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Development and Acceptability of Chemistry Lessons Integrating Experiential and Supplemental Game Activities

Ian Jay P. Saldo*, Angelo Mark P. Walag

Integrated Basic Education Department, San Isidro College, Malaybalay City, 8700 Philippines

Abstract: The integration of game-based learning in classroom instruction is rampant for the reason that it may increase students’ motivation to learn and have fun while making sense of the lesson discussed. This study aimed to develop lessons integrating experiential and supplemental game activities and measure their acceptability based on content, format, presentation and organization, and accuracy and up-to-datedness of information. This study utilized a Research and Development (R & D) method. Research and development aim to produce a product for developing lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities. Results revealed that the mean score for the content is 3.84, 3.69 for the format, 3.76 for the presentation and organization, and 3.93 for accuracy and up-to-datedness. This suggests that the ratings of the developed lessons are very high in all areas and can be interpreted as very acceptable. The developed lessons, therefore, can be utilized in private and public secondary schools, specifically in grade 10 chemistry classes. Also, the lessons developed promote the development of 21st-century skills, known as essential skills. Educators may utilize game-based learning methods and integrate game activities in their instruction, for it improves students’ learning in science and can advance students’ 21st-century skills.

Keywords: acceptability, chemistry lessons, experiential game, game-based learning, supplemental game

Received May 09, 2023; Revised July 01, 2023; Accepted July 13, 2023

Citation: Ian Jay P. Saldo, Angelo Mark P. Walag, Development and Acceptability of Chemistry Lessons Integrating Experiential and Supplemental Game Activities. Journal of Innovations in Teaching and Learning, 3 (1). 28-34. January 2023. doi:10.12691/jitl-3-1-6

1. Introduction

Using instructional material embedded with an engaging and effective teaching approach to foster critical thinking, problem-solving, and other 21st-century skills is essential for preparing today's students for the future. These skills are needed to interact with the outside world and advance scientific thought. According to [1], it has been a significant problem in the education sector to integrate, innovate, and support learners in today's generation to develop a broad set of competencies necessary to compete in the global race of skills. So, instructional material is a vital tool in the teaching-learning process. It provides various ways and strategies to make classroom interaction easy and comfortable, constitutes tangible content, and lets the learners understand and be connected to the subject matter [2].

In the Philippines, the unavailability and lack of science culture and deficiencies regarding the school curriculum, the teaching-learning process, instructional materials, and teacher training can be cited to account for Filipino students' low science performance [3]. This is true based on a study by [4], which revealed that students view their teachers' instructional practices are oriented towards helping them learn but need to involve more inquiry-oriented activities and provide more support or encouragement for self-directed and effortful learning. It is then a great challenge for every educational institution in the Philippines to enhance the quality and standards of science education by developing instructional materials that foster the development and mastery of 21st-century skills since it is their primary mandate in the first place to give learners proper and practical education, resulting in effective learning and developing 21st-century skills. This can only be done if the teachers are well-trained and can develop well-crafted instructional material that they can use in their classroom instruction. [5] emphasized that the improvement of the knowledge, skills, and competencies of the students is a paramount concern that should be taken up in every educative community for an improved outcome.

The past decade has seen a notable shift from teacher-centered pedagogy to a learner-centered method in science education research, and game-based learning has appeared as one of the most beneficial instructional methods because it gives emphasis to "hands-on" and "minds-on" activities in science classrooms [6]. Moreover, [7] even emphasized that mobile game-based learning constitutes a hot issue in the related scientific literature since it promotes learning entertainingly and fosters student motivation to increase engagement in the educational process. With the increasing research attention on the application and incorporation of game elements in education, [8] and [9] revealed that game-based learning has been shown to improve learners’ motivation and engagement, increase learning effectiveness in classroom learning, and are critical to the development of the 21st-century skills. Hence, the quality of instructional materials in science can still be improved by integrating game-based learning methods, which are known to be interactive and engaging.

Despite increasing scientific interest in explaining how gamification supports positive affect and motivation, behavior change, and learning, there still needs to be an overview of the current theoretical understanding of the psychological mechanisms of gamification [10]. Additionally, it is still unclear about its effectiveness as a tool for promoting real-world problem-solving competency in STEM education [11] and whether and how GBL methods can be utilized [12]. Furthermore [6] stressed that there has been a limited review of studies in chemistry education research that have tried to explore and document different educational games (experiential and supplemental) and how they are applied in the classroom and how such games have enhanced students' motivation and understanding of chemistry concepts. Thus, the primary objective of this study is to develop lessons integrating experiential and supplemental game activities and measure their acceptability based on content, format, presentation and organization, and accuracy and up-to-datedness of information.

2. Methodology

This study utilized a Research and Development (R & D) method. Research and development aim to produce a product for developing lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities. Experiential games refer to a lesson type under the game-based learning method wherein students are immersed in goal-oriented tasks that they encounter in real-life circumstances. They answer questions in order to complete actions for their primary task. In contrast, supplemental games refer to a lesson type under the game-based learning method wherein students are engaged in tasks using games that have no meaningful interaction with the subject matter. The resulting product is then evaluated for its acceptability based on content, format, presentation and organization, and accuracy and up-to-datedness of information adapted from the Department's Learning Resources Management and Development System (LRMDS) rating sheet [13]. The stages of developing the lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities are summarized in Figure 1.

Figure 1. The research stage in the development of the lessons

This study's preliminary stage started with reviewing the Science 10 competencies and drafting the parts of the lessons. The lessons are divided into three major parts: acquisition, making meaning, and transfer. The acquisition part comprises the introduction of the topic, motivational activities, and simply recalling the previous or current topics to support what students need to know and do. The making meaning part is where the actual deepening of the lessons happens, which will include the experiential and supplemental game activities to support what the students will come to understand and allow them to construct their meaning of essential ideas and processes. The last part is the transfer, where the lessons support students' ability to transfer knowledge, skills, and understanding to other disciplines or the real world, which may include big projects like portfolios, debates, inquiry investigations, and role plays.

Three major lessons were developed for the fourth quarter of the grade 10 science, which covered concepts on gases, major biomolecules, and chemical reactions. The lessons developed were integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities. These game activities were inserted in the acquisition part of the lesson plan, and instructions, scoring, and point system regarding the games were provided. Below is a sample of the developed lesson and its different parts.

Figure 2. The preliminary part of the lesson

Figure 3. The second part of the lesson

Figure 4. Sample of the experiential game activity developed about biomolecules

Figure 5. Sample of the supplemental game activity developed about biomolecules

Figure 6. Sample assessment items about biomolecules

Figure 7. The last part of the lesson is the integration of the values

The researchers-made grade 10 science fourth quarter lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities were shown to five instruction and curriculum experts and science teachers for corrections, face, and content validity. These experts have at least a master's degree, taught in the academe for at least five years, and have used games in their classes. Then, further revisions were done based on the chosen experts' comments and suggestions to improve the lessons' content and format. As the last step of this process, the revised lessons were shown to thirty science teachers and experts from different private and public schools for the acceptability evaluation. These chosen science teachers and experts have taught in the academe for at least five years and are using games as their activities in the class. They are also allowed to give their comments and suggestions after rating the lessons. Ethical standards were observed throughout the conduct of this study. Below is the scoring procedure for the acceptability evaluation.

Table 1. Scoring Procedure for the Acceptability of the Developed Lessons

3. Results and Discussion

Table 2. Acceptability Rating of the Lessons in Terms of Content

Content refers to the appropriateness of the topics' scope, range, and depth to the target audience's learning needs and achievement of the specified learning outcomes. It promotes the development of higher-order thinking skills. The content of the lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities was examined by thirty curriculum and instruction and science experts for its acceptability and is summarized in Table 2. As gleaned from the table, each indicator has a mean score greater than 3.26 (mean>3.26), and the overall mean for the content is 3.84, which can be interpreted as very high. This means that the lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities were acceptable and met the descriptors indicated in the Learning Resources Management and Development System (LRMDS) rating sheet of the Department of Education [13]. This very high rating could also be due to the relevance and applicability of the developed lessons in chemistry integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities, which are anchored to the Minimum Essential Learning Competencies (MELCs) of the Department of Education [14]. Furthermore, the experts also indicated in their rating that the lessons developed enhance the development of desirable values and traits such as scientific attitude and reasoning, desire for excellence, teamwork/cooperation, desire to learn new things, honesty, and trustworthiness, ability to know right from wrong, respect, productive work, and critical and creative thinking.

Table 3. Acceptability Rating of the Lessons in Terms of Format

The lesson format was based on the prints, illustrations, design and layout, paper binding, and weight and size of the resource. It also considers the quality of paper, packaging, and binding, which should be appropriate for the intended use and expected life of the resource. Based on the experts' ratings, it can be seen in the table above that each of the indicators has a mean score greater than 3.26 (mean>3.26), and the overall mean for the format is 3.69, which can be interpreted as very high. This implies that the lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities were acceptable and have met the descriptors indicated in the Learning Resources Management and Development System (LRMDS) rating sheet of the Department of Education in terms of its format [13]. This very high rating may be due to the synchronization of the topics and the activities made and the ease of how the lessons were prepared for educational use.

One of the most critical aspects when crafting any material for educational use is the presentation and organization of the contents. The presentation should be engaging, interesting, understandable, and logical, with a smooth flow of ideas that target learners’ experience and understanding. Looking at the ratings of the experts in Table 4, it can be observed that each of the indicators has a mean score greater than 3.26 (mean>3.26), and the overall mean for the presentation and organization is 3.76, which can be interpreted as very high. This suggests that the lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities were acceptable and have met the descriptors indicated in the Learning Resources Management and Development System (LRMDS) rating sheet of the Department of Education in terms of its presentation and organization [13]. The very high rating could also be attributed to the smooth flow of the lesson, which follows the Acquisition, Making Meaning, and Transfer format (AMT), allowing the teachers to use the material easily.

Table 4. Acceptability Rating of the Lessons in Terms of Presentation and Organization

The last factor in the evaluation sheet is the accuracy and up-to-datedness of information. This refers to the presentation of factual and up-to-date content, which will not lead to misconceptions or misunderstandings of the lessons. As can be gleaned in Table 5, it can be comprehended that each of the indicators has a mean score greater than 3.26 (mean>3.26), and the overall mean for the accuracy and up-to-datedness is 3.93 which can be interpreted as very high and is the highest among the four factors that were rated. This indicates that among the four factors evaluated, accuracy and up-to-datedness are found to be the most acceptable based on the Learning Resources Management and Development System (LRMDS) rating sheet of the Department of Education [13]. This very high rating could be due to the minimal or no conceptual, factual, grammatical, and computational errors in the developed lessons integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities. Moreover, this could also be credited to the games integrated into the lesson, which the experts thought to consist of problem-solving concepts, learning processes, learning content, and game mechanics, which could boost the teaching and learning outcomes. As [6,12,15] have mentioned, game-based learning (GBL) methods showed that they might increase students' motivation and learning in the context of higher education and it is an approach that enhances students’ understanding of science subjects.

Table 5. Acceptability Rating of the Lessons in Terms of Accuracy and Up-to-datedness of Information

4. Conclusions

Based on the ratings of the thirty experts in science and curriculum and instruction, the developed lessons in grade 10 chemistry integrated with experiential and supplemental game activities were found to be acceptable. This means the lessons can be utilized in private and public secondary schools, specifically in grade 10 chemistry classes. Also, the lessons developed promote the development of 21st-century skills, known as essential skills. Educators may utilize game-based learning method in their instruction which have been known to be fun, engaging, and learner-centered, improves students’ learning in science, and can advance students’ 21st-century skills, especially problem-solving and critical thinking skills.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their immense gratitude to Dr. Sol G. Simbulan, Dr. Evangeline I. Garcia, and Dr. Anna Wilda C. Tado for the assistance provided in the construction and the conduct of content and face validity of the materials. Huge thanks also to Ms. Ida Lyn A. Azuelo, Ms. Xyle Kristine D. Nadala, and Ms. Lesliefyrodze O. Bajao for helping the researchers find experts to evaluate the materials made. The same gratitude is also expressed to the Integrated Basic Education Department of San Isidro College, Banisilan National High School, and Bukidnon National High School for all the assistance provided for this research.

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