DEVELOPING A SERIOUS GAME FOR TEACHING HISTORY IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS

In 2019 the emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus significantly changed our lives. Several measures have been taken into action in various areas of life in order to protect the citizens. Such was the transition of schools to online teaching for students, which raised many new problems and possible solutions. In times like this, it is challenging to grab and hold the students' attention during online teaching, and teachers around the world realized that finding new ways of teaching in the online space is necessary. One of these new options could be the use of serious games. According to Abt (1970), the original use of the term "serious game" also applied to non-digital games, which must have an "explicit and carefully thought-out education purpose." Using the term for digital games in today's sense can lead back to 2002. Sawyer was the first who called to use videogame technologies in order to improve game-based simulations. (2002) Since then, several researchers in various fields have investigated the topic of serious games. This paper aims to introduce the findings and experiences designing and testing the videogame titled "1848 - The videogame" in relation to the needs and attitudes of secondary-school teachers. The game has already had its pilot testing phase with positive outcomes. However, the new situation caused by the coronavirus made it impossible to conduct the original research in a classroom environment, and many aspects of the original game were re-designed to better adapt to the current situation. In addition, a brand-new webpage was created to complement the existing program and assist the teachers and students during gameplay. Furthermore, a survey was conducted among high-school teachers to determine whether they plan to use an educational video game during their lessons, and if not, why. The results showed that 55% of the teachers plan to use serious games during their lessons in the future. Most of these teachers said they would like to use a serious game to motivate their students better, make the lesson more interesting, or grab and hold their students' attention more successfully. On the other hand, the most common reason for not using or planning to use a videogame was the lack of knowledge about said games and the lack of time. Considering the above, "1848" was modified to better tailored to teachers' needs and be easier to learn and use.