Autolycus’ Game
Game-Based Learning in Natural Environments for Meaningful Physical Education
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22046975 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Alberto Ferriz-Valero (0000-0001-8206-4152, University of Alicante), Salvador Baena-Morale (0000-0002-6722-3714, University of Alicante), Esmeralda Guillén Tortajada (0000-0002-5758-9966, Universidad Complutense de Madrid), Juan Alejandro Piñol-Vázquez (0009-0000-7103-6113, University of Alicante, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue | 12 |
| Pages | 1642 |
| Publication date | 2025-12-06 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Education Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/educsci15121642 |
| OpenAlex | W4417106646 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 20 |
Within the context of pedagogical renewal in Physical Education, Game-Based Learning (GBL) has emerged as a pedagogical model that can foster students’ motivation and engagement. This study explored university learners’ perceptions of a playful activity in a natural environment, entitled Autolycus’ Game, and its perceived contributions to their holistic development. A total of 114 undergraduate students enrolled in Early Childhood and Primary Education degrees participated in a two-hour session designed as a Breakout EDU in a university park. After the experience, their perceptions were collected through an online semi-structured questionnaire and analysed using qualitative coding techniques in Atlas.ti. Findings indicated that participants perceived Autolycus’ Game as motivating, creativity-enhancing, and supportive of social interaction and cooperative work. Most participants highlighted that this methodology helped them strengthen social and communication skills, while also valuing the use of the natural environment as a didactic resource. At the same time, participants identified areas for improvement—such as repetitive tasks, uneven difficulty across challenges, and limited supervision—that may reduce engagement if not carefully planned. Overall, participants described Autolycus’ Game as a valuable pedagogical strategy that may enrich learning experiences in Physical Education and support socio-emotional and motor competences, although the findings should be interpreted in light of the study’s limitations (single-institution sample, self-reported data, intact class groups taught by the researchers). Future work could examine outdoor Breakout EDU with mixed-methods and longitudinal designs to assess motivational processes and learning outcomes over time
Breakout · Learning environment · Perception · Physical education · Qualitative research · Social environment · Children's Physical and Motor Development · Educational Games and Gamification · Physical Education and Pedagogy
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| Highly cited | No |
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