The effect of the use of digital game-based learning applications in social studies course on students' problem-solving skills and their attitudes toward the course

Digital games have gone beyond being merely entertainment tools and have become powerful instruments that provide interaction, motivation, and meaningful learning opportunities in educational processes. Especially, the game-based learning approach, which overlaps with the constructivist learning theory, enables students to learn knowledge through experience. In this context, digital game-based learning stands out as a learning strategy that supports students' cognitive and affective development and is compatible with 21st-century skills. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of digital game-based learning on seventh-grade middle school students' problem-solving skills and their attitudes toward the social studies course. The study was conducted using a pre-test post-test control group experimental design. The study group consisted of 72 students studying at Atatürk Middle School in Uşak, Türkiye. The students were randomly assigned as an experimental group of 36 and a control group of 36. As data collection tools, a problem-solving skills scale and an attitude scale toward the social studies course were used. The implementation process was carried out for one month, and structured lessons were applied to the experimental group in a Minecraft Education game environment with the digital game-based learning method. In the control group, the lessons were conducted as prescribed in the program. The data obtained were analyzed with appropriate statistical software, and an independent samples t-test was used to determine the differences within and between groups. The analysis results showed that digital game-based learning significantly increased both the problem-solving skills and the attitudes toward the social studies course of the students in the experimental group. These results reveal that digital game-based learning can contribute to the cognitive and affective development of students.