Chemistry education board game based on cognitive mechanism: multi-dimensional evaluation of learners’ knowledge acquisition, flow and playing experience of board game materials

Background Educational board games have been receiving attention from educators in recent years. Designing the rules of board games based on cognitive theory, and further analysing educational board games from more dimensions are important issues that warrant further study.Purpose The research designed a board game called Chemistry Story to promote students' learning of the concept of element combination in chemical substances. The design of the cognitive mechanism of the board game was based on three cognitive design principles, namely schema connection theory, attention, and cognitive scaffolding.Sample The participants were 48 eighth-grade students in Taiwan. Their average age was 13.8.Design and methods A one-group pretest-posttest design was adopted. The research explored students' learning achievement, flow, and acceptance after using this board game for learning. Moreover, this research analysed the differences in students' flow while playing with game components made of different materials (paper, wood, and plastic), and explored the relationship with learning achievement, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use.Results The results showed that students' concept of element combination in chemical substances improved through playing this board game. In addition, students had considerable engagement and acceptance of the board game's learning activities with the game components made of different materials. The results of the correlation analysis showed that students with low academic achievement were more likely to feel that Chemistry Story was helpful to their studies. It was also found that the wooden material components brought abetter sense of engagement and game acceptance.Conclusion When designing educational board game products, we should not only consider the target knowledge of the board game and the design of the game mechanism, but also consider the students' feelings about the materials used to make the components, and choose materials that can bring students a better learning experience, so as to enhance the positive influence on their learning.