ERIC Number: EJ1394660
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1049-4820
EISSN: EISSN-1744-5191
Finding Resources, Finding Friends: Using an Alternate Reality Game for Orientation and Socialisation in a University Enabling Program
Elsom, Sandra; Westacott, Marguerite; Stieler-Hunt, Colleen; Glencross, Sarah; Rutter, Kerry
Interactive Learning Environments, v31 n5 p2635-2649 2023
Game-based learning has been recognised as a strategy to increase students' engagement in higher education. Alternate reality games (ARG) provide players with the opportunity to apply newly developed knowledge and skills, such as visiting important campus locations and completing relevant activities. The collaborative nature of these games means they have the potential to support socialisation in the new environment. This study used a mixed-methods approach to examine the experience of 13 students who participated in an ARG during orientation week at a regional university in Australia. Data were collected using an online survey implemented at three time points, and from focus groups which took place at the end of the semester. Results of the analysis indicate that participants who played the game, reported a more positive emotional state, greater familiarity with the university campus and engaged in more social interactions than their peers who attended orientation, but did not play. These results suggest that an alternate reality game can engender positive emotions in new enabling program students and help them to create friendships at university. This impacts their sense of connectedness, one of the factors identified as important for success in higher education.
Descriptors: College Students, Orientation, Socialization, Game Based Learning, Student Experience, Foreign Countries, Emotional Experience, Friendship, Interpersonal Relationship, Interaction, Peer Relationship, Familiarity, Psychological Patterns
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A