Student Engagement and Perceived Learning in an Educational Platform Game with Automatic Question Generation: A Brazilian High School Study
Resumo
Introduction: Digital games show promise for engaging students in mathematics, but few studies examine educational games with automatic question generation in real high school contexts. Objective: This paper investigates student and teacher perceptions of Gael, a 2D educational platform game with multiple-choice question generation, for teaching financial mathematics in 11th grade (second year of Brazilian high school). Methodology: An exploratory case study involved 61 students from a Brazilian public high school, using a post-session questionnaire with ten five-point Likert items on gameplay, engagement, content adequacy, and perceived learning, plus three open-ended questions. Teacher feedback and game logs on in-game performance served as complementary data. Results: Students reported high fun, attention, usability, and intention to reuse the game, while perceived learning was moderately positive and varied. Student and teacher comments identified gameplay, aesthetics, and integration of financial mathematics as strengths, and mathematical difficulty, limited prior knowledge, and control issues as main challenges.
Palavras-chave:
Educational games, Game-based learning, Automatic question generation, Student engagement, Financial mathematics
Referências
Andrade, S., Komati, K., Silva, E., e Bortolon, P. (2025). O uso de jogos na educação financeira: Uma revisão sistemática. In Anais da X Escola Regional de Informática do Espírito Santo, pages 41–50, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Cai, Z., Liu, C., Yang, Y., e Li, B. (2026). The impact of learning supports in digital game-based learning on learners with different levels of prior knowledge. The Internet and Higher Education, 68:101044.
Cheng, M.-T., Lin, Y.-W., She, H.-C., e Kuo, P.-C. (2017). Is immersion of any value? whether, and to what extent, game immersion experience during serious gaming affects science learning. British Journal of Educational Technology, 48(2):246–263.
de Melo, V., da Silva, A., Pimentel, F., Silva, R., e da Silva Júnior, L. C. (2021). Percepção e desafios na avaliação de jogos digitais educacionais. In Anais Estendidos do XX Simpósio Brasileiro de Jogos e Entretenimento Digital, pages 713–716, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Giani Petri, C. v. W. e Borgatto, A. (2019). Meega+: Um modelo para a avaliação de jogos educacionais para o ensino de computação. Revista Brasileira de Informática na Educação, 27(03):52–81.
Gresse von Wangenheim, C., Petri, G., e Ferreti Borgatto, A. (2025). Using meega/meega+ for the evaluation of educational games: A retrospective. Revista Brasileira de Informática na Educação, 33:943–971.
Guimarães, S., Bastos, F., Álvaro Oda, Inocêncio, A. C., Ribeiro, M. W., Névoa, M. A., e Sousa, P. M. (2024). Mathcity finances: Jogo digital educativo para praticar operações matemáticas no cotidiano. In Anais do XXXV Simpósio Brasileiro de Informática na Educação, pages 578–590, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Hui, H. B. e Mahmud, M. S. (2023). Influence of game-based learning in mathematics education on the students’ cognitive and affective domain: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, Volume 14 - 2023.
Li, R., Wang, Y., Zheng, C., Jiang, Y.-H., e Jiang, B. (2024a). Generating contextualized mathematics multiple-choice questions utilizing large language models. In Olney, A. M., Chounta, I.-A., Liu, Z., Santos, O. C., e Bittencourt, I. I., editors, Artificial Intelligence in Education. Posters and Late Breaking Results, Workshops and Tutorials, Industry and Innovation Tracks, Practitioners, Doctoral Consortium and Blue Sky, pages 494–501, Cham. Springer Nature Switzerland.
Li, Y., Chen, D., e Deng, X. (2024b). The impact of digital educational games on student’s motivation for learning: The mediating effect of learning engagement and the moderating effect of the digital environment. PLOS ONE, 19(1):1–21.
Pesout, O., Vondráčková, V., Bačová, K., e Urban, K. (2025). Digital educational games in the eyes of educators: Teachers do not view games like us. In ICERI2025 Proceedings, 18th annual International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation, pages 2143–2149. IATED.
Rockembach, G. R. e Thom, L. H. (2026). The last decade of automatic question generation: A review of techniques, limitations, and applications in business process management education. Revista Brasileira de Informática na Educação, 34:219–251.
Russo, J. A., Roche, A., Russo, T., e Kalogeropoulos, P. (2025). Examining primary school educators’ preferences for using digital versus non-digital games to support mathematics instruction. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 56(9):1778–1803.
Song, Y., Du, J., e Zheng, Q. (2025). Automatic item generation for educational assessments: a systematic literature review. Interactive Learning Environments, 33(9):5386–5405.
Sousa, M., Seabra, R., e Lima, P. (2025). Educational games for teaching the essentials of exact sciences in brazil: A ten-year systematic mapping study. In Anais do XXIV Simpósio Brasileiro de Jogos e Entretenimento Digital, pages 1107–1124, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Vidaković, M., Lara, M., Duchi, L., Whitcomb, A., e Paas, F. (2023). Two-part onboarding for game-based learning environments. Frontiers in Education, Volume 8 - 2023.
Vieira, R. M., da Silva, A. P., e Damasceno, E. F. (2025a). A metaverse-based approach for financial literacy in brazilian vocational school. Metaverse, 6(1):3222.
Vieira, R. M., Machado, T. A., da Silva, A. P., e Damasceno, E. F. (2025b). Enhancing financial literacy by roblox: An innovative metaverse-based educational framework. In EDULEARN25 Proceedings, 17th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies, pages 53–58. IATED.
Yu, Y., Krantz, A., e Lobczowski, N. G. (2025). From recall to reasoning: Automated question generation for deeper math learning through large language models. In Cristea, A. I., Walker, E., Lu, Y., Santos, O. C., e Isotani, S., editors, Artificial Intelligence in Education, pages 414–422, Cham. Springer Nature Switzerland.
Cai, Z., Liu, C., Yang, Y., e Li, B. (2026). The impact of learning supports in digital game-based learning on learners with different levels of prior knowledge. The Internet and Higher Education, 68:101044.
Cheng, M.-T., Lin, Y.-W., She, H.-C., e Kuo, P.-C. (2017). Is immersion of any value? whether, and to what extent, game immersion experience during serious gaming affects science learning. British Journal of Educational Technology, 48(2):246–263.
de Melo, V., da Silva, A., Pimentel, F., Silva, R., e da Silva Júnior, L. C. (2021). Percepção e desafios na avaliação de jogos digitais educacionais. In Anais Estendidos do XX Simpósio Brasileiro de Jogos e Entretenimento Digital, pages 713–716, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Giani Petri, C. v. W. e Borgatto, A. (2019). Meega+: Um modelo para a avaliação de jogos educacionais para o ensino de computação. Revista Brasileira de Informática na Educação, 27(03):52–81.
Gresse von Wangenheim, C., Petri, G., e Ferreti Borgatto, A. (2025). Using meega/meega+ for the evaluation of educational games: A retrospective. Revista Brasileira de Informática na Educação, 33:943–971.
Guimarães, S., Bastos, F., Álvaro Oda, Inocêncio, A. C., Ribeiro, M. W., Névoa, M. A., e Sousa, P. M. (2024). Mathcity finances: Jogo digital educativo para praticar operações matemáticas no cotidiano. In Anais do XXXV Simpósio Brasileiro de Informática na Educação, pages 578–590, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Hui, H. B. e Mahmud, M. S. (2023). Influence of game-based learning in mathematics education on the students’ cognitive and affective domain: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, Volume 14 - 2023.
Li, R., Wang, Y., Zheng, C., Jiang, Y.-H., e Jiang, B. (2024a). Generating contextualized mathematics multiple-choice questions utilizing large language models. In Olney, A. M., Chounta, I.-A., Liu, Z., Santos, O. C., e Bittencourt, I. I., editors, Artificial Intelligence in Education. Posters and Late Breaking Results, Workshops and Tutorials, Industry and Innovation Tracks, Practitioners, Doctoral Consortium and Blue Sky, pages 494–501, Cham. Springer Nature Switzerland.
Li, Y., Chen, D., e Deng, X. (2024b). The impact of digital educational games on student’s motivation for learning: The mediating effect of learning engagement and the moderating effect of the digital environment. PLOS ONE, 19(1):1–21.
Pesout, O., Vondráčková, V., Bačová, K., e Urban, K. (2025). Digital educational games in the eyes of educators: Teachers do not view games like us. In ICERI2025 Proceedings, 18th annual International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation, pages 2143–2149. IATED.
Rockembach, G. R. e Thom, L. H. (2026). The last decade of automatic question generation: A review of techniques, limitations, and applications in business process management education. Revista Brasileira de Informática na Educação, 34:219–251.
Russo, J. A., Roche, A., Russo, T., e Kalogeropoulos, P. (2025). Examining primary school educators’ preferences for using digital versus non-digital games to support mathematics instruction. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 56(9):1778–1803.
Song, Y., Du, J., e Zheng, Q. (2025). Automatic item generation for educational assessments: a systematic literature review. Interactive Learning Environments, 33(9):5386–5405.
Sousa, M., Seabra, R., e Lima, P. (2025). Educational games for teaching the essentials of exact sciences in brazil: A ten-year systematic mapping study. In Anais do XXIV Simpósio Brasileiro de Jogos e Entretenimento Digital, pages 1107–1124, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Vidaković, M., Lara, M., Duchi, L., Whitcomb, A., e Paas, F. (2023). Two-part onboarding for game-based learning environments. Frontiers in Education, Volume 8 - 2023.
Vieira, R. M., da Silva, A. P., e Damasceno, E. F. (2025a). A metaverse-based approach for financial literacy in brazilian vocational school. Metaverse, 6(1):3222.
Vieira, R. M., Machado, T. A., da Silva, A. P., e Damasceno, E. F. (2025b). Enhancing financial literacy by roblox: An innovative metaverse-based educational framework. In EDULEARN25 Proceedings, 17th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies, pages 53–58. IATED.
Yu, Y., Krantz, A., e Lobczowski, N. G. (2025). From recall to reasoning: Automated question generation for deeper math learning through large language models. In Cristea, A. I., Walker, E., Lu, Y., Santos, O. C., e Isotani, S., editors, Artificial Intelligence in Education, pages 414–422, Cham. Springer Nature Switzerland.
Publicado
29/09/2026
Como Citar
FARIA, Matheus Prado Prandini; JULIA, Rita Maria Silva; NASCIMENTO, Marcelo Zanchetta do; SOUZA, Arthur Henrique de; LIMA, Bruno Castro.
Student Engagement and Perceived Learning in an Educational Platform Game with Automatic Question Generation: A Brazilian High School Study. In: SIMPÓSIO BRASILEIRO DE JOGOS E ENTRETENIMENTO DIGITAL (SBGAMES), 25. , 2026, Goiânia/GO.
Anais [...].
Porto Alegre: Sociedade Brasileira de Computação,
2026
.
p. 2546-2557.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5753/sbgames.2026.26442.
