Development of a Game-Based Teaching Material for Thinking on Science, Technology, and Social Issues from Various Perspectives

Abstract

Tremendous developments in science and technology have brought prosperity and an affluent lifestyle to mankind, but scientific and technological progress has also generated social issues related to the environment, security, ethics, and socioeconomic activities. Under these circumstances, a Science, Technology, and Society (STS) education that emphasizes the teaching of scientific and technological developments in their cultural, economic, social, and political contexts is required in order to cultivate human resources capable of making decisions about how to address these issues. In this study, we developed “nocobon,” a game-based teaching material for thinking on STS issues from various perspectives. “Nocobon” is a detective card game that can be played by a group of three to six people. The results of its prototype test for high school students suggest that players could acquire new knowledge and learn to think from different perspectives on STS issues through unlocking the mysteries in a series of “nocobon” cards. The results also indicate that “nocobon” could be a simple and convenient teaching material from the viewpoint of the time management.