The Effectiveness of Board Game as Simplified Communication Tool: Sustainable Environmental Learning for People with Special Needs Nurul Aqmarina Ardani (1), Ahmad Faisal Choiril Anam Fathoni (1), Nunnun Bonafix (2), Donna Carollina (3)
(1) Animation Program, Visual Communication Department, School of Design, Bina Nusantara University, Jakarta, Indonesia 11480
(2) New Media Program, Visual Communication Department, School of Design, Bina Nusantara University, Jakarta, Indonesia 11480
(3) Visual Communication Department, School of Design, Bina Nusantara University, Malang, Indonesia 65154
Abstract
Environmental degradation is largely visible to the human eyes nowadays, yet public awareness is still lacking. This is partly due to the behaviour of environmental researchers who often use uncommon scientific language that is too difficult and complex to understand. Not only for ordinary people, but also for people with special needs/disabilities, who need a higher communication effort than other people. This study tries to investigate how environmental-themed board game can be used as a tool to simplify complex information about sustainability environmental issues- especially for people with special needs- and how it can help raising environmental awareness. This study used a qualitative research method with the thematic analysis framework proposed by Braun and Clarke (2006). The study was carried out by directly observing learning-playing activities with two types of games in 16 blind and deaf students between 10 and 12 years old who came from an Extraordinary School (SLB) owned by the Santi Rama Foundation in Jakarta. The development of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) structure is used to determine the scale of players satisfaction with the environmental-theme board games. The result of this study indicate that board game can help facilitate its players to understand sustainability environmental problems by simplify the environmental explanations that sometimes too difficult to understand. Players could involve themselves into the game- with the help of the visual of board game, tactile, and interactive elements that can simulate the real world- and they could visualise themselves in the same situation as in the games micro world. The decisions they took in this game are expected to be a consideration when they are faced with the same situation later in the real world.
Keywords: Educational Games, Simplified Communication Tool, Sustainable Environmental, Game Design, Visual Communication Design
