RSC poster conference 2023

Interactive GCSE revision game to showcase careers in the chemical sciences

dan@testtuberevise.com

Dan Cooper

@testtuberevise

The problem

Game design

The player navigates to one of 7 different career zones. In order to get to the zone they must read a brief job description and career pathway of one of the chemists. Once in the zone they must navigate around that person's place of work and answer some chemistry questions relevant to the GCSE syllabus.

A challenge often faced by teachers is conveying the vast range of carreers open to chemists.

Gamification as a solution?

An online escape room style game was made which showcases the careers of 7 very different chemists. Revision questions based on the GCSE chemistry specification are included. The game is intended for use as an extra-curricular activity; for instance during Science Week or as part of a science club.

Play

Data

Conclusions

User demographic

User insights

In the year 2022 the game was played 11,910 times. This is an average of 1,000 plays per month, though the data show engagement spikes at certain times of the year. A feedback questionnaire was completed. The sample size was 234.

48% of the schools who used the game had avereage or above avereage pupils eligible for FSM. 55% of the schools had avereage or above average pupils from BAME backgrounds.

In a year this game inspired roughly 3,500 GCSE students to consider taking A level chemistry. This conclusion is tentative but further exploration of this type of game would yield more robust data.

31% of students said this game made them more likely to consider studying chemistry beyond GCSE.

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Interactive GCSE revision game to showcase careers in the chemical sciences

dan@testtuberevise.com

Dan Cooper

@testtuberevise

Return to poster

British Science Week 2022

There are clear spikes in engagement during British Science week and in the weeks before a UK school holiday. This could imply teachers are using the game as an extra-curricular activity.

Interactive GCSE revision game to showcase careers in the chemical sciences

dan@testtuberevise.com

Dan Cooper

@testtuberevise

Return to poster

The data show that the game was used in schools with a range of demographics. This is probably due to the ability of the game to reach all areas of the country.

Figure 1. The percentage of schools who used the game with above, below or roughly average number of students eligible for free school meals

Figure 2. The percentage of schools who used the game with above, below or roughly average number of students with English as an additional language

Interactive GCSE revision game to showcase careers in the chemical sciences

dan@testtuberevise.com

Dan Cooper

@testtuberevise

Return to poster

31% of GCSE students who played the game said they would consider studying chemistry further. Some testimonials are below

"I loved that many of the scientists were women" "It was a fantastic resource and opened their eyes to a variety of different fields that use science as well as being engaging and informative. Thank you for producing this" "As a retired Head of Chemistry I think this is an excellent resource." "some jobs ive never of heard of before were shown which was cool" "it was interesting learning about the various careers" "it explored different sides of chem, and showed that pursuing the subject meant a more varied career than previously perceived" "This task made me want to take a career in chemistry a bit more since it has made me see how vast chemistry is and what it can be used for."

Add actual slides to screenshots?