Problem-solving techniques in the context of an educational video game: The mudwall puzzle in Zoombinis

Thoma, G. and Biza, Eirini ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1727-3884 (2019) Problem-solving techniques in the context of an educational video game: The mudwall puzzle in Zoombinis. In: Proceedings of the Eleventh Congress of the European Society for Research in Mathematics Education. Freudenthal Group & Freudenthal Institute, Utrecht University and ERME, pp. 2977-2984.

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Abstract

This paper aims to highlight the problem-solving nature of video games by examining problem-solving techniques in the context of the educational game Zoombinis. Using screen-capturing software, the gameplay of an 8-year-old participant was recorded and analysed in relation to his strategies towards solving the implicit Mudwall problem in the game, from a global-local perspective. Findings indicate the development of techniques —‘stepping-stone’ and ‘probable-exclusion’— that through Polya’s problem-solving steps, the game’s design and participant’s experimentation, can be used to solve the Mudwall puzzle, illustrating such game’s potentiality as a problem-solving environment.

Item Type:	Book Section
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Social Sciences > School of Education and Lifelong Learning
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Groups > Research in Mathematics Education
Related URLs:	https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-024...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	01 Jul 2019 06:30
Last Modified:	24 Sep 2024 08:12
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/71578
DOI:

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