Interdisciplinary collaboration towards developing platforms for simulation-based learning: Moirai - no-code virtual serious game authoring platform - and the GEN – Gamified Educational Network

Abstract

The adoption of technology, including virtual simulation and serious gaming, has facilitated the adoption of experiential (“hands-on”) learning as an additional method of healthcare education, in lieu of face-to-face instructions, healthcare placements, or in the case of unavailability of clerkships. However, some limitations must be overcome, including the one-size-fits-all approach in most virtual simulations and serious games, which assume fixed scenarios that educators cannot easily modify. An additional challenge is facilitating the integration of a learning management system with virtual simulations and game-based learning into the curriculum while encouraging peer-based feedback. Following an educational design-based research methodology, I developed two platforms: the Moirai, a no-code authoring platform for creating dialogue-based serious games, and the Gamified Educational Network (GEN), an experimental learning management system (LMS). The Moirai focuses on allowing educators with limited, if any, programming knowledge to independently create and modify serious games that fit their curriculum using a user-friendly visual programming interface. The GEN LMS focuses on allowing educators to implement courses based on experiential learning (including simplifying the ability to integrate virtual simulations and serious games into a course) and peer-based feedback concepts, with automatized connection between user-generated content and feedback elements. Ten research projects were co-developed in partnership with various laboratories and institutions, adopting the Moirai and/or the GEN LMS, performing user studies, and resulting in an iterative evolution of both platforms. Usability studies with subject-matter experts and learners indicate that the GEN LMS and the Moirai Authoring Platform (including the editor functionality and the resulting games) have achieved higher than average usability scores. Although effectiveness has not been tested, usability is the first step in an effective educational application as it will help facilitate interaction, accessibility and possibly engagement for learners, potentially enhancing the learning experience.