Abstract:

Many secondary school students have difficulties when they have to solve problems directly related with spatial intelligence such as the tridimensional visualization of pieces two-dimensionally represented. This fact has been reported by several educators in secondary schools.

In the last years, gamification has been widely used as a teaching tool for spatial intelligence. It is very relevant the use of computers, tablets and smartphones in this gamification process, with many researches focus on the use of ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies). In spite of the boom of new technologies, traditional games have shown many benefits for education, such as the development of motor abilities in students [1] and the increasing of memoristic capacity [2]. Moreover, they contribute in reducing the use of Internet and increment the social abilities in scholars [3]. Despite the benefits that the traditional games present, its use for the tridimensional representation of figures is a field of study that has not been developed and there are very few researches in this topic.

The research we present in this communication is based on preliminary work that was carried on with few students and lately developed for its application in secondary schools. The objective of this work was to improve the spatial intelligence in students in such a way they were able to visualize figures that were represented with their dihedral views three-dimensionally. In order to get that objective, a game was designed and used with scholars by using a gamification methodology. The game Block & Go!® features cards with four difficulty levels that are increasing while the game advances, and an initial level for adaptation.
The intervention was carried on with a group of students of 4º ESO (approximately 16 years-old). An evaluation previous to the activity and another after it were used to evaluate the results of the experience. These results showed that the application of this methodology based on the developed game contributed to the improvement of the spatial visualization of pieces represented with their dihedral views. The gamification strategy with Block & Go!® also contributed to improve the students’ interest in the subject matter.

References:
[1] Hayati HS, CH M, Asmawi M. Effect Of Traditional Games, Learning Motivation And Learning Style On Childhoods Gross Motor Skills. Int J Educ Res. 2017;5(7):53–66.
[2] Iasha V, Al Ghozali MI, Supena A, Wahyudiana E, Setiawan B, Auliaty Y. The traditional games effect on improving students working memory capacity in primary schools. In: ACM International Conference Proceeding Series. 2020. p. 1–5.
[3] Kacar D, Ayaz-Alkaya S. The effect of traditional children’s games on internet addiction, social skills and stress level. Arch Psychiatr Nurs [Internet]. 2022;40:50–5. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnu.2022.04.007

Keywords:

Gamification, Tridimensional visualization, Spatial intelligence, Graphic expression, Secondary education.