Designing mini-games for micro-learning: Open educational resources on cultural risks in multi-cultural organisations

Abstract

The need for self-directed learning for professional development drives an increase in the delivery of easy to use 'just-in-time' resources that respond to the often-dynamic workplace and work culture. Micro-learning has gained traction in online training, which focuses on delivering brevity through bite-sized learning units or short-term learning activities. Learning content in this case can take many forms, from text to interactive multimedia. These contents are often created on demand, which can sometimes be less contextualised and pedagogically informed. Based on a case study of the need for training on cultural risks in multi-cultural organisations, this paper focuses on the design of mini-games as playful learning resources for supporting an online learning platform that has been developed as a response to this training need. Fifteen mini-games have been developed to complement eight main topics related to cultural risks and to promote reflection, practice and the self-assessment of knowledge acquired through the platform. The main eight topics represent the risk areas identified that include cultural awareness, communication, learning styles, hierarchy, team-working, and stereotypes through a survey carried out with personnel (n=154) from large multi-cultural organisations across five countries - Cyprus, Italy, Latvia, Poland, and the UK. The discussions include unpacking the mapping of pedagogical and gameful design considerations based on Arnab et al 's (2015) Learning Mechanics-Game Mechanics Mapping (LMGM) model. The paper also discusses the findings from the testing of the platform with 71 students. The insights provided will be valuable to researchers, practitioners, designers and developers of micro-learning resources.