This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project seeks to motivate middle-school students to engage in science. Specifically, many students lack interest in environmental education, due largely to the increased time they spend indoors engaging in digital media. Through the development of Agency, an Alternate Reality Game (ARG), this project will leverage students? interest in video games and social technologies to motivate them to spend more time outdoors engaging in citizen science. In Agency, students use online technologies to transform themselves into super-agents who must go outdoors and take real action in their communities in order to play. Students gain points through peer-ranking of their activities. After developing one level of Agency through 3 iterations in schools, the researchers will conduct a feasibility study using pre/post tests of student learning outcomes, and student-questionnaires on motivations toward positive environmental behavior and time spent outside. Qualitative data from observations and teacher interviews will be included. Because of the infancy of the use of ARGs in education, this project will fill a research void by identifying the factors that lead to a sustainable and motivating educational ARG, and demonstrating the impact ARGs have on increasing science understanding and time spent outdoors.
The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is its potential appeal to teachers and students because of the highly motivating nature of ARGs. Additionally, through careful and researched instructional design, this project will develop a complete system that meets teachers? needs to produce technologically rich and stimulating activities, while helping students meet state standards for science. What sets Agency apart from other ARGs is its strong foundation in the 6-8th grade state science curriculum standards around ecosystems and watersheds, as well as scientific practices. Additionally, the program?s online tools allow students and teachers to effectively interact with science data and content in a repeatable and asynchronous manner, never found before in an educational ARG. Through the 9-month, standards-based curriculum, as well as a database connecting students to content, other classrooms, experts, and local and global media outlets, students are scaffolded in their scientific skills of observing, predicting, testing, acting, and reporting while gaining environmental literacy. This product could easily be linked to existing environmental education curriculums or science textbooks, adding value to products marketed to K-12 schools. As students play Agency they will enjoy the adventure of practicing science and the importance of responsible environmental behavior.
Seward Incorporated, under the direction of David S. Porcaro, PhD, has lead a team of science and environmental educators, researchers, and developers from Minnesota and Georgia to create an innovative online tool that motivates middle school students to learn about science and spend more time outdoors. Many students lack interest in environmental education, due in large part to the increased time they spend indoors playing videogames or engaging in digital media. Seward created Agency in order to meet the needs of the current nature-deficit curriculum. Agency, an Alternative Reality Game (ARG), leverages students’ interest in video games and social technologies to motivate them to spend more time outdoors engaging in citizen science. Through Agency, students use online social technologies to transform themselves into superhero agents who must go outdoors and take real action in their communities in order to play the game. After they demonstrate evidence of completing their tasks, students rank each other’s tasks based on Agent Skills they are trying to develop. As they complete and document tasks, students’ online Agents progress, gaining points and badges, and leveling up. Through their real-life actions, students are motivated to develop environmental literacy and engage in responsible environmental behavior. In addition to developing the course, Seward Inc. tested Agency during a two-week pilot in five 7th-grade classrooms. Data was collected before and after the course to measure students’ perceptions of science, perceptions of the outdoors, knowledge of ecology, frequency of talking to their parents about environmental problems, frequency of going outside for fun, access to a garden at home, frequency of playing video games, and satisfaction with Agency. Additionally, a sample of 20 students were interviewed at the beginning of the game (10 male, 10 female) about their perceptions of the visual aspects of the game, and the ease of playing the game. At the conclusion of the project, 12 students were interviewed about perceptions of the game, its use on an iPad, and whether they played Agency at home. One implementing teacher was also interviewed about her perceptions of the game, ease of use, and the alignment of the content with state standards. Generally, Agency was received well by students and teachers. While there were technical issues that may have limited student outcomes, these were quickly worked out. Students and teachers showed interest in the game, and students demonstrated gains in knowledge of topics covered. Features that received positive comments were the discussion streams, the ability to do tasks outdoors, the motivational gaming elements (such as points, badges, leaderboards, etc.), the visual aspects, and several of the in-class tasks. When fully complete, Agency will provide a 6-10 week standards-based ecology curriculum, as well as a database connecting students to content, other classrooms, and their communities. Through Agency, students will be scaffolded in their scientific skills of observing, predicting, testing, acting, and reporting while gaining environmental literacy. This product will be a flexible tool that could easily be customized to existing environmental education curricula or science textbooks, adding value to products marketed to K-12 schools. As students play Agency, they will enjoy the adventure of practicing science and the importance of responsible environmental behavior. Intellectual Merit: This pilot sheds light on the use of ARGs in K-12 settings to motivate students to engage in scientific activities and spend time outdoors. While the limits of this study (such as the short length of time the pilot was used in class and the fact that it was implemented in winter in a very cold climate) prevented this study from demonstrating some of the desired changes in the students’ interest to go outdoors or change environmental behaviors, it clearly demonstrated that ARGs are a feasible and valid way for students to learn in K-12 settings, and can be highly motivating to some students. Broader Impacts: This study demonstrates that ARGs can be successfully designed and developed for K-12 classroom settings that meet state science standards, promote collaborative learning, and motivate students to learn, act, and provide evidence on what they have done. The Agency platform can be adapted for use with a variety of content, providing a tool for teachers to create game-based lessons in their own classes, as well as link students in classes around the world in a network of citizen scientists.
