Games students play: Engaging first year tertiary students in linking and extending foundation material throught the use of a digital game

Digital game-based learning (DGBL) is a pedagogical process that can be incorporated into first year teaching and learning practice. The effectiveness of using a DGBL resource to engage first year biological science students in recalling, linking and applying foundation knowledge has been explored in the School of Human Life Sciences (HLS). Academics are increasingly frustrated that students are unable to link and extend first year first semester foundation material throughout their undergraduate degree. Sample questions from a pilot study of the resource suggest that the resource has effectively targeted a mixed cohort of students to retain, link and extend foundation knowledge. Our study suggests that DGBL resources have a valid role in enabling students to recall and transfer unit content into new learning domains.