Comparative benefits of science documentary films and games

It is a fact of life that adults need to make difficult science-informed decisions every day, from food and medicine, to purchasing habits, to charities and elections. However, they rarely have all the facts, and science communicators struggle to share new information with adults as readily as with schoolchildren. It is well-documented that one of the most effective ways to teach adults science is to include them in their child’s learning activities. Educational films and video games are a great way for adults and children to learn together, and the cost and technological know-how needed to create them has become much more reasonable for small teams in recent years. In this study, we investigated how children ages 8-15 and their adult caretakers might learn together from either a short film or minigame specially designed to address matching learning goals about climate change, both titled “Small Choices”. Combining coding theories derived from a study on parent-child dynamics in museums and another on divergent learning with tabletop environments, we analyzed the child-adult dyad’s mentee-mentor relationship, what types of information were discussed and remembered, and what emotions were expressed in order to understand the affordances of the two media, the ways in which they differ, and the role aesthetics play in each. Results indicated that our film helped children and adults form opinions and make complex inferences about science concepts, leveraging vocabulary and imagery associated with climate change; whereas our game helped them to think systematically about the many indirect causes of climate change, and then apply what they learned in a different context. Findings also showed that adults were just as engaged as children across both media as indicated by observable speech and behaviors. The adults seemed more driven to succeed and optimize the learning opportunities, while children were more driven by their own curiosity and immediate interests. Aesthetic elements of both the film and game proved effective in immersing their audiences, making the experiences feel more playful, and helping participants make real-world connections. We conclude that films and games each have unique affordances in teaching science to children and adults at the same time in a way that is fun and engaging.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.S.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Curriculum and Instruction

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Christensen, Andrew J

Contributors dc:contributor

• Tissenbaum, Michael
• Dornfield Tissenbaum, Catherine
• D'Angelo, Cynthia

• Informal Learning
• Science Learning
• Climate Change
• Global Warming
• Video Game
• Documentary
• Film
• Movie
• Game
• Family Learning
• Adult Learning

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2024 Andrew Christensen

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/124456

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F124456