We present results from a design-based research project in which 8th-grade teachers and students explored climate change by designing computer games using Scratch. We analyzed 174 games based on (a) systems complexity and (b) triadic game design (TGD). The analysis of system complexity shows that two-thirds of the students designed systems using 1-directional linear connections, while one third designed complex systems based on multiple connections and included feedbacks, or loops. TGD analysis shows that the most frequent topics were human choices that impact climate change (54 games) and actions that mitigate climate change (53 games). The majority of games were based on a quiz (32), shooter (31), action (27), or pong (29) genre of gameplay. The underlying teaching purpose of the games fell into 2 categories: (a) teaching about climate change directly through text or indirectly through gameplay, or (b) raising awareness by having players make responsible choices in-game (e.g., walking, not driving). Choices of teaching purpose and gameplay entailed important design considerations for students; this result has implications for how game-design tasks within particular domains such as science might be framed in future.
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