Introducing Java using game development in a girls' secondary school

Abstract

Today's students were born into a world where technology is gaining a deeper foothold in daily life. Consequently, computer games have assumed an important place in their lives (Subrahmanyam, Greenfield, Kraut, & Gross, 2001). This powerful medium can be used as a vehicle to teach and learn programming. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to introduce students to object-oriented principles through simple game development and then to measure the students' perceptions of this method. This is spurred by the researcher's desire to harness young people's motivation to learn. This study introduces Greenfoot, an interactive Java development environment, to teach programming concepts to Form Four students attending Gozo girls' state secondary school. Findings gained through questionnaires and interviews were compiled as a result of a critical analysis of existing literature. The research reveals that a game based approach helps in increasing motivation and engagement in class. Furthermore, this study shows that this method aids students to better understand programming concepts.