Distinctive Features and Design for Mathematics Learning Mobile Games in Elementary School Students

This research will focus on developing Android-based digital games to support learning in mathematics subjects, especially for students in elementary schools. The aim of the research prepared is to find out the results of developing Android-based digital games in mathematics subjects for elementary school students. This research is recommended as a type of development research, namely the development of Android-based digital games in mathematics subjects for elementary school students. The game developed is a collection of digital materials via the Android platform which will become a learning medium for students. In this research, the development stage only reaches product validation. The results of the product feasibility test assessment, namely in the form of a game, show that the score obtained is in the range of 2.60 - 3.59. The development of Android-based games was successfully carried out with the theme of making learning more fun without making students burdened. The making of this game involved several parties consisting of elementary school teachers, lecturers, and practitioners in the fields of education and information technology. The game development material was created based on field needs, namely the difficulty of recognizing numbers and simple addition arithmetic operations. This game is intended for grade 1 elementary school students considering that the characteristics of students at that age are in the playing phase, so the development of a game with educational elements is suitable and appropriate for grade 1 students, and can make it easier for teachers to convey the material.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a group music therapy intervention for elementary and middle school students with mood disorders through music therapy. To explore the improvement of group music therapy on the dysphoria and state of adolescent patients with mood disorders and to explore the relationship with self-identity. A music activity-based mental health education curriculum was designed based on the results of the current survey, while two homogenous classes were selected as the experimental and control classes; subsequently, the experimental teaching of the music activity-based mental health education curriculum was conducted in the experimental class, and the regular school mental health education curriculum was conducted in the control class, and the pre- and postexperimental scale tests were used to analyze that the curriculum of this study had a positive effect of this study's curriculum on elementary school students' positive emotions analyzed through pre- and postexperimental scale tests. The music activity-based mental health education program had a significant positive effect on the overall level of positive emotions of elementary school students, especially in the positive emotion index, happiness index, mental toughness, goal focus, and interpersonal assistance factor. The positive psychology-oriented music activity-based mental health education curriculum is well suited for elementary and middle school students, especially for upper elementary and middle school students. The music activity-based mental health education curriculum realizes the value of applying positive psychology to mental health education efforts at the elementary school level and flexibly uses a variety of related theories to promote positive emotional experiences for elementary and middle school students.

The trajectories of the supratemporal and infratemporal retinal arteries are associated with the position of the nerve fiber layer defects of glaucomatous eyes. However, no reports have thus far been published on changes in the retinal artery trajectory (RA trajectory) along with growth. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in the RA trajectories of elementary and junior high school students and the associations with axial length (AL). Prospective cross-sectional observational study. In total, 122 right eyes of healthy elementary school students (61 boys, 61 girls) and 170 right eyes of healthy junior high school students (83 boys, 87 girls) were studied. The AL was measured and color fundus photographs were taken, and used for the analysis. The RA trajectory was plotted in the color fundus photographs and fitted to a second-degree polynomial equation, [Formula: see text], using ImageJ. The coefficient "a" represented the steepness of the trajectories. The differences in the RA trajectories and ALs of elementary and junior high school students were determined using the Mann-Whitney test. The association between the RA trajectory and AL was determined using the Spearman rank correlation. The AL and the RA trajectory of the junior high school students were significantly greater than those of the elementary school students (P < 0.001). The RA trajectory was significantly associated with the AL in both elementary (r = 0.26, P = 0.005) and junior high (r = 0.32, P < 0.001) school students. Junior high school students have a longer AL and narrower RA trajectory than do elementary school students. A longer AL is associated with a narrower RA trajectory in both elementary and junior high school students.

The purpose of this study was to compare the incidences of macular irregularities of elementary school (ES) and junior high school (JHS) students. This was a prospective cross-sectional observational study of 122 right eyes of 122 ES students (8–9 years) and 173 right eyes of 173 JHS students (12–13 years). Vertical cross-sectional images of the macula were obtained by optical coherence tomography. The eyes were classified based on the vertical symmetry of the posterior pole, and then sub-classified as convex-, flat-, concave-, or dome-shaped based on the direction of the curvature of the retinal pigment epithelium. One hundred and two eyes (83.6%) were placed in the symmetrical group in the ES students and 149 eyes (86.1%) in the JHS students. Twenty eyes (16.4%) were placed in the asymmetric groups in the ES students and 24 eyes (13.9%) in the JHS students. In symmetrical group, 78 and 118 eyes had a convex-shape (76.4 and 79.2%), followed by 22 and 29 eyes of dome-shaped group (21.6 and 19.4%) in ES and JHS students respectively. Because the incidences of the posterior pole shapes were not significantly different between the groups, it is likely that the macular irregularities develop before the age of ES.

ABSTRACTThe aim of this article is to advance a framework for understanding and teaching game design in higher education, in order to address complexities inherent in teaching game design courses. Everyday teaching and learning game design often deviate from the standard textbook model of game design. In reality everyday teaching and learning operate with handling game design curriculum, how to think games, and how to organise the development process. The presented framework merge curriculum, thinking, and process guided by the game design concept of juiciness. The framework will be presented by dismantling the standard textbook model of game design into three; game design (curriculum), game design thinking (thinking), and game development (organisation). In this perspective game design is concerned with game mechanics, game design thinking preoccupied with paper prototyping, metaphor, and framing, while game developments addresses player experience including play and game testing. This article will coin vertical design as juiciness as opposed to horizontal design understood as expanding system layout. Juiciness will be placed as a guiding principle in the relationship between designers and designed content as an aspect of designer intentions and motivations. Lastly, the content centric framework will be presented by merging game design, game design thinking, game development, vertical design with selected aspects of accepted software development strategies as an approach to teaching and learning game design in higher education.

BackgroundSerious games are increasingly used at all levels of education. However, research shows that serious games do not always fulfill all the targeted pedagogical objectives. Designing efficient and engaging serious games is a difficult and multidisciplinary process that requires a collaborative approach. Many design frameworks have been described, most of which are dedicated to the development of specific types of serious games and take the collaborative dimension into account only to a limited extent.ObjectiveOur aim was to create a generic serious game design framework that could be adapted to all kinds of serious games and implemented in a collaborative web platform.MethodsWe combined the results of a literature review with our experience in serious game design and development to determine the basic building blocks of a collaborative design framework. We then organized these building blocks into categories and determined the features that a generic design framework should include. Finally, based on the paradigm of complex systems and systemic modelling, we created the co.LAB generic design framework and specifications to allow its implementation in a collaborative web platform.ResultsBased on a total of 10 existing design methodologies or frameworks, 23 building blocks were identified and represent the foundation of the co.LAB framework. These blocks were organized into 5 categories: “context and objectives,” “game design,” “mechanics,” “learning design,” and “assessment.” The arrangement by categories provides a structure that can be visualized in multiple and complementary ways. The classical view links game and learning design while other views offer project, systemic, and process visualizations. For the implementation of the co.LAB framework in a web platform, we propose to convert the building blocks into “cards.” Each card would constitute a collaborative working space for the design of the corresponding block. To make the framework adaptive, cards could be added, adapted, or removed according to the kind of serious game intended. Enhancing the visualization of relationships between cards should support a systemic implementation of the framework.ConclusionsBy offering a structured view of the fundamental design elements required to create serious games, the co.LAB framework can facilitate the design and development of such games by virtue of a collaborative, adaptive, and systemic approach. The different visualizations of the building blocks should allow for a shared understanding and a consistent approach throughout the design and development process. The implementation of the co.LAB framework in a collaborative web platform should now be performed and its actual usability and effectiveness tested.

The traditional learning methods have some drawbacks and limitation such as restricted learning space, high cost, and lack of student engagement. In the era of digitalization, traditional education starts to transform into a more dynamic and modern education with the influence of the 21st-century learning method. Moreover, due to the pandemic, schools and universities are moving to digital learning to contain the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Therefore, the aim of this project is to develop a Mathematics game using handheld Augmented Reality (HAR) for primary school children as an alternative method in learning Mathematics. There are three main phases have been carried out, first is to study the requirements of an educational game. The second phase involves the design and development including the game element, storyline, game characters as well as user interface design. Finally, the third phase is integrating the learning Mathematics game using HAR, followed by evaluation. The evaluation of the learning Mathematics game was carried out for usability and user acceptance. The usability results show that the users are satisfied with the prototype and feedbacks show the game is fun. Overall, this project has successfully produced a learning Mathematics game using HAR for primary school children.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to investigate the differences of sodium intake in the diet according to the kind of meal, food group, and dish group. Methods: A dietary survey was conducted using the 24-hour recall method from April to May, 2009. The study subjects consisted of 701 elementary and 1,184 middle school students in the Jeju area. Mean sodium intake and the percentage contribution of meals and each dish and food group to daily sodium intake were calculated. Results: The daily sodium intake was 2,868.4 mg and 3,032.5 mg in elementary and middle school students. For elementary school students, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack provided approximately 18.0%, 35.1%, 32.8%, and 14.1% of total daily sodium intake, and for middle school students, 15.3%, 40.2%, 29.1%, and 15.5%, respectively. Major food groups for sodium intake were spices (1,252.5 mg in elementary, 1158.0 mg in middle school students), vegetables and their products (409.0 mg, 495.6 mg), cereal and grain products (322.4 mg, 647.8 mg), and fish and shellfish (255.3 mg, 336.6 mg). Except cereal and grain products, sodium intake of the food groups mentioned above was greater at lunch and dinner than at breakfast and snack. And, the elementary and middle school students obtained 5.9% and 9.8% of total daily sodium intake from cereal and grain products at snack. Among the 29 dish groups, the highest dish groups contributing to dietary sodium intake were soup and stew and tang/jeongol, consuming 19.8% (elementary school students) and 25.4% (middle school students) of daily sodium intake. The following major dish groups contributing to dietary sodium intake, in order, were kimchi, seasoned vegetables, grilled dish, stir-fried dish, and a` la carte. By meals, the percentage of sodium intake from soup, kimchi, stew, fried dish, and stir-fried dish at school lunch was high, from noodles, grilled dish, and a` la carte at dinner, and from bakery/snacks and noodles at snack. Conclusion: Sodium intake from the various side dishes at school lunch was high and noodles and bakery/snacks were popular snack foods in elementary and middle school students in Jeju area. In order to lower the intake of sodium, students need to be educated about eating less soup and choosing better snacks.

While research has investigated the application of computational methodologies in undergraduate biology education, those approaches require students certain backgrounds from multiple disciplines. Recently, game design and development for education has moved into different fields of science, including biology. Several multi-media interactive products have been developed to simulate biological mechanisms and can be used by undergraduate students. However these approaches focus on students as game users and, not as game developers. Here, we propose an innovative approach to involve game design and development into undergraduate biology classroom. The approach assumes no additional background, and aims to increase engagement in the complexities of the course material through the process of game design and development. We initialized a case study that systematically combines a game application-driven project into genetics teaching. In the pedagogical experiment, undergraduate biology and computer science students designed educational games to enhance the speed and depth of comprehension of both biological and software engineering concepts. The result of this study shows that the reinforcement effects of biological education games apply differently on students with or without biology backgrounds.

AimThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic has had a significant psychological impact on children and adolescents, increasing depression, anxiety, and suicide‐related behaviors. In Japan, suicide remained the leading cause of death among individuals aged 10–19 years, with rates rising after the pandemic onset. However, few studies have examined these changes in psychiatric outpatient settings. We aimed to determine whether the prevalence of suicide‐related behaviors and associated psychiatric symptoms—depression and anxiety—differed pre‐ and post‐pandemic among elementary and junior high school students attending psychiatric outpatient clinics.MethodsIn this retrospective case–control study, we analyzed registry data from a child and adolescent psychiatric outpatient clinic in Japan. Patients were classified into pre‐ and post‐COVID‐19 groups based on the visit date (cutoff: March 2, 2020). Clinical characteristics were assessed at the initial visit through interviews and standardized rating scales: Depression Self‐Rating Scale for Children, Spence Children's Anxiety Scale, and Attention‐Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale‐IV. Group differences were examined using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses.ResultsBetween 2016 and 2022, 2878 patients were included. The prevalence of suicide‐related behaviors increased post‐pandemic, from 3.0% to 6.9% among elementary school students and from 15.5% to 21.2% among junior high school students. In the post‐COVID‐19 group, elementary students more often exhibited antisocial behaviors and hyperactivity/conduct disorder diagnoses. Junior high students more often exhibited anxiety symptoms, particularly social anxiety, panic, and trauma‐related fear.ConclusionSuicide‐related behaviors significantly increased after the COVID‐19 pandemic, with distinct clinical characteristics observed across age groups.

Discipline and learning motivation of students are factors that can affect student learning outcomes at school. Based on the results of observations, it shows that the discipline and learning motivation of fifth-grade students is not optimal and still need to be improved. This study aims to analyze the effect of discipline and learning motivation on the learning outcomes of high school students in elementary schools. The method used is a quantitative method with a correlational design. The population in this study were high school students in elementary school with a sample of 30 students. The data collection technique was carried out using a questionnaire based on the results of the discipline instrument and learning motivation with a Likert scale score of 1 to 4, while the data in the form of learning outcomes were obtained from their respective teachers in the form of PTS scores for the second semester. In this study, the data analysis technique used was the normality test and hypothesis testing with Microsoft Excel 2019. The results showed that there was an influence of learning discipline on the learning outcomes of high-class students. Then there is the influence of learning motivation on the learning outcomes of high-grade students in elementary school. There is an influence of discipline and learning motivation in the learning outcomes of high-grade students in elementary schools.

The development of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) at this time has many impacts on people's lives, especially for Elementary School (ES) students, both positive and negative impacts. This study aims to determine the impact of ICT on the moral development of ES students. The method used in this research is qualitative with interview, observation, and documentation techniques. The research subjects were 6th-grade ES students. Analysis of the research data was carried out using a qualitative descriptive analysis. The results of the study show that most of the users of ICT without parental and teacher control have a great impact on student development. The negative impacts are that students are lazy to learn, ignorant, lack discipline, impolite behavior appears, and changes in social interaction, and dependence on Android. The teacher's efforts to overcome this are through digital literacy education, monitoring and limiting the use of technology, selecting quality content, discussion and reflection, collaboration with parents, and being a model of good behavior. With holistic education, ES students can gain understanding and strong moral skills that will help them become responsible, ethical, and contributing individuals in society.

Previous studies have found that educational games (EG) provide immersion, motivation, fun and high level of engagement. Studies also found that EG are able to teach 21 <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">st</sup> century skills. Thus, it is worth studying how this form of entertainment can be adapted into our teaching and learning strategies in order to develop our students' motivation and engagement, which is crucial in successful learning. However, designing and development of educational games with authentic learning content while maintaining the fun criteria can be challenging. Hence, a good design methodology and guideline is needed in assisting games development team to design an effective learning game. Our main attention is to produce a framework in educational games design for higher education. This paper analyses and compares a few frameworks available, then suggests a few criteria needed both from game design and pedagogy points of view. Hopefully it will shed some light in educational games design issues for higher education students.

This paper conducts an in-depth study and analysis of the practice and application of teaching English pronunciation to children using AR (augmented reality) game assistance. The article analyzes the design of AR educational games based on the concept of learning behavior input, clarifies and determines the factors influencing students' learning behavior input in AR gamified teaching environment, and proposes the design principles of AR educational games based on learning behavior input. By analyzing the characteristics of experiential learning and AR, the model of AR-based English experiential learning activities for elementary school is established. Based on certain demand analysis, the AR software that can be used for teaching pronunciation in elementary school English classrooms was designed and developed using Unity3D and 3ds Max software. The experimental method was used to compare and apply the software in the target school, and the students of elementary school X were selected as the experimental subjects. The data were analyzed with the help of SPSS and NVivo software, and the questionnaire was used to measure the “ease of use,” “usefulness,” and “satisfaction with the software.” The questionnaire was used to measure students' acceptance of AR software in three dimensions: “ease of use,” “usefulness,” and “satisfaction with the software.”

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of parenting attitudes on peer relationship quality of elementary and middle school students through the mediation of social mindset and social achievement goals. This study utilized questionnaire data from 1,010 students from the 5th grade of elementary school to the 3rd grade of middle school at 2 elementary schools and 2 middle schools in D City. SPSS 23.0 was used to conduct preliminary analysis, and Amos 21.0 was used to conduct two-stage structural equation model analysis to test the hypothesized model. As a result of the study, first, the positive parenting attitudes positively predicted elementary and middle school children's social growth mindset, social achievement goals, and peer relationship quality. Second, elementary and middle school children's social growth mindset and social achievement goals significantly predicted their peer relationship quality, and social growth mindset also had a positive effect on social achievement goals. Third, social growth mindset and social achievement goals each mediated the relationship between elementary and middle school students' perceived parenting style and peer relationship quality, and also had a sequential dual mediation effect. By confirming that positive parenting attitudes directly influence children's social beliefs, motivation, and peer relationship quality this study provides an opportunity to inform parents about the need to foster positive parenting attitudes. In addition, the identification of psychosocial variables (social mindset, social achievement goals) that predict children's social relationships and their causal relationships with parenting attitudes may expand parents' understanding of children's psychology and provide a theoretical basis for program interventions to help elementary and middle school students.