The Perceived Improvement in Learning Competencies of Low-achieving College Students through Participation in a Board Game Design and Development Process

The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which low-achieving college students perceive an improvement in their learning competencies through their experience of participating in the design and development processes of a board games. The research questions are as follows. First, what learning competencies do low-achieving college students perceive to have improved through the board game design and development process? Second, what are the relationships between the keywords of the learning competencies that low-achieving college students perceive to have improved through the board game design and development process? For this study, reflective journals from 97 low-achieving college students who participated in the board game design and development process were analyzed. Specifically, keywords related to the learning competency improvement were derived, and the relationships between these keywords were analyzed. The findings are as follows First, low-achieving college students perceived that their collaboration skills improved the most through the experience of participating in the board game design and development process, followed by problem-solving skills, communication skills, learning transfer, and interaction skills. Second, the keywords related to learning competency improvement perceived by low-achieving college students were found to be significantly interconnected. Collaboration skills were strongly linked to problem-solving skills, communication skills, learning transfer, creativity, and interaction. Problem-solving skills were closely connected to experience of success and creativity. The results of this study provide valuable insights for designing and implementing tailored programs aimed at enhancing the learning competencies of low-achieving college students.