulfil this task in a successful way. A working hypothesis for the project was that if the responsible teachers were able to run the course in a way that cohered with the principles of problem-based learning, this would create an environment which would enhance the students’ motivation to learn basic programming as well as the operative and innovation skills needed for fulfilling the course requirements. In addition, ideas developed within situated cognition studies as well as the field of situated learning constituted theoretical points of departure for developing the course. Overall, the programming course design functioned successfully in merging the practical task of game development with increasing the students’ mathematics and physics knowledge as well as their programming skills. In addition, the students had access to collaborative social environments which worked as creativity-enhancing communities of practice. Many of the students who have been enrolled in the course over the years have since embarked on a path as professional and successful game developers.

Keywords:

Games and Learning, Gamification.