Present How? (describe)
Used different audio and on screen
text indicating whether the user
angled the microscope on a planet or
if they missed the planet completely.
The game also uses animation
changing the sky from night to day
Yes
works like a stopwatch indicating to
the user how much time they have
left to finish the game. There is also
an indicator in the far right corner
indicating the time left by changing
from dark to light.
Texts & Graphics & Sounds Text is
used to label game controls, a help
button and "time left" indicator. When
hovering over the help button
directional text appears over the
Yes
controls. Instructional text is absent.
Graphics and animation is used for
decorative and engagement purposes.
Sound effects are complimental to the
Multimedia space theme.
The game relies on graphics, but also
includes words (instructional text)
YES
and written feedback (Planet
Found/Not Found)
Interactive game that includes a
graphical interface and visual objects
Yes
along with minimal instructional text
that supports locating the planet
The lesson is an interactive game that
Yes
uses both text, graphics, and sound.
Graphics, text, video and audio used.
Yes Audio isn't instructional, but the rest
of the elements promote e-leaning.
Instructions are presented sparate f
on a individual screen from the game
screen. Due to the space theme the
Partial game controls are at the bottom with
unambigous labeled. Only feedback
and "time left" indicators are on top
half of screen
When the user hovers over help or
the microscope without entering in an
angle hovers appear explaining how
Yes and No
to use the controls used to move the
microscope appear over those
controls.
All text involving feedback (Planet
Found/Planet Not Found) is always
YES
presented on top of the visual
indicator.
Contiguity
No spoken words were utilized during
the course of game play. Also, there
No
is not synchronize spoken words with
corresponding graphics.
Words align with corresponding
Yes
graphics and help guide the learner.
Numbers listed to corresponding
angles (except for hardest difficulty
level). Feedback presented on game
Partial
screen. Rollover help information
does obscure some of the planets
from view
There is no sound until the user types
Yes in a weight and clicks "Point
Microscope"
Modality
There are no spoken instructions.
Contextual elements such as buttons,
No
'time left' indicator and feedback
prompt are text-based.
The game does not contain audio
NO
narration.
Modality
No speech provided during the game
No
play
No There is no word audio.
Partial Instructions are presented as text
No N/A
Audio narrations are not present.
Yes Game design constitutes graphics and
text alone.
All visuals have accompanying on
screen text when a planet is found or
YES not found based on user input. There
is no audio other than sound effect
tones.
Redundancy The only time the presentation of text
and audio is presented is when the
user selects the point telescope - the
No
system plays a positive or negative
audio with the test Planet Found or
Planet Not Found
Pop-up labels (text) are provided over
Yes
key graphics
Graphics are described by short text
No
labels vs. audio narration
The game only showed the necessary
information when appropriate.
Yes
Hovers, user feedback and audio were
all user driven.
Background music does not exist.
When a response has being entered
regardless of the answer text-based
Yes feedback with sound effects will play.
Graphics selected relate to the theme
of the game and angle measurement
concept.
The game is limited in scope to the
YES task of using degree angles to identify
Coherence planets.
There is no a use of extraneous audio,
graphics or words. The game layout is
very streamlined geared toward the
Yes
user entering an angle to the point
the telescope and their weird
inhabitants
The lessons avoid use of extraneous
Yes
graphics beyond what is needed.
Lesson contains extraneous
background noise; lesson uses videos
when planets are found that are
No
interesting but are not essential;
lesson uses more complicated visual
illustrations
No N/A
Text used is informal and generic. A
on-screen charactor is present in the
No introduction but does not
communicate. This character is
absent during the game.
The game does not use coaches to
NO
guide learners along.
Personalization
Personalization The game offers no personalized
No experience on-screen coaching or the
author being made visible
The lesson is presented in an informal
Yes
way, geared towards child learners
Instructional content is presented in
Partial
conversational language
There were three rounds of the game
No and each got progressively more
complex than the one before.
The game has two segmented
concepts (1) mentally draw an
imaginary line between a degree &
planet (2) enter degree to make
Partial
telescope point to planet. Learners
are not told about these concepts nor
how are they represented in the
game. There is no pre-training.
Segmenting As the lesson is delivered in the form
and NO of a game, it is not segmented into
pretraining smaller parts.
There is no segmenting of the game.
The game layout is very streamlined
geared toward the user entering an
No angle to the point the telescope and
their weird inhabitants. After the user
enters the angle, the game continues
until the time expires
The lessons increase in difficulty
Yes allowing the user to build on previous
knowledge each time.
Key concepts are not named and key
No characteristics are not described prior
to presenting the game
The game provided on screen
No instructions for the user before
starting the game.
Examples are not provided in any
No
form.
Worked examples are not present in
NO
this learning context.
Worked
This game does not included worked
examples No
examples and detailed instructions
There is no interactive example, just
No
text.
Worked examples are never used as
No
poart of this game
The game does not give the user the
No
opportunity to practice the game first.
Practice exercise is not provide before
No
playing the game
The task (entering the right degree
value) must be completed before time
YES
expires. The game can be repeated
continuously to meet this objective.
Practice
This game does not included practice
No
examples
The lesson gives you immediate
Yes feedback if you are correct or
incorrect.
Feedback only tells whether learner
had a correct or incorrect answer;
Partial Multimedia principles not applied in a
way to reduce mental load during
practice exercises
Yes The game is completely user driven.
This game does not allow for multiple
No
players
NO The game is single player.
The game was not to developed to be
a collaborative – the game is
streamlined geared toward the user
Collaborative No entering an angle to the point the
learning telescope and their weird inhabitants
under 2 minutes
The lesson is for individual use, it
No does not support teams or groups of
learners.
Collaborative environments are never
No
used as part of this game
Yes The game is completely user driven.
The game has a timer but it provides
ample time to find all eight planets an
Yes experienced player will always find all
the planets before time elaspes.
Therefore it is sort of self-paced.
The application is a single-screen,
time-sensitive game. The principle of
NO
learner control (guided lesson) is not
Learner
applicable here.
Control
Learner
Control
The user has not control over the
setting. The user encounters a 'play
game' button at the launch of the
Partial game, however the learner control is
limited to the ability to enter the
angle # the telescope to locate the
planet
You can only advance to the next
level after you have successfully
Partial completed the level before, but you
can repeat and revisit levels after you
have completed them.
More program control is used since it
is assumed learners are at a novice
Yes
level and a high level of proficiency is
a priority
In the last round of the game the
measurements are removed from the
microscope and there are less planets
Yes on the screen so the user must recall
measurement used from the previous
rounds and also calculate the distance
between the planets and their own.
No thinking skills are needed to play
No
the game
YES Meta-cognition
Thinking
The game does a poor job of
skills
providing a natural course of action to
enter the # to align he laser to select
the planet. During game play pop up
Partial
bubble appear to highlight where to
enter #to align the laser to select the
planet and select the button to
activate the laser
The lessons are provided in three
segments to encourage the ability to
Yes
solve non-routine problems outside of
the lesson
Learners are not required to make
reasoning processes and products
No explicit; lesson does not offer much
instructional guidance regarding
angle concept
The game gives audio and on screen
Yes
feedback
Feedback is immediate. The correct
Yes
answer is not disclosed nor reinforced
Learners are immediately alerted to
YES correct/incorrect responses. "Planet
Found vs. Planet Not Found"
Feedback
The system indicates to the user
whether or not the alignment is
No correct with the planet by providing
correct response or incorrect response
graphic and sound
Instructional feedback on
Yes performance is provided after learning
a task.
Correct/incorrect answer feedback is
Yes
given immediately
Placements of the planets are the
same in each round however some
are removed in the later rounds. In
the first rounds the game displays
various angles on the microscope in
Yes the last round those are removed.
The user must recall the angles
entered in the previous rounds and
what they have learned from those
rounds in order to be successful in the
last round
The image of the degree in alignment
Yes with the planet will help retain a
visual of the angle
Far Transfer
Far Transfer
The learner can grasp the basics of
angle measurements which can be
YES
later applied to the geometry
education.
Partial Same as thinking skills
In the third lesson learners are asked
to apply their knowledge from lessons
Yes
one and two to the new lesson three
layout.
The amount of practice the system
Partial provides may positively affect far
transfer
The game is user driven so it gives
Yes the user hands on experience with the
manipulating different angles
No Very basic game.
The game provides the learner with a
very basic understanding of angle
NO measurement. It does not go any
farther in exploring deeper levels of
Deep
geometric concepts.
Understandi
ng The game provides problem solving
skills that requires an understanding
No of how to play the game and navigate
the laser toward the planet for
selection.
There are no explicit explanations,
No the lesson is focused more on shallow
learning
The system focuses on shallow
No learning, in relation to Bloom's
taxonomy
N/A N/A
This is just a game for entertainment
Yes purposes masked as an educational
tool
Other
Other
n/a n/a
n/a n/a
n/a n/a
N/A N/A
Impact on learning (describe/speculate)
After playing a few games the user
can tell just by the sound if they
angled the microscope correctly or
not. The subtle use of the sky
animation keeps the user aware of
the time but does not distract the
user from focusing on the game.
Minimal impact on learning This
simple game tests recall of angle
measurements. The majority of the
graphics are decorative where the
telescope is the only educational tool
provided representing the protractor
with labeled degrees. When the
degree of the angle that is inline with
a planet is entered correctly feedback
is given by providing an animated
decorative graphic. Text is generic
and affords no educational value
Allows learners to visually understand
the basic principles of angle
measurement. Lines are drawn from
the protractor when the desired angle
is entered by the learner. Text
indication and sound effects are also
provided for right and wrong
answers.
The game is designed to facilitate the
user locating 8 planets during timed
game play
The interactive nature of the lesson
engage the user. The combination of
the text, graphics, and sound create a
successful learning environment.
Relational graphics, video and text
show quantitative relationships
between different angles. Sound may
distract learners.
Instructions due not instructed but
instead are written as a scenerio.
Players have to look at the games
interface to pick-up visual cues on
how to play. Text-based visual cues
align with their corresponding
graphic. Players can quickly decipher
the purpose of elements easing
cognitive work load
Works great when the user hovers
over "Help" the hover appears
Feedback is consistent. Learner
knows the pop-up indicator will
display the "Planet Found/Not Found"
messaging. Mitigates information
overload by avoiding misplaced
elements.
Completion of the PBS Kids - Angle
Measurement game does not require
spoken word or synchronize spoken
words with the corresponding
graphics as the object of the game is
to enter number that will align to
locate the planet
The corresponding words and speech
help students make better
correlations and develop a deeper
understanding of the material being
presented.
Help information may distract
learners and slow down learning.
Learners may just remember the
numbers of the angles for the hardest
level, without necessarily
understanding the difference between
the angles.
The lack of sound allows the user to
concentrate and calculate to
determine their next move.
Auditory feedback when a response
has been entered is immediate and
will add to the value of the activity.
In additonal, feedback content should
provide rationale behind why
response is correct or incorrect
n/a
The lack of words as speech may
have minimal impact on the learning
process as text instructions are
continuously displayed during game
play
Audio helps engage the user in the
subject matter and allows them to
both listen and view the presented
material.
Learners can always access
instructions, allowing them to focus
on the game instead of figuring out
how to play it
N/A
Text and graphics can easily be
associated since overlapse of stimuli
do not exist. However, it would add to
the learning if an auditory
explanation of the angle was
associated with the drawn out dash
line showing the angle.
Outcomes of learner input are always
explained on screen. Answer feedback
is always provided on screen in the
form of text with accompanying
graphics.
The redundancy which may maintain
the user attention is the audio. The
audio is supported by a graphic that
indicates whether or not the
appropriate # has been entered
Having the visuals explained with text
helps reduce cognitive load and
allows the student to stay focused on
the information being presented.
May be negligible. Since labels are
short, it may not make much
difference in terms of learning.
Gives the learner a clean quite
experience so they are able to
concentrate on typing in the correct
angle measurement.
Background music if present would be
a distraction. The sound effects grabs
the players attention to the top
portion of screen where text-based
feedback is displayed by means of a
drop-down. However, it becomes a
nuisance due to the fact that an "ok"
button must be clicked to dismiss
feedback.
Extraneous information is not present
in this task. Learners are able to
focus on the task at hand (Planet
Identification) and learn the angles.
I found the game is structured in a
manner to have the user to focus on
the start and the completion of a
timed game play
Extraneous information can hurt the
effectiveness of the lesson.
May be designed to provide a more
fun experience for children, but some
of the extraneous videos and
illustrations may negatively affect
learning
N/A
The point of the game is to help
"Digi" add planets to his scrapebook.
Learners would be more engaged at
the task if the character was involved
in the process by offering guidance.
n/a
I found the lack of personalization in
the game will have no impact on the
cognitive benefits of the game as the
its primary focus is geared toward the
user entering an angle to the point
the telescope and their weird
inhabitantslearner to be more relaxed
Allows the
when they are learning the
information. The lessons do not feel
forced.
May cause the learner to engage in
deeper cognitive processing during
learning
Prepared the user gradually for the
transition in complexity.
At first glance it is not obvious what
tool to use to measure the angle of
each planet in the night sky. It is only
when you hover over the protractor
or the 'help' button that you see two
guidances appear over the angle
input field and 'point telescope'
button. This is fine if all learners were
exploratory, but since we cannot
make that assumption the lack of
immediate guidance might result in
more learners abandoning the game.
n/a
I found the lack of segmenting and
pretraining will have no impact on the
learning aspect as it is a timed game
Segmenting ensures the user has
adequately learned the previous
lesson (pre-training), before being
allowed to continue to the next, more
challenging, lesson.
Learners may not be able to handle
processing of complex material
User may not know how to
manipulate the microscope initially
once the game is started.
A procedural example would be a
good idea to help learners learn how
to platy the game and to arouse
interest.
n/a
The impact of no worked examples
may have a direct effect on the learn
ability for users with minimal to no
gaming experience
If the user was shown an interactive
example prior to the lesson, they may
have greater success with the lesson
compared to navigating it on their
own based on text instructions.
Learners may have more errors
during the game
User may take longer in the first
round because they may need to take
some time to understand how to
manipulate the microscope
Anyone can play this game without
knowing what an angle measure is.
There is not educational value to this
game since did does not explain the
concept nor provide practice
exercises.
Learners are limited by time
(provided in progress bar). Learners
can repeat the task continuously to
learn angles and attempt to be
perfect.
The game presents no formal
practice, therefore the initial play of
the game is practice. The impact of
no official practice may not have a
direct effect on the learn ability of the
game
Feedback provides information to the
learner on what they have, and have
not, successfully learned.
Since these don't meet the criteria for
deliberate practice, more practice
playing the game may not result in
practice that builds expertise
The user gets a better understanding
of angles because they are given the
ability to type in any angle
microscope moves immediately to
show the what the angle looks like.
The learner is on his own and does
not have anyone to confirm his ideas.
n/a
I believe the collaborative aspect is
not relevant to the PBS Kids Angle
Measurement game objective is the
user's success and failure of their
respective data entry for lining the
telescope in the appropriate area to
find the planet
If the lesson supported groups of
learners it would allows those groups
to discuss and collaborate on ideas
surrounding the subject matter. By
not supporting groups of learners, the
individual learner is on their own.
Because learners are not
collaborating and explaining their
solutions to other learners, far
transfer may be negatively affected
User gets to see instantly if the enter
measurements are pointed in the
right direction, this gives the user the
feeling of control over the
microscope.
The timer creates the illusion that
time is of the essence an a player
must move quickly before time
expires. This is a good thing because
its make the game interesting and
challenging. However, time given
should be reduce so that players have
to think on their toes.
n/a
I believe the learner control is
adaptable for users with low
experience/high experience learners
as the game requires minimal skill to
align the laser with the planet for
selection along with the number of
the dial that aids in the alignment
By limiting advancement (control),
the lesson is guaranteeing the user
knows the adequate information to
successfully proceed to the next
lesson.
Low prior knowledge students may
learn more
This really tests the what the user
has learned by making them think
and calculate the distances between
the planets through trial and error.
This game is too simple and does not
evoke players to think about why the
degree is the right one or vise versa.
The game requires learners to set a
goal (find planets), monitor progress
(progress bar), and adjust
approaches (methodical - ordered
from 0 to 180 degrees) or random
(any degree value from 0 to 180)
I believe the game provides minimal
guidance and no opportunities to
observe & apply. The minimal
guidance with the during game play
pop up bubble appear to highlight
where to enter #to align the laser to
select the planet and select the
button to activate the laser
By learning the otherwise dull
material in a fun and engaging way,
the user is more apt to retain the
information and be able to successful
solve non-routine problems outside of
the lesson.
May negatively affect transfer to
some degree
The user can determine by sound if
they calculated a measurement
incorrectly.
Feedback is generic and adds no
value in learning.
Learners can visually see the
correlation between the entered angle
and the presence/absence of a
planet. Assists in understanding the
relational aspects of geometry.
The impact on learning it informs the
users where they are in the process
of selecting 8 planets
The learner has a sense of
accomplishment, is confident in the
material just learned.
Lack of detailed feedback may
negatively affect far transfer
This shows the user what they have
learned immediately and becomes a
test within a test.
Learners of this knowledge will
transfer it into higher level math but
can also apply to lifes situations
Learners are given the principles of
geometry. It is only possible to go
from 0-180 degrees when measuring
angles. Learners can recall this
information later when learning more
complex geometric principles and
proper use of the protractor.
Same as thinking skills
The student must have the ability to
take what they learned and apply it in
other situations, thus reinforcing that
knowledge/skill set.
The far transfer that may be involved,
since detailed feedback isn't given,
may pertain to how to play the game
and not the angle measurement
concept
Because the game revolves around
the users interaction the user will
gain a better understanding of angles
because would be actively involved in
the activity.
The game design allows for guessing
and does not test learning.
n/a
Due to the format of the game
(minimal instructions and streamlined
process geared toward locating a
planet) it is uncertain how this will
impact deep understanding
This lesson is designed for children,
so keeping the lessons focused on
more shallow learning lends itself to
working on the child-level.
Game may be best used on novice
learners, to help introduce the
concept of angle measurement
N/A
This is a game that does not
stimulate the brain. Graphics are
decorative and text is generic
n/a
n/a
n/a
N/A