In discussing how education is related to museum activities, two significant contexts can be distinguished. First, museums provide a free-choice perspective on what and how to learn, and, second, they steer toward self-directed learning (Adams, Falk, & Dierking, 2003). Looking from an educational perspective, the emphasis is on creating meaning by emphasizing the possibility of interpretation in interaction with the physical and social environment. This approach leads to dialogue and active questioning that can be promoted through the following methods: active learning, inquiry-based learning, dialogue-based learning, object-based learning, and cross-curricular approaches. According to Dewey's theory of experiential learning, active teaching in a museum is the encouragement of visitors/learners to reflect on what they see, to interact with the exhibit, to analyze, classify, contradict, interpret, and create stories based on the previous knowledge and new experience (Johnson et al., 2017). Hein (2010) argues that three essential goals are achieved through active learning: The visitor/learner knows the environment, connects emotions and new experiences with learningto-learn abilities, and combats problems. Inquiry-based learning encourages the search for information through questioning and provides the opportunity to conduct research outside the classroom using existing skills. Visitors/learners are encouraged to ask each other questions aloud, listen to the answers, and reflect on the information received. Once again, experience, available or given tools to complete the task, self-directed learning skills, and the courage to challenge generally accepted norms are very important in engaging in such exploration. This approach encourages critical thinking, provides an opportunity to resist the suppression of independent thought, and participates in social discussions (Hein, 2010; Johnson et al., 2017). Dialogue-based teaching encourages questioning, participation in a discussion, critical thinking about the origin of the object, and self-interpreting the stories presented in the interaction with the group, the curator, and educator. This approach fosters engagement in a dialogue through open-ended questions that help create meaningful sharing of ideas and help learners work together and encourage critical and creative thinking. Dialoguebased learning is a way for museums to communicate with the visitors/learners through exhibits and existing collections by focusing on current events and by seeking to connect the present with the past. In this case, the dialogue focuses on specific topics, issues of concern, and issues that are related to current challenges (Johnson et al., 2017). The strategy of active questioning is also characteristic to object-based learning, as it encourages raising open-ended questions and exploration of the object from divergent perspectives (more in Chapter 3). When discussing this method, it can be emphasized that the dialogue aims to combat problems, to experiment, to think on the principle of divergent thinking, and to create new experiences. Cross-curricular approaches in this case lead to the application of knowledge not only in the defined context of the discipline but also in the search for links with other learning contexts in both formal and nonformal education. Such a logical sequence of learning leads to the development of metacognitive thinking, strengthens motivation to engage in the learning process, and brings the learner closer to the meaning of everyday life experience (Collins, Brown, & Newman, 1989). Both learning toward dialogue and crosscultural approaches are related to the goal of promoting "virtual literacy" as an essential part of education. This includes a range of abilities from simple identification, such as naming what is seen and understood, to complex contextual, metaphorical, emotional, or philosophical explanations.

Yuan (2019) highlights two possible components of learning in a museum. The first involves active participation and interpretation of the data and knowledge gained through dialogue. Based on interdisciplinary knowledge, dialogue encourages active questioning, acceptance of skeptical opinions and ideas, and problem-solving.

Here, interaction is seen through the creation of a dialogue with learners, curators/educators, and the teacher while collaboration is understood through listening, tolerating different ideas, and boldly expressing new unexpected positions. The second path leads to the construction of new ideas and problemsolving through collaboration, the creation of new meanings by working together, and the execution of experiments. In this case, the visitor/learner is actively involved in the process of constructing new knowledge by revealing their insights and reconstructing knowledge. Here, synergies are seen through experimentation that emphasizes openness, flexibility, and collaborative efforts as well as collaborative perspective where new ideas are developed, social skills are valued, intercultural awareness is promoted, and values are highlighted. Analyzing this perspective, the joy of participation is emphasized, and the individual meaning of being together is noted. This allows assessing the value of the creative process at the same time and helps to assess the acquired practical skills after achieving the result or experimentally focused activities (Figure 1).

**Figure 1.** Postmodern museum principles related to education activities (according to Yuan, 2019, p. 7).

The concept of the postmodern museum has been used for a long time in mesological literature and research, and it shows that in this case much attention is paid to communication and diversity of interpretation, and the museums even want to involve the emotions and imagination of visitors (Yuan, 2019).

The modern museum is positioned as "positivist, objective, rational, evaluative, distanced and set aside from the real world" (Hooper-Greenhill, 2000, p. 130). Meanwhile, the postmodern museum, instead of providing an authoritative interpretation, offers museum staff to communicate directly with the visitors and the audience and to explain the reasons for deciding to exhibit objects or tell a story in a particular way. The postmodern perspective enables grand narrative delegitimization and focuses on small narratives that relate to an individual's life and focuses on making one person's experience meaningful from the point of view of historical events. It is also emphasized that this perspective is linked to constructivist learning, which focuses on how learners learn in a given context by creating objects of their own and those created by others.

Keene (2005) emphasizes that the ideas of postmodernism that began to emerge very strongly at the beginning of the 21st century are seen today in philosophy, art, architecture, design, interpretation of history, and culture in general. It is defined as a set of certain critical, rhetorical, strategic attitudes associated with the concepts of juxtaposition of opposites, fragmentation, simulacrum, hyperreality and destabilizing the other ideas—existence, identity, historical progress, epistemic certainty, and unambiguity. Regarding museum's vision and mission, the author is concerned with these questions (ibid.): Can these conceptual attitudes help explain the diverse inconsistencies and logical binds that museums find themselves in today? Do postmodern ideas present the possibility of salvation or reinvention? The following questions are fundamental because the ideas of postmodernism reject universal values, majestic historical narratives, solid foundations to human existence, and the possibility of objective knowledge. Postmodernism is skeptical of truth or unity, and it opposes what it sees as elitism in culture, tends toward cultural relativism, and celebrates pluralism, discontinuity, and heterogeneity. Rapid technological change and social movements focusing on ecological, ethnic, and racial issues seem to emphasize the importance of a person and their individual needs. Representatives of postmodernism oppose the culture of elitism, and this threatens and seeks to deny the museum its function and position as a medium of education for the masses and support for the social order. The reality of the modern museum lies in the system of classification of the objects they possess, whereas the concept of postmodernism criticizes this strict classification and suggests the creation of multiple meanings arising from the diversity of communities and cultures. In postmodernism, the concept of objective truth is rejected because personal experience is significant here, and the only true meaning of the artifact/object is questioned. In addition, postmodernism invites to present artifacts, objects, or chronological historical sequence through visualizations, information technology, and social media. Intangible heritage such as dance, performance, storytelling, and music as well as industrial heritage with its gigantic buildings and steam engines are becoming part of the expositions presented by the museum. According to Keene (2005) and Sökmen, Yolal, and Özel (2020), the postmodern museum is associated with the engagement, communication, and active participation rather than with the building to be visited and exhibits to be explored.

Thus, looking at the changes currently taking place in the museums, one can see a rapid shift toward transformation, which is associated with flexibility, direct visitor engagement, and the use of information technologies and social media. To show the extent of change, Nielsen (2014) reviews the path of museum transformation by presenting changes in the modern museum, postmodern museum, and transformational museum. These changes and where they lead can be seen in Figure 2.

First, instructive learning style in the modern museum has transformed and has a strong focus on visitors' interaction in the postmodern understanding. However, certain signs are noticeable showing that it is not enough to interact

**Figure 2.** Identifying transformation in the museum (Nielsen, 2014, p. 27).

only. They want to have a direct influence on the learning process, the social and personal experience of a museum visit.

Second, the modern museums turn to focus on national history and a community's provenance, whereas the postmodern museums make it very global. The transformation, in this case, can be delivered wider than globally; it has become known worldwide through information technologies and social media. Museum visitors join social media like Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube because they can take part, make contributions, and get information very fast depending on their needs and interests. In this way, visitors expect that all the information will be available not only during the actual presentation of expositions/events/ exhibitions or through participation and communication but also through the possibility of constructing knowledge on social media.

Third, in many modern museums, exhibitions are presented according to a certain chronology and classification. For example, archaeological and historical objects are typically defined by location, age, size, materials, or use. In contrast, in a postmodern museum, more emphasis is paid to the story behind the object, and the focus on the historical themes is observed. In terms of the transformation opportunities, it is recognized that the storytelling is very important as it engages museum visitors/learners and encourages participation. Naturally, this is not only an invitation for the visitors to "interact" with the exhibits but also an invitation to become part of the story being told, create their own story, search for relevant and interesting information, and shape their knowledge by engaging and sharing existing experiences. In this case, participation, individual construction of new knowledge and experience, sharing of what has been discovered and learned, and ensuring visibility to the constructed history are important.

Fourth, in a modern museum, expositions and objects are usually presented on the basis of objective manner. On the other hand, the Postmodern Museum provides an opportunity for museums and sometimes visitors to employ their own voice in an exhibition during presentations. While considering the possibility of presenting the expositions, shows, and exhibits in the transformational museum, much more flexibility is observed as the visitor/learner seeks to acquire knowledge in their own way while transforming it into a meaningful experience. This shows that today's museum visitors may seek to deepen expertise, social participation and engagement, digital interaction, and so on. This path additionally requires knowledge and application of new learning theories that would encourage museum visitors to search, analyze, construct, critically evaluate, think creatively, and present their discoveries more widely.

Ahmad et al. (2013) noted that considering learning theories relevant to museums, two theories stand out: constructivism and sociocultural theory. Constructivism is a theory that focused on the learner and the construction of the learner's personal experience. Representatives of the constructivist theory focus on the relevance of knowledge, which provides individual meaning. Cognitive participation and presence are localized in an authentic environment, related to the ability to model the learning process according to situations, to simulate activities, and to make discoveries based on the dialogue. "Constructivists do not search for copies or mirror reflections in human thinking. Rather, they regard people as observers, participants who actively create and transform personal traits, habits, attitudes" (Teresevičienė et al., 2015, p. 69). The aim of learning is to make the learner creative and innovative by focusing on analytical skills, conceptualization, and synthesis of existing experience. The activities of a teacher or museum curator/educator are associated with mentoring and assistance in solving problems and raising issues that require creative solutions. This principle encourages creation of new knowledge, problem-solving at the metacognitive level of knowledge, and development of original and innovative products.

Sociocultural theory proposed that learning is a socially mediated process where learners (adults and children) are jointly responsible for their learning. Here, learning is shaped by context, culture, and artifacts contrary to constructivism theory which focuses on learning through experience and the construction of individual knowledge. In this case, when talking about sociocultural theory, the opinion expressed by Vygotsky (here from Žukauskienė, 2012) is valid, that knowledge is not so much constructed as reconstructed; moreover, during the learning process not only do certain abilities and skills increase but qualitative changes in thinking take place as well. Learning also takes place by working together and performing a variety of tasks, resulting in the formation of new learning strategies and the acquisition of knowledge about the surrounding world and cultures. Furthermore, as Wertsch (1991) notes, human action, on the social and individual plan, is mediated by tools and signs—semiotics. This semiotic includes language, various systems of counting, mnemonic techniques, algebra symbol system, works of art, writing, schemes and diagrams, mapping, or conventional signs.

What unites the two theories (constructivism and sociocultural theory) is their relation to action. Even though constructivist theory points out that one should attend to the learning and mental representations of the individual, the sociocultural theory is more concerned with the way in which learning is enacted through acculturation. The lens of sociocultural theory is considerably wider when compared to the constructivist theory. By analyzing various learning situations, sociocultural theory provides an opportunity to review the broader social system in which the learning happens and will draw interpretations about an individual thinking and development based on their participation in culturally organized activities. Meanwhile, in the constructivist theory, learning is more closely linked to a person's experience and their ability to create new knowledge, products, or concepts by applying existing experience (Cobb, 1994). Cole and Miyake (2006) encourage educators and museum curators/educators to apply both theories and to enable the learner or museum visitor, be it a child or adult, to examine the exhibits or objects from multiple perspectives and to provide answers and solve problems together in cooperation.

In summary, it is important to emphasize that today it is imperative to speak about the active involvement of visitors/learners in the proposed activities of the museum to promote the reconstruction of knowledge, learning through objects, and meaningful experience and experimentation. The questions that lead to the dialogue and questioning from divergent perspectives, objects, and topics through different learning strategies and the search for truth through the active involvement and action of the visitor/learner are important.

#### **Fostering Creativity and Developing Creative Potential**

Today, creativity and creative thinking are perceived as a way of creating new knowledge. In turn, this knowledge creates new information and products. Creativity plays an important role in creating virtual reality and virtual products and, thus, overcomes the concept of classical reality. The products of creative thinking penetrate into both machine production and libraries and the organization of the learning process in the education system (Koç & Aksoy, 2018). Meanwhile, Huitt (2007) stresses on the relevance of creative thinking by arguing that today it is no longer enough to create a product or service or present an existing experience. Today, it is economically important and personally beneficial to create something that is beautiful. In a general sense, creativity refers to a person's ability to formulate original ideas and provide insights that help solve problems or guide the creation of a new scientific, social, and aesthetic value. When talking about creativity, Lucas (2016) distinguishes between generation of ideas, openness to innovation, the courage to explore, and the ability to "hear" your inner voice as a creator. Lucas (ibid.) notes that it is difficult to define this concept briefly and clearly today and notes that scientific sources provide over 120 definitions of creativity. To this day, there is a growing consensus that creativity includes generating ideas, questioning assumptions, and divergent thinking as well as openness and courage to explore, "sensible risk," and listening to one's "inner voice," that is, intuition. Thus, creativity is closely linked to innovation, and it is noticeable this term is often used as a synonym, so it is important to note the essential features of the latter, which focuses on innovation in practice and the ability to implement creative ideas in real conditions. It is really challenging to distinguish creativity from innovation, as creative people tend to pursue their ideas and often initiate specific projects to apply the creative idea.

Analyzing the concept of creativity in the context of education (Gadonas et al., 2014; Koç & Aksoy, 2018), the importance of the following features is noted:

Another characteristic that creativity possesses is the future perspective when possible consequences, the uncertainty of assessment of the process, the appropriate adequacy of the solution to the problem in the current situation, and the ability to solve the problem by understanding the risk of failure are taken into account.

Kaufman and Beghetto (2009) developed four categories of creativity that help to disclose the nuances between different levels of creativity (Table 1).

**Table 1.** The four-C model of creativity (created by author).

Analyzing this table, it is important to emphasize that the first step toward the growth of creativity is related to the perception that creativity is nurtured during the educational process. This is an essential realization because creativity cannot come from "nothing." It is equally significant to recognize that fostering creativity is a lengthy and gradual process that takes place within the school and then outside the school, that is, lifelong learning process. The third very important point is it is necessary to enable learners to communicate and collaborate in the development of new and innovative ideas and products during the educational process. For learners and museum visitors, the focus should be on the Mini-c creativity level, which aims to stimulate creativity by focusing on idea development, networking, observation, experimentation, and knowledge reconfiguration, as well as the Little-c creativity level, which promotes freedom of thought, desire to learn new phenomena and explore them with curiosity, and raise questions focused on innovative solutions.

As mentioned previously, the elements of critical and creative thinking and their interaction are important for the development of creativity. Creative thinking is manifested in the insight of new ideas about the object and the process and the relevance of formulating questions that require research. Critical thinking is rational, reflexive, knowledge-based thinking in a specific field; it usually helps to focus on the analysis of the problem situation and arguments for making an appropriate decision. In the sense of fostering creativity, critical thinking substantiates the links between imagination and new ideas and reality (Gadonas et al., 2014; Lancrin et al., 2019). Figure 3 presents the main features of critical and creative thinking that are associated with questioning, imagination, action, and reflection.

Creativity and creative activity are purposefully directed to the solution of the problem and the realization of the idea; therefore, the new and hitherto unseen result can be considered as an essential characteristic of creativity. A coherent logic can also be seen in the creative activity (Figure 4), which consists of four phases—idea generation, incubation, evaluation, and implementation (Gadonas et al., 2014; Lucas, 2016; Koç & Aksoy, 2018). The idea generation phase is about finding new ideas, linking knowledge, and already known ideas. In this phase, the goal is formed based on which the information is collected and analyzed and action strategies are considered. In this phase, it is also important to talk about the barriers faced in order to understand the complexity of the situation and move away from thinking by analogy. Barriers can also come from emotional barriers that arise from the fear of making mistakes, from seeking security, or from avoiding expression when expert knowledge is preferred and strong discussions and consensus-building are avoided. During the incubation phase, certain ideas mature, are refined, and rejected if they are not confirmed. It means that estimates and deductions will be new, unique, skillful, clever, and rare for a person. During the evaluation phase, it is important to name the arguments why this solution was chosen to implement the idea and to critically evaluate the preconditions for successful outcomes or results in the future. The

**Figure 3.** Creativity and critical thinking (based on Lancrin et al., 2019).

implementation phase entails discussions about the period in which the chosen idea is to be implemented, a very clear schedule of activities and distribution of responsibilities, and, after the implementation of the task, the need for the ability to reflectively and critically evaluate the results in relation to how they can be useful in generating new ideas and solving problems.

In terms of fostering creativity in task planning, the focus is on assessing conflicting situations from different perspectives; formulation of statements that initiate discussions; raising open and exploratory issues; motivation to solve real problems; options for addressing unplanned and unexpected situations that encourage the search for new knowledge; searching for the interdependence of various phenomena; promotion of experimental activities, integrating concept

**Figure 4.** Logic of consistent activity of creative thinking (Gadonas et al., 2014; Dyle, 2018).

analysis, hypothesis development, and practical testing to identify unknown phenomena; the opportunity to implement ideas and reflect on the result obtained by focusing on experience and information gathered during the activity; an opportunity to consider past and future product perspectives through the materials and design used (Fields & Bisschoff, 2014; Gadonas et al., 2014; Koç & Aksoy, 2018). All this is promoted through creation of associations; introduction of different senses; search for similarity or agglutination; hyperonization; study of materials, development of scenarios, learning from natural phenomena or from each other; drawing, and interpreting drawings and objects; acting; connections between music, arts, and technology; search for art in nature; and crossing cultural borders. As we can see, when it comes to creativity and creative activities, favorable learning environments become extremely important as there are many visual details, pleasant contrasts, warm colors all of which allow for the free expression of students' imagination and ensure a certain level of independence (Sternberg, 2012; Žibėnienė & Indrašienė, 2017). The most commonly used methods in pedagogical work are creative partnership (all disciplines), design thinking (all disciplines), dialogic teaching (all disciplines), modern Band movement (music education), Orff Schulwerk (music education), project-based learning (science education, all disciplines), research-based learning (all disciplines), studio thinking (visual arts education), and teaching for artistic behavior (visual arts education; Lancrin et al., 2019).

**Figure 5.** The 4Ps of creativity (based on Zhang et al., 2016; Doyle, 2018; Cramond, 2020).

Thus, when it comes to fostering creativity, it is important to create the right spaces for it; to encourage learners' independence, curiosity, and self-expression; and, most importantly, to follow the direction of learning through discovery. It is important to mention that while preparing tasks aiming to develop creativity, the evaluation and self-assessment phase of these tasks must be foreseen so as to strengthen the learner's willingness to learn independently, look for links between different information flows, build on existing experience while encouraging to seek for new knowledge in a state of weightlessness in search of answers and unique solutions, to break stereotypes and to overcome fears. When developing criteria for assessment and considering assessment parameters, it is important to understand the focus of the task. Is it about the growth of personal abilities? Is it about a process, like planning and organization? Is it about a product or a result or outcome? Is it about the learner's ability to create in a particular environment focusing on cultural specificities, resources, and best practices? In this case, the identification structure of the 4 Ps (Person, Process, Product, Press), which helps to understand both creativity and creative tasks, can be evaluated from different positions (Figure 5).

From a personal perspective, a creative personality is characterized by an educated intellect and such character traits and abilities that help them to methodically categorize the received information, find original connections, create nonstandard results, and concentrate and not give into fears in both normal and stressful situations. A person who does not lack creativity dares to accept risks, boldly expresses their opinion, and accepts those who think differently. The creative personality is also unafraid to take responsibility and take on challenges independently as this quality helps them to discover the most effective solutions. In addition, the creative personality not only strives for a quality and nonstandard result of their activities but also enjoys the process itself (Doyle, 2018).

The process of creativity refers to the specific cognitive processes involved in the search for creative ideas combining different approaches and using divergent thinking. It is also noticeable that there is an opportunity to "play" here, focusing on process, cooperation, and relationship-building. Focusing on the process provides an opportunity to take risks, take responsibility, get involved and strategize. These processes can be described as differentiation and integration and analysis and synthesis. It allows focusing on individual tasks and simultaneously engaging in various activities to solve various conflicts or problems, to be in a state of weightlessness when there is no solution, and to be flexible in team decision-making and tolerate stress (Huitt, 2007; Zhang et al., 2016; Cramond, 2020).

From a product-to-result perspective, the emphasis is on innovation and the benefits of implementing ideas, solving problems, and developing a product. The product should be "amazing, original, beautiful, and useful," have a positive impact on society, and be different from mass-produced products. It is about the uniqueness of the style, the state of the art, and the sense that encourages pride in the work and "invites" the creation of new and original products (Zhang et al., 2016).

Looking at a press perspective, it is important to assess the context in which creative activity takes place. These include time and place, as well as people, culture, environment (spaces), potential resources; it is more related to an environment that encourages creativity than to the personality itself (Cramond, 2020). Zhang et al. (2016) note that performance and its end result may be affected by environmental pressure, frustration, or perfectionism. Freedom, independence, good practice, and available resources are important for the growth of creative skills.

When talking about the value of creativity and creative activities, Lucas (2016) observes that such assessments help to be more precise about how it is being cultivated and what they are doing that works. Below are the most common methods used to assess creativity:

Yet the question remains—which methods and techniques can best assess creativity and its potential, idea, or outcome? Levels of creativity could be relied upon, with a focus on self-assessment and micro genetic methods at the Minic level. Self-assessment is useful for two reasons: First, it allows the learner to reflect on what is being done and to see how it is happening; second, it can help educators see the growing creative potential and identify hobbies and needs that are relevant to learners. Micro genetic methods help to better understand the genesis and evolution of learners' thought. These methods combine observation (e.g., videos) with other methods, such as direct discussion with learners about how they understand the actions and steps in carrying through their creative activity (e.g., reasoning, recording the "discovery" process, noticing change, etc.). At the Little-c level, self-assessment remains relevant, but various creative thinking tests (e.g., the Torrance test) can also be used to identify the potential for creativity by focusing on divergent thinking and problem-solving, distinguishing between fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration. At the Pro-c level, it is suggested to take into account the professional achievements or the nature of creativity itself. The work of the professionals at this level is already being evaluated by experts and peers at a national or global level (Table 2).

**Table 2.** Assessing creativity by levels (Kaufman & Beghetto, 2009, p. 8).

In summary, the museum and its spaces are an excellent medium for creativity with objects and themes presented at expositions and exhibitions leading to long-term projects to observe, analyze, rethink, and reconstruct existing knowledge, draw on existing experience and skills to deliver new results, and generate innovative ideas and implement them through critical thinking and creative solutions. Again, the formulation of the tasks themselves and the planning of activities here can be multifaceted, focusing on personal growth, process planning and organization, product development, and the social environment and its knowledge. The different levels of creativity and the phases of the implementation of creative activities should be kept in mind as this shows that visitors returning to a museum and its spaces can increase manifold in order for them to discover, create, and present new ideas, solutions, and products. When discussing assessment options, it is of course important to appreciate the fact that work is done here both individually and collaboratively. Thus, self-esteem, peer review, reflexive observations, and notes that show growth and process changes are important. Furthermore, the presentation of the result and knowledge of the social environment provide an opportunity to share the developed product during the exhibition year with experts who help to self-assess and evaluate and identify your changes as a person.

### **Object-Based Learning in Museum**

Object-based learning uses works of art, artifacts, archival material, or digital representations of unique objects. Of course, this is not a new idea, but, from a modern point of view, object-based learning is stimulated by encouraging participation and constructing meanings by interacting with objects. Interaction in this case means reading, observing, asking questions, reasoning, and gathering evidence. During a visit to the museum, visitors/learners have the opportunity to explore exhibits. They do not "learn" incorrect concepts about an object and its relationship to other objects, epochs, cultures, and people and reconcile seemingly unrelated or even contradictory ideas (Murhpy & Rose, 2019; Schultz, 2018). Within this learning approach, visitors/learners can experience the uniqueness of artifacts or form links to individual human history and so on, and this encourages curiosity, engagement, creative and critical thinking, and independent search for answers looking at the past and the present (Duhs, 2010; Davies & Nicholl, 2017; Miles, 2018; Obinna, Diminyi, & Duru, 2018). The "emotion of touch" is also important here because touching an object provides information about the texture, size, and temperature of the object, and this helps to create an overall picture of what the object is like. Therefore, as Obinna, Diminyi, and Duru (2018) emphasize, it is very important to understand how children learn, to know the peculiarities of their development, and to be able to distinguish between children and adults so that during their visit and knowing the client one can engage them in a dialogue: with the exhibits by asking openended questions and using objects to make a connection—starting with the physical properties of the object and ending with hypothetical questions about the form and function and by providing insights.

As Burritt (2018) observes, one of the possible ways to get to know objects, artifacts, and works of art is to ask three critical questions: What do you see? What do you think about that? What does it make you wonder? In this case, the task is much more complex than it seems at the first glance. The description of the object being observed is an important element and requires a visual vocabulary, thought development, as well as knowledge/information, to support thought processing. After reaching the miracle stage, learners formulate their own questions related to the results of the previous stages. At this stage, the focus is on what the learners want to explore or what deeper knowledge they may need about the exhibit. Hardie (2015) presents the question of miracles extensively in his practical examples and calls this object-based learning– oriented method "The Power of Wow." This author suggests that visitors or learners choose an object that they believe has the "power" to provoke a "Wow" state. The object is searched for in silence, and, when it is found, "Wow" is shouted. At that point, the structure of the object is explored; its message and emotional impact are conveyed. Visitors/learners are encouraged to think creatively, to explore their experiences and interactions with the object and the reasons for their choice. "See, Think and Wonder" is a conducive approach for both educators and museum curators to develop learners' argumentation skills by encouraging the formulation of open-ended questions and enabling meaning restoration through the sharing of knowledge and new experiences. The principles of Universal Design Learning (UDL) within the object-based learning approach are identified by Hardie (2015) as tools capable of ensuring active involvement of classroom and museum learners in observing and analyzing the world and realizing that observed objects are true evidence about everyday experiences.

Technology in the museum is also important in presenting exhibits or individual objects from multiple perspectives. The multisensory environment created by Taiga provides an opportunity to touch, feel, hear, see, smell, remember and even motivates to act and to explore. In addition to the already common devices (audio tools), technology allows to provide detailed texts, images, and animations that deepen exploration and understanding of the event, situation, or object.

Visitors/learners can perform a visual inventory of the museum exhibit or analyze the physical characteristics of the exhibit, such as shape, color, design, or decoration details. During the observation and analysis, of course, questions arise: How was the object made, and who made it and why? What was the significance of the analyzed object in the past? What is the significance of this object today?

Today's interactive exhibits help answer questions and spark discussion on a variety of topics, including history, culture, society, arts, and science. Various questions can be asked (Obinna, Diminyi, & Duru, 2018):

Visitors/learners can focus on who created the object, its intended use, material(s) from which the object is made, its social and cultural significance, different interpretations, and see whether the current context of the object in the exhibition has the potential to spark creative activity (Hardie, 2015; Lason & Valdespino, 2021). To sum up, it can be said that in research it is important to ask questions about physical features, construction, function, design, and context; to reflect on what we learn, experience, or feel by combining observation, adapting research instruments to a specific situation, discussing with others, and making new experiences and knowledge meaningful through the findings analyzed (Figure 6).

**Figure 6.** Stages of object research (prepared by the author).

In addition, Nicholl and Davies (2019) note that museums introduce a new component to questioning by inviting visitors/learners to interact and explore objects—a stimulating and sensory experience that helps to create an overall picture and learn by incorporating experience. Furthermore, Vázquez and Wright (2019) observe that in the museums today new experience and knowledge can be gained through five literacies: verbal, visual, technological, social, and critical. In addition, museums offer more experimentation with diverse designs and viewpoints, providing space for visitors/learners to disrupt the typical museum narrative through projects and exhibitions.

Needless to say, information technologies make a significant contribution to the overall knowledge of the object because they help reproduce images of objects in 3D and provide opportunities to learn at a distance. In this case, the learning process must be carefully planned from the structuring of learning objectives, materials, and tasks to the identification of assessment criteria. Working with students according to the presented method can develop tolerance of cultural differences, respect for different opinions, students' dialogue and cooperation, observation skills, concentration skills, ability to creatively solve problems, and create new structures of meaning (Chatterjee, 2011; Dimmock, 2016).

With regard to adults, it should be noted that the available experience allows the use of other methods that may invite the visitor (adult) to explore objects on their own, relating it to their needs and personal experience. Taiga learning in this case focuses on intellectual enrichment, where the place of learning and exploration for adults can be very personal or spontaneous. Adults, unlike children, already possess strong values, personal experiences, and knowledge that they bring to the museum. In addition, adults already have their own clear learning strategies that allow them to search for answers on their own without hints or additional questions to stimulate curiosity.

Objects can be used to provoke lateral, creative, and imaginative thinking; connect knowledge, evidence, and interpretation; promote discussion, generation of new ideas, and peer exchange; simulate problem-solving or experiments, ask questions, and seek answers to the questions raised, and so on (Miles, 2018). As Dimmock (2016) and Chatterjee and Duhs (2016) observe, if one wants to unlock the meaning of objects, it is important to go beyond the conventional boundaries and the understanding that an object can be seen as one with a single purpose, name, or very specific location. Once more, it is important to return to the inevitable introduction of the object-based learning concept to the idea of constructivism theory that learning is dynamic and the individual is active and participatory in the learning process and the uniqueness of creativity development activities, development of original results, and evaluation of the process. Once again, this proves museums to be great spaces for learning and cognition because they create potential for exploration, search for answers, meaningful and new experiences and encourage the visitor to discover, create, and cultivate creative powers. Object-based learning also encourages learning together in collaboration with learning peers and knowledge creators to answer questions and explore objects along a chosen line of research. This perspective also encourages multiple returns to the museum and discussion about the exhibits or specific objects with family members, friends, or individually with museum curators and educators.

#### **Methodology**

The research data are presented using the case-study descriptive type of research (Yin, 2003; Baxter & Jack, 2008) where the focus is on the initiatives presented by the museum in how they describe objects and the strategies to analyze objects that promote creativity. A case study of the Vienna Technological Museum (Austria) was selected for the case analysis (the museum was visited in January 2019). Case study analysis is important to answer the following questions: What is the main idea of the museum? What is the origin of the museum? How can one learn, acquire, or create knowledge and experiment through objects in a museum? What strategies are used to promote open-ended questions, idea generation, information evaluation, the discovery of links between different forms of information, and the aggregation of information? During the case analysis, it is important to focus on objects that promote learning and inspire the construction, exploration, and accumulation of new experiences in the museum premises (Figure 7).

**Figure 7.** Presentation of the research process (prepared by the author).

The case study analysis of the object will focus on the physical meaning: how the object is used, how it conveys information; relative significance: how the object fits into the broader context or structure and how its place in that structure affects its meaning; content of meaning: how the object historically represents the change of ideas and associations that make it usable.

## **The Analysis of the Museum as a Case of Creativity Cognition through Cognition of Objects**

The Vienna Technical Museum (Technisches Museum Wien) was opened in 1918 and is one of the oldest technology museums in the world. It is located in a classical architecture building specially designed for the museum (founded in 1909–1918, architect Hans Schneider) in the Penzing district of Vienna, at Mariahilfer Street 212. During the reconstruction that took place in 1992– 1999, the museum maintained the authentic exterior and interior and updated the concept and design of the exhibits. The major innovation was that the traditional exposition of authentic artifacts was supplemented with hands-on devices, elements of science demonstrations, and other modern scientific and technical education tools. While presenting new exhibits, the storytelling style using traditional classification of science (physics, chemistry, biology, etc.) was abandoned. According to the then museum director Donhauser (2017), these changes were an innovation among European museums and inspired many institutions to change.

The statement on the museum's website declares that here technology is an experience. Delving deeper into the mission statement, the connection between history and storytelling and the reconstruction of knowledge and learning through experience is emphasized: "Historical exhibits, many of them unique, are showcased in their cultural context, with fun ways and methods of transferring knowledge making it literally possible to get to grips with technology."

The Vienna Technical Museum defines its audience as visitors of all ages from a young child to a senior, offering an opportunity to discover, experience, and reflect on different types of technologies and their history through storytelling and experimentation.

Another important mission statement in the museum is the promotion of an open debate about science and technology with a focus on solving current problems.

Having analyzed the museum's mission, it may be concluded that the museum has the following goals: to present the history of technology and tell it by promoting learning through experience, reconstruction of knowledge, and discussion. Thus, the concept of this museum is a good field to discuss the possible development of creativity through the use of objects as a tool.

The museum's exposition is divided into 13 themes: The exhibit "Nature and Knowledge" presents various scientific instruments (from globes to Xray machines) for the exploration of nature. Authentic historical objects are complemented by texts, audiovisual material, diagrams, and hands-on devices. The exhibit "In Motion," aimed at young people, consists of objects and interactive hands-on devices that present the topic of mobility in various aspects. The "Heavy Industry" showcases a variety of heavy industries through authentic objects (e.g., furnaces, converters, steam boilers) as well as models, texts, films, and simulation consoles. The exhibit "Locomotive adventure" presents a collection of authentic historic trains. The "Energy" presents the history of energy from the ancient times to the present through exhibiting authentic objects, models, works of art, explanatory texts, and hands-on devices. This exhibit is complemented by a new permanent exhibition "ON/OFF" consisting of interactive hands-on devices and telling the modern history of Austrian energy. The exhibition "Everyday Life—directions for use" showcases technologies used in everyday life and household in the 19th and 20th centuries. "At Work" presents various workplaces through historical objects, equipment, and models. Part of this exhibition is an interactive playground for children aged 6–12 where they can engage in pretend-play experiencing a variety of work activities. The exhibition "Media. Worlds" presents the modern history of information and communication technologies through historical objects (telegraph, television, computers, etc.), historical audio and video recordings, as well as the history of historical media (book, number, map, etc.). This exhibition can also be viewed virtually using computer terminals. The "Musical Instruments" presents a collection of authentic historical musical instruments. "The Mobility" exhibition presents a collection of authentic historic vehicles (carriages, ships, planes, etc.).

The exhibit halls are equipped with two special spaces for preschool and younger school children. The exhibit called "The mini" is an interactive space for the youngest visitors aged 2–6. By playing and experimenting here, children can get acquainted with the basic laws of nature (sound, force, attraction, etc.). Another exhibition targeting 2–8-year-olds, the "Mini Mobil," is a space of interactive devices for getting acquainted with various aspects of mobility (regulation of traffic on the street, sailing, launching a rocket, etc.).

During the visit, the museum had two temporary exhibitions. The "Urban future" presented various innovations related to the city life (innovative lifts, streetlamps, urban gardening models, etc.). The exhibition "City links. Vienna-Bratislava" explored the history of the two railway lines through historical documents, photographs, and large visualizations.

The thematic division of the museum's exposition corresponds to the goals set in the museum's mission. In order to present the history of technology, the exposition pays a lot of attention to the exhibition of authentic historical artifacts and the story of one or another phenomenon (industry, energy, household appliances, etc.). In order to promote learning through experience, some parts of the exhibition contain solely hands-on devices while other authentic artifacts are accompanied by explanatory texts, models, films, works of art, photographs, documentaries, and games. In order to provoke discussion and ask open-ended questions, the museum connects technical objects with the political, economic, and social contexts of their emergence and use. In such a way, they seek to bring scientific and technological phenomena closer to everyday life experiences, present several interpretational angles to the same phenomenon, and take a clear polemic position.

In one technical exhibit in the museum, learning takes place through themes. An example of this could be two sub-exhibitions on the topic of energy, "Energy" and "ON / OFF." The first exhibition tells about the use of energy in the history of mankind through such historical lines as: "Light and heat," "Muscle power," "The transmission of power," "Wind power," "Waterpower," "Power from coal," "The power engine," "Industrial society." Although the narrative of the exhibition is historically linear, the exhibition begins with a stand that connects the theme of energy with the everyday life of a modern man. The stand showcases a variety of instantly recognizable objects, such as a cup of coffee that provides short-term energy, a postcard written from a holiday illustrating the process of energy recovery in a person's life, and so on. They are on display next to the modern objects such as a bottle of oil, or a model of Stockholm train station illustrating how human-made heat energy can be used in an innovative way to insulate a building. Although the stand is dominated by individual objects and explanatory texts that provide information, it allows you to ask questions and discover examples and answers about everyday human activities and thus invites you to get involved in learning. In addition, an interactive entertainment is offered—after the screen captures the temperature of the visitor learner's body, they can download the photo with this information or send it to a personal email (Figure 8). There are also excellent examples to help understand the complexity of the system, one of which is the presentation of the joule (J) energy and the SI unit of work in relation to the heart rate, and the kilowatt-hour, which shows the electricity produced or consumed compared to the calories burned in sport. Both the play on words and the attempt to explain the essence of the system and the clever integration of everyday life and complex systems into one whole can be seen here.

**Figure 8.** Body temperature is recorded in the photo (prepared by the author).

There are also excellent examples to help understand the complexity of the system; one of these is the presentation of the joule (J) energy and the SI unit of work in relation to the heartbeat energy. Another is the kilowatt-hour, which shows the electricity produced or consumed compared to kilocalories burned exercising. Both the play on words and the attempt to explain the essence of the system through a clever use of everyday life example show how complex systems can work together.

The exhibits presented in the other sections of the exhibition "Energy" are characterized by their authenticity. Such objects as a kerosene lamp, a steam engine, a work of art, a building (e.g., an electrical substation), or a model from Lego blocks can be utilized. They are accompanied by explanatory texts, documentaries, and information with questions that invite you to explore and get to know the animation (e.g., the "Industrial society" section shows short videos demonstrating the operation of the machine). In addition, each section features an interactive hands-on device that allows you to experience, for example, the action of muscle strength or the course of action of a converter chain. The exhibition "Energy" ends with a section on the oil industry that tells the history of it through the history of a family of industrialists and provides a lot of material on the political and economic aspects of the modern oil industry.

The abundance of the exhibits allows the visitors/learners to choose the starting point of their learning journey. Among the choices there is an authentic wooden electric substation, a kerosene lamp, a disposable coffee cup, or a converter chain device. It should be noted that the information provided, the questions that arouse curiosity, the opportunity to touch and experiment, and the links made among history, man, and industrial change and innovation in a historical narrative allow the visitors/learners to get a comprehensive picture of technological growth and the social context. The development of creativity takes place depending on the chosen context, focusing on the person, the process, or the social context.

The exhibition "ON / OFF" is new (Figure 9). In 2017, a permanent exposition has been created to showcase Austrian electricity grid. Narrative lines include: "Electricity from nuclear energy," "Electricity from hydropower," "Electricity supply," "Austrian electricity networks," "Electricity consumption," "Electricity from solar energy," "Electricity from wind energy," "Electricity … just not here!" (the section on problems related to ecological production of water and wind electricity), "Electricity from combustible fuels," "Use of electricity for heating and cooling" (the section on energy saving). The narrative lines suggest that the exhibition also reviews different ways of producing electricity and discusses issues of electricity consumption. It raises more general, political issues of electricity generation (ecology) and consumption (saving).

**Figure 9.** The exhibition "ON/OFF" (prepared by the author).

Hands-on devices dominate in the exhibitions. The black box at the beginning of the exhibition invites visitors to try out examples of electricity generation both already in use and the experimental/utopian ones. With the help of interactive layouts, it is possible to get acquainted with the operation of nuclear power plant BWR, hydroelectric power plant, wind power plant, and so on. In the exposition center, there is a simulation control panel of electrical networks allowing visitors to try to regulate energy flows in the exposition space.

Alongside the interactive hands-on devices and authentic historical artifacts (from radio to transformer), information stands with photos and large visualizations, explanatory texts, documentaries, various documents, and archival material are exhibited (Figure 10). The exposition also uses a personalized narrative method and oral story. For example, one exhibit explains what happens in the event of a power outage through people's personal memories.

**Figure 10.** Information stand (prepared by the author).

In summary, the Vienna Technical Museum successfully combines learning and entertainment in its exhibitions, which encourages creativity and critical thinking. The narrative lines of the exhibition combine both a historical/linear narrative about the development of technology in human life and a problematic thematic narrative covering both the phenomena themselves (e.g., energy) and their functions in everyday life. Furthermore, the political, economic, and social problems associated with the phenomenon are revealed. The exhibition features a wide variety of exhibits from self-appealing authentic historical artifacts (e.g., admired as examples of technological design) to a wealth of explanatory and illustrative material (textual, visual, audiovisual), games, and interactive handson devices for experiencing and open questions. The older exposition ("Energy") is dominated by authentic historical objects and layouts, and the newer exposition ("ON / OFF") is dominated by interactive devices and information stands. Therefore, the two exhibitions meaningfully complement each other. The exhibitions create a special atmosphere (authentic environment and objects) and use elements of the narrative (personalized narrative style, oral story).

#### **Discussion**

The representation of science in the Vienna Technical Museum contains the contemporary features of the science museum. The exhibition clearly links technology to the sociocultural, economic, and historical context of the place. Furthermore, the reviewed expositions reveal the origins of the science and technology development and clearly link the technologies with the life and daily experiences of the learners/visitors (e.g., questions are prompted about electricity consumption, energy saving, environmental issues). The very logic behind the exhibits' arrangement seems to invite people to explore, experiment, ask questions, and be curious, and the information technologies and media used allow people to become actively involved and increase their motivation to learn. Objects and ordinary facts seem to come to life and become meaningful. This encourages visitors to raise questions and engage in dialogue with each other, gather information, contradict, process data, classify, or interpret while linking knowledge and experience (Yuan, 2019). The museum space that motivates learning and provides specific learning contexts is a great way to engage learners in learning about the surrounding world by focusing on two learning theories: constructivist learning theory and sociocultural theory. Constructivist learning theory and sociocultural theory consolidate knowledge and experience and lead to changes in thinking in the social and cultural contexts. Learning in a museum is also an opportunity to ask questions, form hypotheses, and test them using museum objects, works of art, and artifacts. Consequently, this promotes selfdirected learning and teaches to search for answers, to link different experiences, and to construct generalizations or answers to a question. As Schultz (2018) observes, the search for an answer or the curiosity about a certain phenomenon under study encourages learners to not only discover specific learning strategies or interpret the results obtained but also assess how well they succeeded in achieving the goal. Linking historical facts of the past–present–future perspectives, in-depth consideration of new details, meaningful engagement in reflections and comparisons encourage learners to think critically and look for atypical solutions, leading to the development of creativity skills (Willcocks, 2015). It should be noted that the space provided by the museum (the presented expositions, exhibitions, educational programs) is a great opportunity to study outside the classroom, where the teacher-designed complex problem-solving tasks aimed to reach the goals of formal education are combined with the opportunities offered by nonformal education. The presented tasks do point to the goal; however, the existing freedom to choose how to study and how to find answers to the given questions develops critical thinking skills and teaches to specify, accumulate, and contextualize historical and sociocultural knowledge. Furthermore, the prior knowledge and experience interacting with the new experience develop self-awareness (Burritt, 2018). It is important to emphasize that learning in a museum leads to the following: reflection on ideas, deep "immersion" in cognition of the phenomenon under analysis, discovery of creative powers, joy of cognition, communication and collaboration, experimentation, and development of divergent thinking and problem-solving abilities.

# **Conclusions**

By bringing knowledge and experience together, learning in a museum encourages active participation, hypotheses generation, development of problem-solving capabilities and sparks creative and critical thinking and enthusiasm toward developing new ideas focusing on divergence and the integration of interdisciplinary knowledge. The pedagogical perspective in this case emphasizes the creation of meanings, active questioning, discussion, analytics, and the ability to independently interpret available information in interaction with other visitors/ leaners. Dialogue-based learning in the museum helps to create meanings; to form a culture of sharing knowledge and experience and, thus, collaborate with others; and to think critically and creatively. Regarding museum learning, the postmodern perspective focuses on the meaning of personal experience and links it to the theory of constructivist learning directing the learner to constructing knowledge and experience in a research context and to the theory of sociocultural theory that presupposes learning in a wider social system.

In fostering creativity, it is important to address the future perspectives, but that requires an overview of the current situation from a past perspective, and the spaces and specific learning contexts in the museum provide excellent preconditions for this. Object-based learning in the museum is stimulated by encouraging participation, questioning, observation, interpretation, and experimentation. This principle makes it possible to analyze an object and explore exhibits/expositions in relation to the objects, epochs, cultures, and human stories while combining seemingly incompatible ideas and striving to generate future-oriented ideas by combining the past with the present.

# **References**

Adams, M., Falk, J. H., & Dierking, L. D. (2003). Things change: Museums, learning and research. In M. Xanthoudaki, L. Tickle, & V. Sekules (Eds.), *Researching visual arts education in museums and galleries: An international reader* (pp. 15–32). Dordrecht: Kluwer.

konektivizmas—filosofinės technologijomis grindžiamo mokymo( si) paradigmos. *Technologijomis grindžiamas mokymas ir mokymasis organizacijoje* (pp. 68–99). Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas: Versus Aureus.

# Judita Kasperiūnienė

# **Science Communication in Environmental Online Games**

**Abstract** This study analyzes by what means scientific information and knowledge is communicated through environmental online games and gamified virtual environments in various educational contexts providing examples of various versions of such games. A new typology of gamified virtual environments is presented. Based on this typology, online environments Type A (educational-market-based gamified virtual environments for formal and nonformal education and training) and Type B (purpose-based, educational, and gamified virtual environments for training, simulation, and research and development) are analyzed. Concepts explored include gamification in education, gamification in science communication, and public engagement in online games. The analysis of these concepts involved a bibliometric analysis of scientific publications from the past five years (2017– 2021) in the WOS Core Collection, a search for topics related to the concept under study, and an analysis of the relationships between the most frequently co-occurring scientific topics. The bibliometric analysis revealed the most recent trends in the research on the application of gamification elements in education and science communication. Based on the bibliometric analysis and scientific insights, a revised framework of knowledge communication through gamified virtual environments is constructed. This framework explains the relationship between the player (the learner) and the gamified virtual environment (the content) and highlights the importance of edutainment in a serious learning journey. Examples of scenarios of serious games and virtual environments for environmental education are referenced, for example, "Recycle City," a gamified virtual environment, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R., a live-action role-playing environmental game. Discussion around how visual novels ("After-party chemistry" or "Benthic Love") communicate environmental knowledge is initiated. Our study is useful for researchers, as it contributes to the debate on how educators use different types of role-playing games and online environments to communicate scientific knowledge. Game-based learning expresses the concept of "Learning to Live," which emphasizes the importance of acquiring not only socialization, creativity, or communication but also environmental competency in the learning process. The forms of this learning strategy range from the acquisition of fundamental skills to the construction of a new social reality. The results of our research are relevant not only for researchers but also for practitioners. It provides educators with a range of practical examples and aims to motivate them to put to the test serious games for themselves and to apply them to formal and informal teaching and learning.

**Keywords:** computer games, educational simulations, edutainment, environmental online games, game design, gamified virtual environments, public engagement, science communication, serious game scenarios, serious games, storytelling

# **Introduction**

Science communication traditionally describes a variety of practices that transmit scientific ideas, methods, knowledge, and research to the general public (including school children) in an accessible, understandable, or useful manner, through printed books, journals, and publications and live and virtual lectures, events, performances, museum exhibitions, online pages, and social media and online interaction. Researchers agree that scientific communication is a one-way transfer of knowledge in which society is more involved as a recipient than a creator or provider of knowledge (Metcalfe, 2019). In scientific communication, collaboration between researchers and the community in generating scientific knowledge faces many challenges, including mutual appreciation and collaboration, recognizing the applicability of research results in practice, and systematic changes in everyday life (Jensen & Gerber, 2020).

In this study, we were particularly interested in the use of serious online games in environmental education. *Environmental education* refers to formal and nonformal education about the manner in which both the organic and inorganic components of the environment function and how society can manage behavior and ecosystems to live sustainably without harming the environment.

Environmental education is integrated into the curriculum of both general and secondary schools. Learning about the environment not only helps students to understand how human decisions and actions affect the environment but also imparts knowledge and the skills necessary to address complex environmental issues and explain the ways in which humans can act to keep the environment healthy and sustainable for the future. Many authors address the notion of how environmental knowledge could not only support positive environmental attitudes and behaviors but also serve as a basic precondition for a human environment that encourages ethical decision-making (Braun, Cottrell, & Dierkes, 2018; O'Flaherty & Liddy, 2018). In their comprehensive meta-analysis of behavioral and psychological factors explaining green behavior, Varela-Candamio, Novo-Corti, and Garcia-Alvarez (2018) confirm that environmental education serves as a powerful tool to explain a positive attitude toward nature and that it even could be useful in predicting and shaping motivation, attitudes, and social norms related to caring for the living world.

In many countries, no dedicated subject about environmental protection is offered in formal education, and environmental education is introduced through biology, physics, chemistry, and other STEAM subjects. In this chapter, we aim to explain to both teachers and a broader audience how to use virtual environments and online games in the classroom to present and reinforce scientific knowledge. Currently, game-based learning and 21st-century skills have been attracting enormous attention from researchers and practitioners (Qian & Clark, 2016) and are introduced into schools in sufficient detail. *The aim* of this study is to analyze how scientific knowledge and information is communicated in environmental online games and gamified virtual environments in various educational contexts.

#### **Knowledge Communication in Gamified Virtual Environments**

While playing computer games, the child is immersed in a virtual environment. It is necessary for each participant to figure out how to navigate the continuously changing game environment (understand the game mechanics, pass levels, overcome challenges), how to react to change, and what response to send to the game environment and opponents. Science communication and computer games are similar in that in learning and playing it is necessary to set a goal and achieve it by understanding and following the rules of the gamified virtual environment in which the action takes place.

Gamified learning delivers learning material in the form of video games, creating a technologically and culturally recognizable learning environment. All game-based activities can be divided into five types: play, games, serious games, simulations, and playful serious activities. Play is spontaneous, and playful activity is designed for recreation and enjoyment of the present moment. Play can be an activity without rules and without a clear beginning and end; an example is children playing in nature. We will not analyze play and its use in the teaching/learning process further in this chapter. Games, the second type of play-based activity, can be defined as structured recreational activities that have a beginning, an end, and some rules. Computer games—electronic games that involve interaction with a user—are played by persons of diverse ages for entertainment and pleasure and for spending time relaxing or resting. In the rest of this chapter, we will analyze computer games in relation to, and in comparison with, serious educational games. Serious games are a type of game, including computer games, designed to achieve clearly defined objectives (training, qualification, professional development, analysis and solution of complex situations) and are not intended solely for fun, entertainment, or recreation. However, it is difficult to distinguish to which category a game belongs—"serious games" or "entertainment games." If an entertainment game is played with a serious intention in mind, like any serious game it could be used to serve a serious purpose.

For example, Minecraft could be used to train autistic children (Ringland, 2019). Various virtual reality environments and games have been used to analyze and treat fear of heights, enclosed spaces, and spiders (Bouchard et al., 2006), fear of driving after an accident (Walshe et al., 2003), as well as other fears, and these games are played under the supervision of a professional. Game-based learning expresses the concept of "Learning to Live," which emphasizes the importance of acquiring social skills in the learning process. The forms of this learning strategy range from the acquisition of fundamental social skills to the construction of a new social reality.

It is important to note that, although computer games were developed purely for entertainment, practitioners can use them to find the "serious" purpose of the game. This "serious dimension" is not directly embedded in the game but could be used to influence the way the gamer should behave. Commonly used for training and professional activities, serious games could also be employed in the health sector for medical personnel training, health education, and health promotion or in other disciplines such as warfare, emergency planning and management, engineering, and education. Since the beginning of the 21st century, various classifications of serious games have emerged. The most popular of these is the assignment of games to two categories: market-based SG classifications (according to the markets that use them) and purpose-based SG classifications (according to the game purpose). Both categories focus on two aspects of serious games—first, the purpose they are designed to serve; second, the kind of market that uses them. Using the market-based classification, we can determine when and why a serious game may be used. Meanwhile, a purposebased classification of serious games can provide insight into the purpose of the game and, often, even the content of the game itself. A fundamental shortcoming of these classifications is that they fail to take into account the gamification component; serious play is not classified as a recreational, playful activity (Djaouti, Alvarez, & Jessel, 2011). A map of the main types of gamified virtual environments is presented in Figure 1.

In the remainder of this chapter, we will analyze gamified virtual environments Type A and B (see Figure 1). An example of Type A gamified virtual environment is the environmental online game "Recycle City" (explained in detail in Figure 9), and Type B, S.T.A.L.K.E.R, a role-playing game (for more detailed explanation, see section "Computer game scenarios for environmental education").

**Figure 1.** Mapping of the main types of gamified virtual environments (adapted from Djaouti, Alvarez, & Jessel, 2011; Wattanasoontorn et al., 2013; Laamarti, Eid, & El Saddik, 2014; Kianpour et al., 2019).

**Figure 2.** Screenshot of the "Collaborative Classification of Serious Games" website, which classifies serious games according to the G/P/S model.

Combining three dimensions—(i) how to navigate a game-based virtual environment, its structure, and the tasks to be completed (gameplay), (ii) the purpose of participating in a game-based virtual environment, and (iii) the purpose of the GVE (scope or market dimension)—Djaouti, Alvarez, and Jessel (2011) developed a criterion model for classifying game-based virtual learning environments. The researchers named this model G/P/S—Gameplay, Purpose, Scope. Based on this model, Djaouti, Alvarez, and Jessel (2011) built a website that helps teachers find a serious game of interest that is also relevant to one or more topics in either a school lesson or independent learning. That site proposes a computer games classification system based on multiple criteria: gameplay, purpose (educative, informative, marketing and communication or subjective-message broadcasting, training, goods trading, or storytelling), market (entertainment, state and government, military and defense, healthcare, education, corporate, religious, arts and culture, ecology, politics, humanitarian and caritative, media, advertising, scientific research) and target audience (general public from differing age ranges, including students and professionals), alongside a usercontributed keywords system. From these criteria, each game can be contained within an overall category. The website offers educators a choice of more than 3,400 serious games (Figure 2).

Many authors, in analyzing the use of online games in education, associate gamified virtual environments with serious games.

#### **Gaming Elements in Online Knowledge Communication**

The use of gamification in science communication is a growing area of research (see Galeote et al., 2021). In the early 2000s, the "*Gamify your PhD*" initiative was very popular. This was a competition inviting researchers to become game designers and use gamification elements to communicate their research results. Representatives from the biomedical sciences and the humanities were invited to submit game ideas, scenarios, and narratives based on their research. The best ideas were turned into video games by the game developers working together with scientists (the authors of the scientific ideas). The winning game was a shoot-'em-up game where "good" and "bad" bacteria fought each other. The player had to control a set of vestigial cells that make up the human intestinal wall and kill the harmful bacteria. Another interesting game that made it to the final in the "*Gamify your PhD*" contest was the game called "*Lab Hero: Womb for Improvement*." The scientist who developed this game worked in a laboratory and carried out genetic tests on babies. The game was based on experimental procedures for collecting samples of uterine tissue and could serve as the second example of how the research processes and scientific methods could be communicated and shared (Curtis, 2014).

Gamification and its elements (digital badges, rewards, tools, levels, virtual gifts and currency, social triggers) are widely used in education and science communication. According to Kim and Castelli (2021), digital badges awarded for specific achievements engage students, encourage them to take interest in and create their own scientific knowledge, help change learning behavior, and influence learning outcomes. These researchers initiate a debate on gamification as a new and effective intervention and contemporary learning strategy.

Analysis of the Web of Science Core Collection indicates that 1,604 theoretical and empirical studies on gamification in science communication were published between 2017 and 2021. Let us analyze these studies. As units of analysis we

**Figure 3.** Map of relationships between the most frequently co-recurring keywords (information from 61 articles from Web of Science Core Collection, period: 2017–2021)

chose keywords; type of analysis—co-occurrence; and counting method—full counting. Co-occurrence analysis means that the relatedness of items is determined based on the number of documents in which they both occur. Full counting means that each co-occurrence link has the same weight. The threshold (minimum number of occurrences of a keyword) in our case was 5. Of the 1,604 keywords, 61 meet the threshold. For each of the 61 keywords, the total strength of the co-occurrence links with other keywords was calculated and the keywords with the greatest total link strength were selected. These keywords were divided into 6 clusters, and 643 links between the keywords were established. Total link strength was 1,278. For the visualization, we used the visualization of similarities (VOS) viewer software (see Figure 3).

The 6 clusters (marked in different colors in Figure 3) were of different size (from 16 items to 4 items). The main keywords and the most cited articles on the use of gamification for communicating scientific knowledge are listed in Table 1.

**Table 1.** Clusters of the most recurrent keyword relationships (information from 61 articles from Web of Science Core Collection database on gamification for communicating scientific knowledge, period: 2017–2021).

Gamification and the use of gamification methodologies in strategic planning, participatory foresight processes, and future research were analyzed by Mandujano, Quist, and Hamari (2021). These researchers have applied gamification to the design of reversible planning processes (see GAMEBACK framework in Mandujano, Quist, & Hamari, 2021). Drawing on theories of gamification and practical applications, these scholars analyzed processes of engagement in co-creative activities, the impact of gamification, and co-creative experiences of communication and collaboration and argued that gamification promotes reflection both in the game itself and in the choice-making process as well as inspires deeper engagement with the research topic. In the decision-making process, gamification not only helps to understand the scientific information but also assists with creating a vision for the future.

Gamified teaching and learning processes enable all learners to participate in the creation, enhancement, and multiplication of social innovation and sustainable lifestyles. By analyzing gamification for climate change and putting the GAMEBACK framework into practice, Galeote et al. (2021) have explored how to create engaging gamification experiences. Their extensive literature analysis demonstrated that gamification is particularly suitable for analyzing scientific topics on climate change, as it allows learners who participate in group work, teamwork, and play to simultaneously discuss and create. This is achieved through the following elements of gamification: achievement and progression (e.g., challenges, feedback, levels, points, quizzes, increasing difficulty, timers, leaderboards, badges); social (e.g., cooperation or collaboration, competition, customization, peer-rating, collective voting); immersion (e.g., visual game world, avatar, stories or characters, role-play, in-game rewards); and representation, resources, and materials (e.g., debriefing, gameboards, in-game economy, digital objects as game resources, unexpected events, real-time dependence, randomness, facilitators; Galeote et al., 2021). The researchers present a 12-point recommendation for further study into the use of gamification for climate change, arguing that gamification can be used to communicate science to a variety of audiences (e.g., children, young people, communities, policymakers, businesses) and identify any need for further investigation involving school children and K-12 students.

Scientists are still arguing—whether or not to *gamify* the serious processes*.* Although many studies indicate that various elements of gamification increase learning motivation (see Ares et al., 2018; Hamari, Hassan, & Dias, 2018; Gatti, Ulrich, & Seele, 2019), Kyewski and Krämer (2018) argue to the contrary that badges, which can be earned for successfully completing tasks and specific activities in an e-learning course in a higher education setting, have lesser impact on motivation and performance than commonly assumed; badges do not appear to increase intrinsic student motivation in the long run and do not seem to enable social comparison processes.

#### **Gamification of Environmental Education**

Gamification is a new phenomenon that maintains scientific relevance and consists of three essential components—*Gamefulness*, which describes the experiential and behavioral quality; *Gameful interaction*, which describes the artifacts and the results of their encounter that provide this quality; and *Gameful design*, which is the basis for the construction of the systems that are being played. Bozkurt and Durak (2018) found that gameful design, which engages students in the active construction of knowledge, is increasingly common nowadays in schools. Gamification usually targets changes in student behavior, such as health care, conservation of natural resources, eco-literacy, sustainable consumption, and management of personal or organizational financial resources. In the game design, the pivotal consideration is how to engage and motivate learners through educational and serious gaming.

Most of the research on gamification is conducted in the field of education. For example, an analysis of the Web of Science Core Collection database indicates that 1,424 research studies on gamification in education were published between 2017 and 2021. According to Web of Science data, the number of such studies is increasing every year (from 152 research publications in 2017 to 341 publications in 2021). Researchers studying gamification in education are interested in environmental sciences and studies (7.72% of all scholarly articles published in the WOS Core Collection database in the past five years), public environmental occupational health (3.72%), and green sustainable science technology (3.44% of all researched scholarly articles). The most recurrent keywords in these articles are "gamification," "education," and "motivation" (see Figure 4).

Research articles on environmental education and training in the past five years that analyze gamification and cross-current keywords and related topics can be grouped into seven clusters (see Table 2).

The research on gamification in educational settings draws on three theories: Self-Determination Theory (e.g., Niemiec & Ryan, 2009; Van Roy & Zaman, 2017), Flow Theory (e.g., Oliveira et al., 2021), and the MDA (Mechanics, Dynamics, and Aesthetics) Framework (Rogerio & Silva, 2021).

The Internet is an excellent medium for teachers to implement all collaborative learning strategies. Gamification could be explained as engaging learners in problem-solving activities using motivational tools such as game elements and mechanics. Teachers who apply gamification in their classroom activities argue

#### 170 Judita Kasperiūnienė

**Figure 4.** Map of relationships between the most frequently recurring keywords (information from 76 articles from Web of Science Core Collection articles from topics "Public Environmental Occupational Health," "Green Sustainable Science Technology," "Environmental studies," "Environmental sciences," period: 2017–2021)

that students learn best this way and, if they spend a lot of time learning, will only achieve the highest results when learning is fun and enjoyable.

The newest gamification trends could be divided into four main categories: i) Gamification will evolve. (ii) Rapid technological innovation may inspire the emergence of new forms of gamification. (iii) There is a growing body of research on gamification in both the education and business sectors. (iv) New gamification research is no longer focusing on the technological solutions but rather on the impact of gamification on the consumer, the learner, and the adult learner (The past, present, and future of gamification, 2020).

**Table 2.** Clusters of the most recurrent keyword relationships (information from 76 articles from Web of Science Core Collection database on gamification and topics "Public Environmental Occupational Health," "Green Sustainable Science Technology," "Environmental studies," "Environmental sciences"; period: 2017–2021).

#### **Revised Framework of Knowledge Communication in Gamified Virtual Environments**

The Serious Game Design Conceptual Framework (SGDCF), introduced by Winn (2009), is still debated by researchers who analyze serious game design solutions and the application of gamification elements in education (see Winn, 2009; Rooney, 2012; Alexiou & Schippers, 2018). SGDCF is based on four important game elements: Learning, Storytelling, Gameplay, and User Experience. Learning refers to the content to be learned by players through the game which has specific and measurable learning outcomes. Storytelling refers to the background story of the game and includes a description of the character(s), the setting, and the ultimate goal of the game. Gameplay refers to the way in which the player interacts with the game or with other players (if a multiplayer game). It encapsulates the type of activity (e.g., puzzle, trivia) found in the game. User Experience refers to the player's emotions and attitudes while playing the game, as well as how the player interacts with the game (Winn, 2009).

In our revised framework, we have distinguished between two essential components—the player (who is also a learner) and the virtual environment in which the serious game takes place. When playing a serious game or analyzing a gamified text, the individual is in continuous contact with the learning material (the content of the gamified virtual environment). The content is accessed through gameplay, narratives, and stories, resulting in the transfer of information and knowledge to the player. If the player is engaged and immersed in the gaming activity, learning happens and learning outcomes are achieved. Motivation and emotions help to achieve positive impact throughout the whole learning journey (see Figure 5).

In the next section, we explain how the edutainment is constructed in serious games and virtual simulators and look at how educational content is created in gamified virtual environments.

**Figure 5.** Revised framework of knowledge communication in gamified virtual environments (based on Winn, 2009; Alexiou & Schippers, 2018).

## **The Creation of Edutainment in Serious Games and Virtual Simulators**

Simulations refer to the modeling and simulation of real-world activities, systems, or processes that can be interactively controlled by the learner. Virtual simulators are simulation programs that allow learners to solve a variety of different, usually occupational, challenges. For learners, educational games and educational simulations are slightly different. The purpose of training simulators is to simulate routine or hazardous operations (e.g., in manufacturing, chemical industry), complex processes (e.g., the work of firefighters, pilots, police officers, military personnel), behavior of a particular group or community in a specific situation (e.g., in the event of a fire, an earthquake, a political crisis) and, thus, to develop the skills and experience of a person who is, or will be, involved in these activities. Computer simulators are used to develop the skills and practical abilities of the simulator user. In most cases, simulators are used to train and retrain workers in developing and acquiring new skills and qualifications. In addition, the use of a computer simulator reduces training costs and the time spent on training. Simulators are often used in STEM lessons to explain the workings and interactions of certain processes in physics, chemistry, or biology.

Simulators focus on recreating real-world processes rather than entertainment. Traditionally, simulators aim to reproduce the living world as accurately as possible, using the laws of physics as they apply in nature, and to display the simulated processes in real time. Modern simulators use virtual and augmented reality technologies and solutions. In contrast, computer game developers focus on the player's enjoyment. Computer games, including serious games, are not about recreating the physics and mechanics of the real world but about keeping the player engaged, having fun, spending a good time, relaxing, and leaving room for fantasy.

The rapid development of simulation technologies has contributed to the confusion about what is a simulation game and what is a simulator. To distinguish a simulation game from a computer simulator, researchers recommend using these observable design characteristics: elements of simulation; imaginative experience; entertainment, fun, and engagement; skills development; type of challenge; and orientation to the goal (Narayanasamy et al., 2006). Whereas a simulation is designed for evaluative or computational purposes, a game is designed for entertainment and educational purposes. In their comparison of serious games and educational simulations, Imlig-Iten and Petko (2018) noted that participants in the study found both types of presentation (serious games and educational simulations) equally interesting.

Essential attributes of, and differences between, serious games and educational simulators were analyzed by Sauve et al. (2007). By essential attributes, researchers refer to elements that are indispensable and common to all serious games and simulator activities. In a systematic analysis of a number of articles, these scholars have argued that a computer game as well as a serious game is *"a fictional, whimsical, or artificial situation in which the players find themselves in a conflict situation"* (p. 253). In any type of game, players can navigate individually or in communities, forming alliances. In a serious game, rules are necessary and must be followed. Game rules allow learners to structure their actions according to the goals they set for themselves—to win the game or advance to the next level, to defeat the enemy, to overcome challenges. The player's goals are integrated into the educational context. The learning objectives are linked to the educational content, and the game promotes learning in cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. Simulations, unlike serious games, represent the real processes of the physical world and reflect dynamically changing, precisely rendered and validated but often simplified real-life models, processes, and phenomena. In the same way as serious games, simulators are used for educational purposes and to train behavior in certain, in most cases very dangerous, situations in the physical world. The findings of Sauve et al. (2007) are presented in Figure 6.

**Figure 6.** Essential attributes of and main differences between serious games and virtual simulators (based on Sauve et al., 2007).

Let us take a look at a serious educational game and an educational simulator on the topics of nuclear energetics.

"Nuclear Power Reactor inc.—indie atom simulator"—is one of the serious games in the Tycoon-Simulator genre. The game is downloadable from Google Play. In this serious game, the player becomes an engineer who manages a "Chernobyl style" nuclear power plant and monitors the operation of a nuclear reactor. In order to keep the nuclear power plant running smoothly and generating energy, the player, that is, the nuclear power plant engineer, must analyze the various parameters of the nuclear reactor, troubleshoot the various faults, and monitor the nuclear power plant to prevent any emergency situations. There are 12 levels in this serious game. In the first level, the player learns how to operate a nuclear power plant that is not operational (closed). With each new level, as the nuclear power plant starts working, the control becomes more complex. Various improvements are made to optimize the control processes of the nuclear power plant. The final levels are called "Fukushima" and "Chernobyl." They analyze what can happen if a power plant is not run according to the rules. However, in this game, learners not only learn about the peaceful atom but also analyze how a nuclear power plant can make a profit and how to avoid accidents. For example, if an explosion were to occur in a power unit, a global catastrophe would be imminent and the once prosperous city of Pripyat (a real city in Ukraine) in a game would become a no-go zone. This serious game allows you to virtually change the outcome of the Chernobyl catastrophe and explores how to save humanity from a technological disaster. In addition, the player is introduced to the causes of real accidents at various nuclear facilities. This serious game has rules, the serious learner has a goal (to prevent nuclear power plant from explosion) and a strategy to avoid this explosion. Therefore, the serious game content is educational (see Figure 5).

One example of an educational online simulator that can be presented and used in STEAM or environmental education classes and nonformal education is the "Pressurized Water Nuclear Reactor Simulator" (www.nuclearinst.com/ Nuclear-Reactor-Simulator). This simulator was developed by scientists from an organization called the Nuclear Institute (United Kingdom) and is freely available to the public. The simulator can be used to self-analyze the operation of a nuclear reactor through a virtual tour of the nuclear power plant and through reading and listening to audio explanations. It is based on models of a real operating nuclear power plant; for example, you can find out what happens in the reactor pressure vessel room, what the containment shield is made of and what it is needed for, what the purpose of the steam generator is, and what the turbines are needed for. This simulator has all the attributes of a simulator: (i) It is based on models of real nuclear power plants. (ii) Although the models are somewhat simplified (to make them understandable to learners with a wide range of environmental and energy backgrounds), they are dynamic, precise, and validated. (iii) It is intended for public education (the educational content can be analyzed in more depth; see Figure 6).

#### **Engagement, Immersion, and Flow in Online Games**

According to the *Cambridge English Dictionary*, *Merriam-Webster Dictionary*, and many other sources, in this context, engagement with, and immersion in, refers to partial or full immergence within a situation, that is, becoming partially or completely involved in something. Different bloggers claim that *"total immersion in a videogame is almost like living another life"* (citing from Facebook posts).

Engagement in gamified virtual environments may be defined as the degree to which participants are involved in the environment, resulting in a shift of attention, awareness, and thoughts from the physical world to the virtual world (Schoenau-Fog, 2011). Engagement in virtual activities varies over time. It is dependent on boundaries, some of which are created by the players themselves, such as lack of concentration, or boundaries that can only be controlled by the game designers, such as game design. Removing these obstacles creates the right conditions for engagement, but this is not guaranteed (Brown & Cairns, 2004). These researchers describe three levels of engagement with online games engagement, engrossment, and full immersion.

Traditionally, engagement level is reached at the beginning of the game, when the player is required to put time and effort into understanding the rules of the game, to focus on the details of the game, to learn the physics and tactics of the game, and to become interested and involved. If at this level the player starts to get bored, the game becomes unattractive, and the player is unlikely to play the game again. It is important to appreciate that the player needs to invest time in understanding the game and its rules. Only when the effort invested is successful will the player begin to enjoy the game, feel interested in it, and want to continue playing. At the level of engrossment, the player dives deeper and deeper into the game as the tasks and challenges become more and more interesting and inspiring. An emotional connection to the game is established. The player invests increasing time and effort, and unplanned interruptions can result in negative emotions. At this level, the player begins to forget the living world and starts to live in the game. Once fully immersed in the virtual environment of the game, the player can begin to detach from reality. Players become attached to the game, identifying with the game characters. The more effort and attention the player invests in the game, the more engaged they are and more detached from reality (see Jennett, Cox, & Cairns, 2008; Schoenau-Fog, 2011; Henry & Thorsen, 2019; ).

Engagement and immersion could be described with Flow Theory (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). The nine dimensions of Flow Theory (balance between the skills of an individual and the activity's demands; merging of action and awareness; clear goals; immediate and unambiguous feedback; concentration on the task; perceived control over the activity; loss of self-reflection; distorted perception of time; and intrinsic motivation to engage with an activity) may explain a player's willingness to engage in gamified virtual environments. Liu (2017) extended Flow Theory and applied it specifically to online games, explaining and empirically justifying how human-to-human and human-to-machine interactivity and personal beliefs impact flow experience. The results of his study confirmed the researcher's insights into the impact of flow on a player's need to become more deeply involved in the game. Participants in the study were more engaged and focused if the game had a more attractive design and more interactive elements; clear goals; and immediate and unambiguous feedback. The opportunity to interact with other players was more engaging than a possibility to interact with a game environment. Personal beliefs of the player, such as perceived attractiveness, personal involvement, or perceived uncertainty, exerted a significant amount of influence on engagement with online game activities (ibid.).

The debate around how virtual environments can engage players is ongoing. Haggis-Burridge (2020) identifies four types of engagement in online games: (i) systemic (where the player is highly engaged with the game mechanics, challenges, and rules); (ii) spatial (where the player engages in such a way that they empathize with the character); (iii) social (where the player identifies with the game character and their social behavior); and (iv) narrative (where the player seeks to find out what will happen next in the game and to explore the game's environment). All these types of engagement can link, overlap, and morph into each other.

#### **Public Engagement through Science-based Computer Games and Simulations**

Public engagement with computer games is a relatively new topic and has been relatively insignificantly explored. Only in recent years has research emerged that looks at how computer games or certain elements of computer games or gamification can engage the public in decision-making or participation in political, community, or environmental debates. In analyzing how computer game design may be applied to address policy transformation issues, Lerner (2014) lists game mechanics that could be used to address serious problems. These mechanics have been categorized into four groups—enemies or friends, team building and cooperation, pursuit of a common goal; the values, rules, norms, and instructions of the game, which must be adhered to by the players; the temporal outcomes and milestones, levels; and the game's various motivators, bonuses, and life-support mechanisms. Gastil and Bronghammer (2021) applied these mechanics to develop an empirical model of online civic participation that links game mechanics to key democratic processes—such as community engagement and informed civic participation—and outcomes—such as public input and long-term civic impact. These researchers suggest that the use of leaderboards in games can encourage participation, while points and prizes influence engagement and boost progress achievement.

Our analysis of research articles published in WOS Core Collection journals between 2017 and 2021 (articles were searched using the keywords "public engagement" AND "online games") indicated that 385 different keywords were used by researchers. The search was conducted through identifying titles, abstracts, and keywords of articles. The maximum number of co-occurrences (links between the keywords) was 2. If two keywords were used in the same research article, we drew a link between these keywords. Forty-five keywords meet the threshold and one of them ("risk") was unrelated. Keywords were divided into 6 clusters (see Figure 7).

We found that the most frequently recurring unit of analysis (the keyword) was "engagement"—49 publications, 21 links with other keywords, total link strength of 24, and 7 occurrences. The keywords with which the "engagement" issue is related (e.g., education, health issues, behaviors, social media, selfdetermination theory) are presented in Figure 8.

**Figure 7.** The mapping of main keywords and the links between them, which have most commonly appeared in scientific articles of WOS Core Collection, for the period 2017–2021, on the topic of public engagement through science-based computer games. Different clusters are color-coded. A keyword can belong to only one cluster.

**Figure 8.** The link between "engagement" and other topics in science-based computer games and simulations (based on an analysis of WOS Core Collection 2017–2021 research articles).

In addition, we found that there was total agreement among the researchers that interactive gameplay elements serve as a strong motivator for public engagement (e.g., Gastil & Bronghammer, 2021; Spyridonis & Daylamani-Zad, 2021). Researchers agree that immersive computer games or simulators encourage users to compete (win, beat, challenge, pass, or fight); collaborate and cooperate (team up, share assets, knowledge, help each other, donate, exchange or trade); explore (search, analyze, read, collect, fill in); and express themselves (discuss, adapt, present, demonstrate, show off).

# **Storytelling in Computer Games**

A computer game scenario could be defined as a sequence of possible events or an outline of play. In serious games, a scenario is an account of a series of events, either historical or fictitious. The game scenario model allows the game designer to describe how the game will look. Some games only have one scenario, but, in most cases, several scenarios that are collectively grouped as campaigns are possible. Games use many buzzwords to describe scenarios, for example, mission, quest, episode, stage, world, or chapter.

The term "narrative" refers to story events that are narrated, that is, told or shown, to the player by the game. Narrative is the noninteractive, presentational part of the story. The primary function of narrative in a computer game is to present events over which the player has no control. Typically, these events comprise things that happen to the avatar that the player cannot prevent and events that happen when the avatar is not present, but we still want the player to see or be aware of. Scenes depicting success or failure are usually narrative events. Adams and Rollings (2006) set the rules of narrative design for game designers. These rules state that a narrative can be both interactive and noninteractive. If the narrative is noninteractive, such noninteractive sequences should be interrupted only by the player. The player's avatar should be controlled only by the player, and the avatar must not be allowed to perform actions that cannot be controlled by the player. If the narrative takes control and forces the avatar to fight, to put the avatar in dangerous situations, or to "force" the avatar to say something that the player would never choose to say, it is considered a design flaw. The environment and the game world around the avatar may change based on the player's actions. However, control of the avatar can never be taken away from the player. The events of the game's storyline must not occur randomly, and the storyline must not be repetitive, even if the game itself or scenes within it are repetitive (ibid.). Computer games often include fictional stories that go beyond the events of the games themselves. In order for a story to be acceptable, it must be credible, coherent, and dramatically meaningful. In order for a computer game designer's narrative to make sense, five elements must be recognizable to the player: Agent (who completes missions, tasks, or levels), Act (what is happening), Scene (when and where it is happening), Agency (how it develops), and Motive (why this is happening; Burke, 1969). In many game genres, such as role-playing, action, adventure, or horror games, story is very important. There are usually four essential components to a story: characters, storyline, conflicts, and ethics.

Computer games are usually simple stories within which several types of characters can be identified: hero (friendly, likable, usually attractive); villain the antagonist who fights the hero; the dispatcher or facilitator—sends the hero on missions and creates challenges; the magical helper—assists the hero to complete tasks; and the prizes—the hero earns prizes by completing challenges, levels, or missions. Usually, the hero's journey (i.e., the whole game) ends when the hero has completed all the missions and received the grand prize. The giver or donor is another important figure in the game. This character can prepare or train the hero for missions, clarify certain rules of the game, provide the hero with magic items, and so on. In many computer games, there is also a fake hero, who takes credit for the hero's actions or also tries to get the grand prize.

Booker (2004) identifies seven main storylines and names them after wellknown fairy tales, stories, or key features of the story. The first storyline is the *overcoming of the monster and the escape from death*. In computer games based on this storyline, the protagonist sets out to defeat an antagonistic, usually evil, force that threatens the protagonist or the environment. An example of this type of computer game is the action-adventure game "Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice" (www.sekirothegame.com). The protagonist of this game is a shinobi known as Wolf. The hero's goal is to take revenge on a clan of samurai who have attacked him and stolen his lord. The whole game takes place in a reimagined 17thcentury Japan following the Sengoku period. The protagonist must overcome many challenges and defeat enemies and evil forces.

*Rags and riches* is another type of story in the game. In this type of story, a poor character usually gains power, wealth, or a partner, then loses and regains it all when a certain situation arises. In this way, through the process of having, losing, and rediscovering, the protagonist grows as a person and learns new life skills. An example of this type of computer game is the open-world action-adventure role-playing game "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim" (elderscrolls.bethesda.net/en/ skyrim).  At the beginning of the game, the player creates their character by selecting sex and choosing between one of several races, including humans, orcs, elves, and anthropomorphic cat or lizard-like creatures and then customizing the character's appearance. Over the course of the game, character skills and abilities improve. There are 18 skills divided among the 3 schools of combat, magic, and stealth. When players have acquired the necessary skills and gathered enough experience to move forward (are sufficiently trained), their character moves to the next level. In this game, the player completes quests and develops the character by improving skills and learns and grows as a person.

In *Quest-style* computer games, the protagonist and his companions set off on a journey to acquire important items or to reach a certain location. Along the way, they encounter temptations and other obstacles that they must overcome in order to reach their destination. An example of this type of game is the fantasy action-adventure series of games "The Legend of Zelda" (www.zelda.com). "The Legend of Zelda" games feature a mix of puzzles, action, adventure, and battle gameplay and exploration.

In *Journey and Return* computer games, the protagonist and his team embark on a journey to acquire important items or to reach a certain destination. Along the way they encounter temptations and other obstacles. After overcoming the obstacles and finding the items they need, the protagonists return home.

An example of this type of computer game is the open-world survival actionadventure game "Subnautica" (https://unknownworlds.com/subnautica/). In this game, when the hero's spaceship crashes on an unknown planet, the player is given the opportunity to explore the ocean. The hero's goal is not only to explore the area but also to repair their ship, refuel, take off, and fly home while avoiding various ocean monsters.

A *Comedy-type* computer game is a relaxing game with a simple and uncomplicated plot or a drama based on triumph over adversity and a happy ending. This type of game usually has a humorous, laughter-inducing character. An example is Goat Simulator (www.goat-simulator.com). In this game it is possible to impersonate a goat. After becoming a goat, various comical situations occur, resulting in a successful and happy conclusion. The game is designed for relaxation only.

In *Tragedy-type* computer games, the protagonist usually has a major character flaw or makes a big mistake that ultimately kills them.  An example of such a game is the episodic graphic adventure game series "Life is Strange" (lifeisstrange.square-enix-games.com/en-us). The plot centers on a photography student who discovers that she has the ability to rewind time at any moment, so that every choice she makes has a butterfly effect. The player's actions will change the narrative and, if allowed to travel back in time, will recreate it. Future tasks and changing the environment represent forms of puzzle solving, and branching choices are used for conversation. The player can explore different locations and interact with other nonplayer characters. The game rarely has a happy ending due to the protagonist making wrong choices that eventually kills them.

In *Rebirth-type* computer games, certain events force the protagonist to change their ways, often to become a better person, to be reborn. An example of this type of game is the action role-playing games "Dark Souls Trilogy" (en.bandainamcoent.eu/dark-souls). The story of this series of games is that once upon a time, in the Age of Fire, dragons ruled the world. Primordial fire separated life from death and light from darkness. Four souls with special powers emerged—the Lord of the Sun and Light, the Lord of the Dead, the Witch, and the Furtive Pygmy.  As time passes and the First Flame begins to wane and human power grows, the Lord of Sun and Light sacrifices himself to prolong the Age of Fire. The main story takes place at the end of this second Age of Fire, when mankind is said to be under the curse of the immortals.  The protagonist must preserve the Age of Fire not only by fighting but also by traveling between territories, unlocking different locations, finding alternative areas to explore, and learning from mistakes. After overcoming all the obstacles, the protagonist is reborn as a different, better person and the world is regenerated.

In the next section, we will present some computer game scenarios for communicating science and environmental education.

# **Computer Game Scenarios for Environmental Education**

Wang et al. (2016) argue that serious games are disruptive innovations that provide a variety of learning objectives (e.g., application of knowledge, solving, evaluating, categorizing, explaining, describing, predicting) across a range of game genres. Researchers comment on serious games as a subgenre of serious storytelling, where storytelling is applied "*outside the context of entertainment, where the narration progresses as a sequence of patterns impressive in quality, relates to a serious context, and is part of a thoughtful progress*" (Lugmayr et al., 2017, p. 15709). In digital storytelling, four components are found: (i) digital narrative—a relationship between the components of causality, effect, space, and time told through plot, "*a dynamic and beautiful marriage of narrative and technology that is proving to be a potent force in educational practice*" (Rossiter & Garcia, 2010, p. 37); (ii) perspective—a subjective view on a certain aspect of the story; (iii) interactivity; and (iv) medium.

Let us take a look at "Recycle City," a world-exploration-type environment. In this virtual environment, learners acquire new knowledge or information on environmental topics by interactively moving and cooperating with the environment. In the "Recycle City" virtual educational environment, the player can navigate around the city, *"people and places to visit and plenty of ways to explore how the city's residents recycle, reduce, and reuse waste."* The game is based on 2D animation and interactive texts. The text explains how to contribute to saving the environment—the Church delivers used toys and clothes to those who need them, the Hazardous Waste Center is a drop-off point for residents, the Community Warehouse is a drop-off point for residents to deliver unworn clothes, the waste generated can be delivered to hazardous waste collectors, and the recycling process is explained. Next to the urban environment, there is a short text about what can be found in the urban area, or about the company, institution, or house that the player has entered, with links to return to the main city map or to the city neighborhood. There are no sound effects or soundtrack or animation in this interactive city. The scenes of the game environment are presented in Figure 9.

**Figure 9.** "Recycle City," a gamified virtual environment (adapted from "Recycle City" online game).

The game can be played in STEAM lessons to explain waste-sorting, present different ways of using objects, and analyze how to save electricity and other resources.

The games industry is a mirror of the most important facts and fantasies of human history. One such example is the incident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the ensuing ecological catastrophe, which was met by worldwide reaction that made the words "Chernobyl" and "Chernobyl Exclusion Zone" generic names for the most terrible events and their consequences. Over time, however, the special atmosphere of an abandoned hazardous site and the increased attention it has received have resulted in the romanticization of the area. In this context, let us look at the S.T.A.L.K.E.R series of live-action role-playing environmental games. These are role-playing games in which participants perform all or most of their character's actions. The scenario and narrative of the games are based on the Strugatsky brothers' novel "Roadside Picnic" and the Tarkovsky film of the same name, "Stalker." The games can be played live (airsoft game) and have their computer equivalents. The live game takes place in a remote, deserted area, usually a few square kilometers, in the countryside. Before the game starts, participants confirm with the organizers the character they are to impersonate. The character is created according to the setting and the imaginary game world. The post-apocalyptic world of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is modeled on an actual Soviet abandoned missile base which is a remnant of the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The action takes place in an imaginary evacuated Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Various tasks assigned to the characters involve navigating the area, finding objects and tools, solving puzzles, overcoming challenges, and defeating enemies and surviving. It is particularly important not to become completely immersed in the state of the game, in order to separate the character and their behavior from your personal identity. This type of game usually uses airsoft guns, which are very similar to real guns, is aimed at adults, and has some elements of violence. There is a small chance that a person who is too involved in the game will no longer be able to distinguish between the fantasy of the game and their avatar's behavior and physical identity. This may lead to violent actions in the real world. To avoid this, it is recommended that some oversight might be necessary with regard to involvement in such games. S.T.A.L.K.E.R computer games are classified in the first-person shooter and survival horror video game genres. Three games have already been released in this series (Shadow of Chernobyl, Clear Sky, Call of Pripyat), and Heart of Chernobyl is in the process of development. These games reconstruct the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone sites in great detail—Pripyat town, Yanov railway station, Jupiter factory, Kopachi village, and more—recreated by their true-to-life prototypes that appear very photorealistic. The computer game is set in an alternate reality. The game starts with the second nuclear disaster in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, which has caused strange changes in the surrounding area—anomalies trigger anti-gravity, absorbing radiation, monsters are born, and much more. Scientists try to save and revive the contaminated areas. People known as stalkers enter the Exclusion Zone in hopes of finding items for personal financial gain. The game has a nonlinear storyline and, besides shooting and survival activities, includes role-playing elements such as trading and mutual communication with nonplaying characters.

How can S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and similar role-playing games be integrated into environmental education? Many games of this type have very realistic and accurate representations of virtual environments, geographic authenticity, and models of real artifacts, such as a Chernobyl Exclusion Zone map, detailed models of buildings, or inspiring nature. This provokes a desire to explore and find out what really happened in the area. By analyzing the gaming environment, it is possible to learn about certain physical laws and chemical phenomena and processes that occur in living and abiotic nature. In addition, role-playing games encourage creativity and the joy of discovery, build community, and boost communication and collaboration.

#### **Teaching and Learning through Visual Novel–Type Games**

Visual novels constitute a widespread genre of interactive fiction computer games that tell a specific story. They focus mainly on character development and plot rather than action and gameplay mechanics. Visual novels are usually interactive remakes of manga, anime, or other types of oriental comics, although games with unique scenarios can also be found.

Visual novels are distinctive, as they are very easy to play unlike most other types of computer games. Player interactions are predominantly limited to clicks such as "play," "move to new window," "back," and "forward." Clicking one or another button prompts a change in the narrative which in visual novels is presented in text or voiceover, thus making this type of game very similar to ebooks. Most visual novels have several storylines. The game mechanics are very simple—the player has to choose a direction and the game continues. They often have multiple endings, which depend on the player's choices. In many visual novel games, the other characters speak in the voices of actors, but the protagonist usually has no voice. This is to help the player identify with the protagonist.

Visual novels are widely used in education. For example, "*After-party chemistry*" https://xxmissarichanxx.itch.io/after-party-chemistry proposes—let's study together—featuring the main character of the visual novel, Marina, an athlete who needs to compete at the championships and needs motivation. This athlete does not like to study and especially does not like chemistry. In order to continue her career as an athlete, Marina needs to study because she risks not taking part in the competitions (to compete is very important to her). The aim of the player is to help the protagonist achieve goals by attending classes, taking quizzes, and so on. The visual novel "*Benthic Love*" https://joffeorama.itch.io/ benthic-love offers the opportunity to explore the ocean floor, learn interesting facts about the ocean depths, and search for other fancied fish and offers five different endings. This visual novel can assist with learning biology and science.

"*Girls don't like me*" https://nightmerik.itch.io/girls-dont-like-me, which is currently particularly popular, teaches people to resist depressive moods and to pursue their personal goals. According to online commentators, the visual novel is poetic: *"This is really one of the best Bitsy games I've played recently*  …  Thank you so much!"* These are just a few examples of visual novels the majority of which can be found on Steam (Visual Novels at Steam, 2021). On Itch.io, there are currently over 240 visual novels tagged as "Educational." These focus on imparting a skill, lesson, or piece of information to its player that would be helpful to them in other aspects of life, such as a faster typing ability or knowledge about a period in history. Research by Camingue, Melcer, and Carstensdottir (2020) indicates that interactive narratives, on which visual novels are based, are widely used to frame and contextualize education in games. Their analysis of more than 30 educational visual novels demonstrate that design elements used in games of this genre foster learning and help in delivering educational content.

Camingue, Melcer, and Carstensdottir (2020) identified five key instructional strategies that are commonly recurrent in visual novel–type games—teaching through choice, exploration, teaching through mini-games, noninteractive teaching strategies, and teaching through scripted sequences. When using the strategy of teaching by choice, the player's choices are specific and explicit and the teaching concepts are presented to the player with an explanation of the impact of their choices. With an exploration strategy, the player is usually taught new concepts as they explore the game world on their own. Here, players are often provided with additional information and educational content. Such exploration acts as an educational tool and could additionally be used for assessment and evaluation. While teaching through mini-games in visual novels, standard concepts of educational game design are applied. In this type of visual novel, players have to demonstrate and evaluate their knowledge and perform various learning activities in order to progress through the story. The noninteractive teaching strategy relies solely on narration and character dialogues to convey the educational content and teach the player. Unlike other strategies, here teaching is passive, with learners receiving information without performing any activity to reinforce the knowledge. In contrast, scripted sequential visual novels require the player to perform the exact actions intended, solve real problems, and learn through experience. Visual novel games are often developed by teachers themselves. According to Øygardslia, Weitze, and Shin (2020), visual novels have great potential in education.

### **Conclusions**

Science communication has been studied theoretically (see; Metcalfe, 2019; Humm, Schrögel, & Leßmöllmann, 2020; Jensen & Gerber, 2020) and empirically (see Holliman et al., 2009, on science communication in the information age; Kouper, 2010, on science blogs and public engagement; Davies & Hara, 2017, on public science in a wired world, among many others). Scholars have extensively researched the design and development of science communication in a variety of online formats such as chat systems, blogs, social networks, crowdfunding platforms, and creative writing groups.