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Educational gaming in the health sciences: systematic review
Gillian Blakely1, Heather Skirton, Simon Cooper
1University of Plymouth, UK.
Journal of Advanced Nursing
|November 27, 2008
Summary
Educational games can support health sciences learning, enhancing student enjoyment and potentially long-term retention. However, research indicates neither games nor traditional methods are definitively superior for knowledge acquisition, necessitating further study.
Area of Science:
- Health Sciences Education
- Medical Education Technology
Background:
- Health sciences education aims to foster professional competence.
- Diverse learning styles necessitate innovative teaching strategies.
- Experiential learning has driven the adoption of gaming in education.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the use of games in health sciences classroom learning.
- To evaluate gaming as a pedagogical strategy in health professions education.
Main Methods:
- Systematic literature search from 1980 to 2008 across multiple databases.
- Included 16 papers comparing gaming with didactic methods.
Main Results:
- Both gaming and didactic methods effectively increase student knowledge.
- No significant difference in effectiveness between gaming and traditional methods.
- Gaming generally improves student engagement and may enhance long-term information retention.
Conclusions:
- Gaming is a viable teaching strategy in health sciences.
- Objective assessment of specific games is crucial before implementation.
- Further research is needed to optimize gaming techniques for educational benefit.
