Designing Online Information Literacy Games Students Want to Play

by Karen Markey, Chris Leeder, Soo Young Rieh

Overview

Designing Online Information Literacy Games Students Want to Play sets the record straight with regard to the promise of games for motivating and teaching students in educational environments.

The authors draw on their experience designing the BiblioBouts information literacy game, deploying it in dozens of college classrooms across the country, and evaluating its effectiveness for teaching students how to conduct library research. The multi-modal evaluation of BiblioBouts involved qualitative and quantitative data collection methods and analyses. Drawing on the evaluation, the authors describe how students played this particular information literacy game and make recommendations for the design of future information literacy games.

You’ll learn how the game’s design evolved in response to student input and how students played the game including their attitudes about playing games to develop information literacy skills and concepts specifically and playing educational games generally. The authors describe how students benefited as a result of playing the game.

Drawing from their own first-hand experience, research, and networking, the authors feature best practices that educators and game designers in LIS specifically and other educational fields generally need to know so that they build classroom games that students want to play. Best practices topics covered include pre-game instruction, rewards, feedback, the ability to review/change actions, ideal timing, and more.

The final section of the book covers important concepts for future information literacy game design.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780810891425
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	03/12/2014
Pages:	302
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Karen Markey is a professor in the School of Information at the University of Michigan.

Chris Leeder is a doctoral candidate in the School of Information at the University of Michigan.

Soo Young Rieh is an associate professor in the School of Information at the University of Michigan.

Table of Contents

List of Figures List of Tables Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1. The Promise of Games for Information Literacy Instruction Introduction Definitions of Information Literacy The Evolving Concept of Information Literacy Instruction Multiple Approaches to the Information Literacy Concept Methods of Information Literacy Instruction Research on the Benefits of Information Literacy Instruction Barriers to Information Literacy Instruction Games and Learning The Rise of Games in Libraries Games for Information Literacy Instruction Online Information Literacy Games Evaluating Educational Games Summary Chapter 2. The Needs Assessment Introduction Formulating the Game’s Overarching Learning Objective Asking Eight Questions for the Needs Assessment Understanding Why Students Prefer the Open Web Over the Library Research on How Students Judge the Credibility of Online Information Determining the Right Audience for a Library Research Game Summary Chapter 3. The Design of an Information Literacy Game Introduction Premises for the Design of Information Literacy Games Planning the BiblioBouts Information Literacy Game Involving Instructors in Game Play Discussion Summary Chapter 4. The BiblioBouts Administrator Interface Introduction Super Administrator Functionality Game Administrator Functionality Discussion Summary Chapter 5. The BiblioBouts Game Introduction The Structure of the BiblioBouts Game Preparing for Game Play Playing the Closer Bout Playing the Tagging & Rating (T&R) Bout Playing the Best Bibliography Bout Consulting the Post-Game Library User Support for the BiblioBouts Game Enlisting Library Liaisons Using Email Making Videos Available Giving Super Administrators an Account-Login Tool Publishing FAQs Scoring Issues Summary Chapter 6. The Methods Used to Evaluate BiblioBouts Introduction Research Questions Game Diary Forms Pre- and Post-Game Questionnaires for Students Focus Group Interviews with Students Follow-up Interviews with Students Logs of Students’ Game-Play Activity Interviews with Instructors Interviews with Library Liaisons Summary Chapter 7. Preparing Students to Play BiblioBouts Introduction Instructors’ Expectations Research Paper Assignments In-Class Preparation The Challenge of Technology Problems Discussion Summary Chapter 8. How Students Played BiblioBouts Introduction Overview of BiblioBouts Games Styles of Game Play Daily Game Play Activity Time Spent Playing the Donor Bout Time Spent Playing the T&R Bout Total Time Spent Playing BiblioBouts Discussion Summary Chapter 9. How Students Evaluated BiblioBouts Sources Introduction Class Assignments Do Students Submit Relevant Sources to BiblioBouts? Do Students Submit Scholarly Sources to BiblioBouts? Do Students Correctly Identify the Information Formats of BiblioBouts Sources? What Criteria Do Students Use to Assess BiblioBouts Sources? Students’ Credibility and Relevance Assessments Credibility Assessments Relevance Assessments Whether Players and Experts Agree on the Credibility of Online Sources Discussion Summary Chapter 10. How BiblioBouts Influenced Students’ Research Papers Introduction Research Questions and Methods Does Source Quality Improve at Each Step of the Research Process? Do Players Cite Better Quality Sources than Non-Players? Do Players Cite More Sources Than Non-Players? Do Players Cite BiblioBouts Sources in their Research Papers? Discussion Summary Chapter 11. How Students Benefited from Playing BiblioBouts Introduction Improved Perceptions of their Information Literacy Skills Greater Familiarity with Library Databases Exposure to More and Varied Sources Practice Evaluating Sources Learning How to Use the Zotero Citation Management Tool Conducting Library Research Collaboratively Playing a Game While Conducting Library Research Benefits from the Instructors’ Viewpoint Students Who Did Not Benefit from Game Play Discussion Summary Chapter 12. Best Practices for Building Information Literacy Games Introduction Revisiting the Needs Assessment Getting Started on Game Design Developing the Scoring System and How to Win Implementing the Game in Course Contexts Managing the Design Team Game Design Exercise Summary Chapter 13. Best Practices for Administrator, Instructional, and User-Support Services Introduction Designing the Super Administrator Interface Designing the Game Administrator Interface Establishing Instructional Support Services Putting User Support Services in Place Discussion Summary Chapter 14. The Future of Information Literacy Games Introduction The Future of Information Literacy Games Lessons Learned from BiblioBouts Ideas for Future Online Information Literacy Games Conclusion Appendix A. Game Diary Form for Students Appendix B. Pre-game Questionnaire for Students Appendix C. Post-game Questionnaire for Students Appendix D. Focus Group Interview Questions for Students Appendix E. Follow-up Interview Questions for Students Appendix F. Game Logs Appendix G. Personal Interview Questions for Instructors Appendix H. Personal Interview Questions for Library Liaisons Bibliography

Editorial Reviews

This is an excellent resource for librarians, teachers, designers, and others interested in creating digital games to teach students how to locate, select, and evaluate high quality information resources for academic use. The book guides readers from student learning needs assessment through game design and evaluation, using the authors’ own information literacy game, BiblioBouts, as a detailed case study and design example. Of particular interest are the sets of best practices for game design and game support, enabling readers to learn valuable lessons from the authors’ own design and testing experiences.

Denise E. Agosto

The best practices in this book would be valuable to someone new to the surprisingly complex world of designing information literacy games in a school environment. Librarians and educators can avoid falling into the trap of creating a quiz wrapped in a bad educational game shell by following the advice and examples in the book.

Scott Nicholson