A Comparison of the Usefulness of Game-Based Learning and Video-Based Learning for Teaching Software Engineering in Online Environments

Despite prior research has shown several benefits of game-based and video-based learning and has compared these methodologies versus traditional instruction, little work has been done to compare their usefulness, especially in online education settings. This paper examines and compares the usefulness of game-based learning using educational video games and video-based learning for teaching software engineering in online environments. The design of this research is quasi-experimental, involving a control and an experimental group. A total of 193 software engineering students participated in this research, 45 in the control group and 148 in the experimental group. Both groups took a lesson about software design, but the students in the control group learned through online video-based learning, whereas their counterparts in the experimental group learned through online game-based learning. A survey was used to collect students' perceptions and pre- and post-tests were used to measure acquired knowledge. The results indicate that both learning methodologies were found to be beneficial for student learning and that online game-based learning outperformed online video-based learning in terms of students' perceptions.