Abstract: "Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) have begun to develop
hybrid systems that balance the learning benefits of ITSs
with the motivational benefits of games. iSTART-ME
(Motivationally Enhanced) is a new game-based learning
environment developed on top of an existing ITS for
reading comprehension (iSTART). In an 11 session labbased
study, 40 high school students interacted with the full
iSTART-ME system and completed comprehension
measures at multiple time points (pretest, posttest, retention,
and transfer). The current work examined students'
comprehension outcomes and how they were related to
performance within three integrated practice methods:
Coached Practice (non-game), Showdown (game-based),
and Map Conquest (game-based). Results indicate that
performance within the game-based practice environments
was positively related to comprehension outcomes, whereas
performance within the non-game environment had no
relation to subsequent comprehension measures."