The 4Ts Game to Develop Teachers’ Competences for the Design of Collaborative Learning

This work describes a serious game aimed at supporting teachers in the development of competences in the conceptualization phase of Learning Design. The game builds on the 4Ts model, which addresses four main dimensions of collaborative learning activities: the task learners will carry out, the team structure of working groups, the time schedule and the technology adopted. Participants play the game by laying down cards on a board; cards represent instances of the above-mentioned dimensions, while the board structures their aggregation and allocation in time. Scaffolding is available to novice designers, who can start the design from an existing pattern by using technique cards. The application that implements the game performs various consistency checks on the status of the board; provides on-demand feedback; supports multiple sessions both locally and at a distance; allows for further reuse and deployment of the designed activity. The article displays various examples of the application usage, highlights the system architecture, and describes some possible directions of evolution for this game.