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The new reality of the digital revolution creates innovative learning opportunities that challenge the education system and its teachers (Collins & Halverson, 2018; Avidov-Ungar & Hanin-Yitzhak, 2019). This reality prompts education systems in Israel and around the world to innovate and adapt the school environment and its teaching methods in order to equip students with skills and tools suitable for the 21st century (Mioduser, Nachmias, Tubin, & Forkosh-Baruch, 2003; Serdyukov, 2017). One example of the challenges involved in teaching is the implementation of Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL) (De Freitas & Maharg, 2011; Denham, 2018; Joyce, Gerhard & Debry, 2009). Education systems around the world have chosen to integrate programs implementing DGBL in teaching as part of their assimilation of technological innovation (Joyce et al., 2009; Koh, Yeo, Wadhwa & Lim, 2012). Teachers are significant agents of change and play a key role in implementing these programs in school instruction (Bascia & Hargreaves, 2014; Kangas, Koskinen, & Krokfors, 2017; Proctor & Marks, 2013).
Studies on this subject have focused on identifying the characteristics of DGBL and its impact on learning and on students, whereas less attention has been devoted to studying the attitudes and perceptions of teachers on this subject (Bourgonjon et al., 2013, Connolly, Boyle, MacArthur, Hainey, & Boyle, 2012; Wouters, Van Nimwegen, Van Oostendorp & Van Der Spek, 2013). However, studies have shown that teachers' attitudes are a key factor in the adoption and implementation of technology, including DGBL, in their teaching (Albirini, 2006; Cviko, McKenney, & Voogt, 2012; Papadakis, 2018; Avidov-Ungar, 2018).
Teachers face barriers and difficulties in adopting and implementing DGBL in their classroom instruction (An, 2018; Baek, 2008; Klopfer, Osterweil, & Salen, 2009). They indicate that they have little experience implementing DGBL in their teaching and that they lack sufficient expertise to do so successfully. They claim that they encounter technical, pedagogical, systemic and personal difficulties in implementing DGBL. These barriers and difficulties have an impact on the way teachers choose to adopt DGBL and –ultimately—on the extent to which DGBL is incorporated in teacher education programs (Allsop & Jessel, 2015; Klopfer, Osterweil, Groff, & Haas, 2009; Papadakis, 2018).
As teachers are key players in disseminating innovations such as the implementation of DGBL (Klopfer et al., 2009b), it is important to explore their perceptions of their role in this context. The study aimed to offer a unique perspective, by examining teachers’ perceptions regarding the adoption of DGBL and the extent to which they implement DGBL in their classroom teaching.