The effectiveness of games for educational purposes: a review of recent research
Simulation and Gaming
What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy
What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy
Experimental evaluation of an educational game for improved learning in introductory computing
Proceedings of the 40th ACM technical symposium on Computer science education
Who are the crowdworkers?: shifting demographics in mechanical turk
CHI '10 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Toward a Framework for the Analysis and Design of Educational Games
DIGITEL '10 Proceedings of the 2010 Third IEEE International Conference on Digital Game and Intelligent Toy Enhanced Learning
Students' perceptions of the differences between formal and informal learning
Proceedings of the seventh international workshop on Computing education research
Personifying programming tool feedback improves novice programmers' learning
Proceedings of the seventh international workshop on Computing education research
The Gamification of Learning and Instruction: Game-based Methods and Strategies for Training and Education
How can a social debugging game effectively teach computer programming concepts?
Proceedings of the ninth annual international ACM conference on International computing education research
Proceedings of the 45th ACM technical symposium on Computer science education
Khan academy gamifies computer science
Proceedings of the 45th ACM technical symposium on Computer science education
Codespells: how to design quests to teach java concepts
Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges
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Assessments have been shown to have positive effects on learning in compulsory educational settings. However, much less is known about their effects in discretionary learning settings, especially in computing education and educational games. We hypothesized that adding assessments to an educational computing game would provide extra opportunities for players to practice and correct misconceptions, thereby affecting their performance on subsequent levels and their motivation to continue playing. To test this, we designed a game called Gidget, in which players help a robot find and fix defects in programs that follow a mastery learning paradigm. Across two studies, we manipulated the inclusion of multiple choice and self-explanation assessment levels in the game, measuring their impact on engagement and level completion speed. In our first study, we found that including assessments caused learners to voluntarily play longer and complete more levels, suggesting increased engagement; in our second study, we found that including assessments caused learners to complete levels faster, suggesting increased understanding. These findings suggest that including assessments in a discretionary computing education game may be a key design strategy for improving informal learning of computing concepts.