Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?

Agile project management has become essential in modern enterprises, particularly in the software industry, due to its flexibility and adaptability. This paper presents an empirical evaluation of the Ball Point Game (BPG), a non-digital serious game designed to teach Agile project management princip...

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Main Authors: Maria Lydia Fioravanti, Gustavo M. N. Avellar, Bruna Oliveira Romeiro, Bruna Goncalves Rezende, Ellen Francine Barbosa, Ana M. Moreno
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IEEE 2025-01-01
Series:IEEE Access
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10811930/
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author Maria Lydia Fioravanti
Gustavo M. N. Avellar
Bruna Oliveira Romeiro
Bruna Goncalves Rezende
Ellen Francine Barbosa
Ana M. Moreno
author_facet Maria Lydia Fioravanti
Gustavo M. N. Avellar
Bruna Oliveira Romeiro
Bruna Goncalves Rezende
Ellen Francine Barbosa
Ana M. Moreno
author_sort Maria Lydia Fioravanti
collection DOAJ
description Agile project management has become essential in modern enterprises, particularly in the software industry, due to its flexibility and adaptability. This paper presents an empirical evaluation of the Ball Point Game (BPG), a non-digital serious game designed to teach Agile project management principles. The evaluation is based on three case studies conducted with undergraduate students at the University of São Paulo, aiming to explore the following aspects: ability to compare traditional methods and Agile methods; educational effectiveness, particularly regarding player experience and perceived learning; and skills development or improvement. The results indicate that the BPG effectively allows students to properly understand the pros and cons of Agile methodologies, fosters essential project management skills, and provides a positive and engaging learning experience. The BPG proved to be an effective tool for experiential learning by allowing students to go through all stages of the experiential learning cycle. This approach not only made learning more engaging, but also helped students develop essential skills for Agile project management. The study highlights the potential of educational games to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and hands-on activities, making them valuable tools in Agile management education. Our work has as novel element the integration of both game-based learning and experience-based learning approaches to teach Agile project management.
format Article
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institution Kabale University
issn 2169-3536
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
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spelling doaj-art-a82cd089b27e4ba3a5218ca3d2d4abf72025-01-03T00:01:30ZengIEEEIEEE Access2169-35362025-01-011313514810.1109/ACCESS.2024.352123710811930Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?Maria Lydia Fioravanti0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3040-700XGustavo M. N. Avellar1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3340-6766Bruna Oliveira Romeiro2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6208-3305Bruna Goncalves Rezende3https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5157-3541Ellen Francine Barbosa4https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3275-2293Ana M. Moreno5https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8397-6794ICMC, University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, BrazilICMC, University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, BrazilICMC, University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, BrazilMercado Livre Brasil, Osasco, BrazilICMC, University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, BrazilETSI Informáticos, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Madrid, SpainAgile project management has become essential in modern enterprises, particularly in the software industry, due to its flexibility and adaptability. This paper presents an empirical evaluation of the Ball Point Game (BPG), a non-digital serious game designed to teach Agile project management principles. The evaluation is based on three case studies conducted with undergraduate students at the University of São Paulo, aiming to explore the following aspects: ability to compare traditional methods and Agile methods; educational effectiveness, particularly regarding player experience and perceived learning; and skills development or improvement. The results indicate that the BPG effectively allows students to properly understand the pros and cons of Agile methodologies, fosters essential project management skills, and provides a positive and engaging learning experience. The BPG proved to be an effective tool for experiential learning by allowing students to go through all stages of the experiential learning cycle. This approach not only made learning more engaging, but also helped students develop essential skills for Agile project management. The study highlights the potential of educational games to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and hands-on activities, making them valuable tools in Agile management education. Our work has as novel element the integration of both game-based learning and experience-based learning approaches to teach Agile project management.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10811930/Agile management educationAgile project managementcase studyeducational gameempirical evaluationexperiential learning
spellingShingle Maria Lydia Fioravanti
Gustavo M. N. Avellar
Bruna Oliveira Romeiro
Bruna Goncalves Rezende
Ellen Francine Barbosa
Ana M. Moreno
Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?
IEEE Access
Agile management education
Agile project management
case study
educational game
empirical evaluation
experiential learning
title Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?
title_full Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?
title_fullStr Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?
title_full_unstemmed Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?
title_short Ball Point Game: Playing or Learning Agile Project Management?
title_sort ball point game playing or learning agile project management
topic Agile management education
Agile project management
case study
educational game
empirical evaluation
experiential learning
url https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10811930/
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AT gustavomnavellar ballpointgameplayingorlearningagileprojectmanagement
AT brunaoliveiraromeiro ballpointgameplayingorlearningagileprojectmanagement
AT brunagoncalvesrezende ballpointgameplayingorlearningagileprojectmanagement
AT ellenfrancinebarbosa ballpointgameplayingorlearningagileprojectmanagement
AT anammoreno ballpointgameplayingorlearningagileprojectmanagement