Strategy and process of developing educational game for early childhood

Abstract

This research aims to study strategies required for developing educational game for preschool students and the development processes involved. The sampling groups used in this research included 3 content specialists whose responsibility is to verify the content of the games and 17 specialists on educational game. The sampling groups are selected particularly from the central region of Thailand. The research findings reveal the insights from the majority of specialists on development of educational games for preschool children as follow: games such as picture-matching, domino, object ordering, object categorizing, detail observing and number addition & subtraction games are popular for teaching. Moreover, the principles for applying educational games with lessons should be incorporated in the development of game strategies. In addition, the main objectives and the development process of games should focus primarily on their ability to draw attention from students as well as the fun of playing and allowing students to practice lessons and participate in class activities. The tools used for developing games are computers and devices created by teachers themselves. As for the future of educational game, the trend is the more involvement of technology through the use of computer or mobile devices. Problems in game development include limited budget for purchasing hardware and devices. On top of that, training on game development is much needed among teachers. The research results can be concluded with the following 5 strategies for preschool students: 1) enhance teachers’ knowledge and skills 2) study details of different kinds of games 3) develop games 4) determine time used for playing game 5) evaluate the process of game development in 4 areas including type of game, devices used, rules and playing instruction.