Veranstaltungsprogramm

<p>Teaching and learning are increasingly shaped by technological, social, and economic change, intensifying debates on how educational practice should respond to emerging professional and societal demands [1]. In this context, education is expected to foster not only disciplinary knowledge but also broader competences such as lifelong learning, innovation, digital literacy, and collaboration [2]. At the same time, culturally diverse learning environments require students to engage constructively with difference and to develop skills for intercultural interaction [3]. In higher education, however, diversity-related content is still often taught primarily through theoretical models, while opportunities to apply this knowledge in collaborative settings remain limited. Game-based learning can be understood as the intentional pedagogical use of digital or analogue games to support specific learning objectives [4]. Previous research further suggests that educational escape rooms have mainly been implemented in discipline-specific fields, indicating that their application to cross-cutting topics such as diversity has so far received less attention [5].</p>

<p>Against this background, the paper investigates whether a hybrid educational escape room can support the transfer of diversity-related theory into collaborative practice and foster students’ intercultural awareness. The intervention was implemented within a revised module on diversity and intercultural communication at a university of applied sciences. The course design combined a structured digital self-study phase with an applied classroom phase. Within this framework, the escape room integrated digital puzzle-solving with rotating small-group work at physical learning stations.</p>

<p>Methodologically, the study follows a design-based intervention approach. The evaluation draws on structured observations of team interaction, behavioural log data from gameplay, and a standardised post-activity survey. The findings indicate that the format promoted active participation, collaborative negotiation, and cooperation across changing group constellations. Particularly high ratings were found for participation balance, conflict handling, and team adaptation. At the same time, the results point to challenges in selected tasks, as well as to a need for more preparation time, technical support, and additional scaffolding during gameplay.</p>

<p>The paper concludes that hybrid educational escape rooms represent a promising format for application-oriented diversity teaching in higher education. Their particular value lies in translating theoretical concepts into collaborative and reflective learning processes and in strengthening the connection between conceptual knowledge and situated practice in heterogeneous learning environments.</p>