LunchTIME is a mobile application developed on Android platform. It is designed to be an educational app with the goal of teaching children how to read time on an analog clock. The game is designed to be appealing for children from kindergarten to grade three. Using principles from gaming research, rewards are used to motivate self- directed learning (Chatfield, 2010; Fu, Su, and Yu, 2009; Pink, 2009). The purpose of the game is to collect ingredients to build a sandwich, and then children have the option to shake the phone to wake up and feed an in-game character, Mr. Wolf. Voice instructions are integrated into the game to make it as interactive as possible. Research on the effectiveness of gaming technology in the classrooms is still at its early stages. Our app is grounded in research on educational technology and principles of learning. There is a lot of potential for the use of mobile technology in the classroom as funding for education continues to decrease, at the same time, learning happens both inside and outside of the classrooms, as parents are always searching for ways to support their child’s learning. Thus, a game-based learning app would be beneficial for children who are in need of extra help in the classrooms who would not receive help otherwise.
There are five different levels in the game that are organized into sub-skills based on research on children’s cognitive functions and math instruction. Children are more successful if they are gradually introduced to more complex concepts with carefully planned curriculum (Campione, Case, and Shapiro, 1995; Williams, 2004). LunchTIME utilizes the interactive touchscreen to optimize learning experience. For each question, children are shown an interactive clock. There are three types of questions:
- Puzzle
- Set the time
- What time is it? Multiple-choice
Level one consists of puzzle type questions that focus on basic recognition of numbers and pieces on a clock. Children are asked to place the correct numbers and pieces back onto a clock in order to proceed to the next level. Level two teaches how to read the hour hand using set the time and multiple-choice questions. Level three involves set the time and multiple-choice questions for the minute arm. Level four proceeds to combine reading the hour and minute arm with set the time and multiple- choice questions. Level five is a special challenge level that contains questions from levels one to four.
Flow theory describes that if children believe they have the skills to complete a challenge, they are more likely to experience intrinsic motivation (Csíkszentmihályi, 1990). This is described as a mental state known as “flow”. Current research uses experience sampling method to measure flow, involving randomly alerting individuals to answer questions about their feelings during an activity. Examining flow is valuable as educational game design and evaluation is still in its infancy. Our app tracks the amount of time it takes for each child to answer a question, and pop-up window surveys children to ask how they are feeling at that moment with three emotions to choose from: happy, bored, or sad.