This project responded to student feedback to increase teaching that ‘engages and is intellectually stimulating’, ‘develops knowledge for the future’ and ‘improves study skills’. An additional observation made by faculty was that making seminars more fun might encourage students to engage more with module content. Developing games that use subject-revision cards exposes students to the module content in a safe and judgement-free environment. It encourages self-evaluation and communication with peers as students support each other when not knowing a word or concept.
In this project, facilitated through the College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities Teaching & Learning Innovation Fund 2023/24, eight members of staff generated 50 individual words or concepts across nine subjects: Accounting, Economics, Employability & Professional Development, Competition & Regulation, Human Resource Management, Innovation, Philosophy of Management, Principles of Responsible Management (PRME), and Research/Study Skills. These words/concepts were used to create a deck of cards that could be used as a revision tool, for recruitment activities, or for extra-curricular activities.
A variety of games were co-created by staff and students, and play-tested to identify different methods of engaging with the decks. The project team piloted subject-revision games in four modules (Philosophy of Management, Competition & Regulation, Principles of Economics, Introduction to Accountancy) and received student feedback after each class and through end-of-term module evaluations. Following the finalisation of the cards, the team developed, designed, and professionally produced the final card decks. They were then introduced into modules and used for further student engagement activities.
The post-pilot student survey obtained 51 responses. On a scale of 1-5 (5 as the highest), 74.5% of students gave the overall experience a 4 or 5. The other categories of ‘fun’ and ‘education’ had a similar rating, while the ‘interactive’ category had 92.1% of students rank the activity highly at 4 or 5. Notably, 33.3% of students surveyed said their knowledge of key concepts and terms in the module improved by quite a lot and an impressive 96% of students said their knowledge improved by at least a little.
The project team also included in the survey a couple of questions centred around skills for the 21st century from the World Economic Forum. The top two skills that students found they most used in the games were: 1) Creativity, originality and analysis and 2) Reasoning, problem solving and ideation.
Some of quotes from students on the survey included:
“Very good game, just wish I was more loud and had better social skills, then it would of been great” – “Highly enjoyable!” – “I would recommend” – “A wide variety of words made for a good game” – “Perfect all round!”
In the end-of-term module evaluation for the two modules, students commented that they found the interactive seminars useful and enjoyable and that they would like more interactive activities to be embedded into their learning. Overall, students seemed to really like the interactivity and the game aspect of the activities. They were a great way to learn.
