A scoping review of video games and learning in secondary classrooms

Abstract

Video games are an established part of popular culture, and frequently used in educational settings worldwide. There is now a substantive body of research suggesting positive outcomes of their use in classrooms. In spite of this, there is a dearth of research synthesizing the outcomes of these studies. This is particularly so in relation to the ways video games are used by teachers for educational purposes within secondary classrooms. A scoping review of recent literature focusing on video games in secondary classrooms published between 2010 and 2020 was conducted. In total, 3110 studies were identified in the initial search, 85 of which were retained after screening. The review indicated that the impact of video games in secondary classrooms is generally positive, although not conclusively so. Current research on the use of video games in secondary education is limited, primarily concerned with short-term interventions, and often does not consider wider teaching contexts. We propose several areas of further research, including methodological implications for the field of video game and educational research.