How puzzles are shaping our understanding of biodiversity: A call for more research into biodiversity representation in educational games

Authors

Maria Alejandra Parreño, Sara Petchey, Mollie Chapman, Florian Altermatt, Norman Backhaus, Anna Deplazes-Zemp, Katherine Horgan, Pascal A. Niklaus, Morana Mihaljević, Frank Pennekamp, Maria João Santos, Michael Schaepman, Bernhard Schmid, Vanessa Weber de Melo, Debra Zuppinger-Dingley, Owen L. Petchey

Published

September 1, 2022

Links

DOI

 

Games as a didactic tool (e. g., puzzles) are gaining recognition in environmental education to promote skill development, but also to develop a specific understanding of the natural world. However, a children’s puzzle containing representations of nature may unwillingly lead to “misconceptions” of biodiversity themes and processes, and an over-simplification of the relationship between people and nature. To solve this problem, positive connotations of biodiversity may prompt a conceptual change to a more nuanced, multifaceted conception of biodiversity.