From Novice Players to Creative Designers: A Constructionist Attempt with SorBET

From Players to Designers with SorBET

Abstract

This paper presents a small-scale, exploratory study investigating how eight middle school students shifted from passive engagement to reflective designers of their own learning experiences. Utilizing “SorBET”, a digital tool that enables learners to both play classification-based games and modify their underlying structures, students were observed through three phases: initial gameplay, adaptive modifications and eventual design of new game content within a design-based research (DBR) framework. The intervention involved two distinct interaction modalities: one group of students engaged with gesture-based and voice-command interface, while another group employed a traditional mouse-based interface. The study explores how iterative experimentation, external feedback and reflection contribute to the development of active, creative participation, as well as how different interaction methods influence collaboration and decision-making. Findings suggest that embodied interactions tend to prioritize rapid iteration, though this sometimes came at the cost of explicit negotiation. Mouse interfaces more often led to structured deliberation, though individual dominance varied. While limited in scope, this study offers valuable insights into the integration of constructionist principles in game-based learning environments and emphasizes how such experiences empower learners to critically engage with the logic and structures behind digital tools.