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ERIC Number: EJ1320481
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Oct
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2576-6767
EISSN: N/A
Leveraging Game-Based Learning Technologies to Introduce Adolescents to Health Science Careers during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Spain, Randall; Penilla, Carlos; Ozer, Elizabeth; Taylor, Robert; Ringstaff, Cathy; Lester, James
Journal of STEM Outreach, v4 n4 Oct 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic produced a dramatic nationwide shift in K-12 education from in-person classroom learning to remote online learning. This shift left teachers and parents facing the challenge of finding engaging online resources to motivate students to become deeply involved in science learning. The pandemic also left educators and researchers, whose work focuses on providing students with experiential learning opportunities in the sciences, with the challenge of adapting to virtual and remote models to continue engaging students in STEM learning activities. In this article we describe: 1) the Health Quest project, which centers on the development of technology-rich learning resources to promote middle grade students' interest in health science careers, with a focus on girls and underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities; and 2) how the project has responded to the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. In Health Quest, through engaging narrative-based learning scenarios, students work with virtual characters to experience health science careers from multiple perspectives. Although originally envisioned for in-person classroom learning, we discuss how the team is adapting the Health Quest Career Adventure Game to remote learning, including highlighting the role science plays in addressing public health outbreaks. We describe new gameplay features that have been added to support career modeling and how we have adapted the core technology underpinning Health Quest to support broad dissemination to meet the project's broader goal of increasing adolescents' interest in and self-efficacy for pursuing health science careers. We conclude with a discussion of how our evaluation strategies have changed from in-person focus groups and testing to an online data collection model and lessons learned.
Journal of STEM Outreach. PMB 0367, 230 Appleton Place, Nashville, TN 37203. e-mail: jstemoutreach@vanderbilt.edu; Web site: https://www.jstemoutreach.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Junior High Schools; Middle Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) (DHHS/NIH); Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) (DHHS), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: R25OD02188001A1; UA6MC27378; T71MC00003