Nishu Shrestha, Paul Wiedemeier

Internet Protocol (IP) subnetting is a foundational concept in computer networking, where large networks are broken into smaller subnetworks.  The subnetting process, however, is often difficult for students to understand.  Research suggests that Visual Novels (VN), with their interactive stories and decision-making elements, have great potential to engage students.  Our research uses a VN to teach IP subnetting.

Building on key principles of VN design for education, our research takes a fresh approach by using the Ren’Py VN engine to combine game-based interactions with story-based instruction.  The IP subnetting interactive story presented by our VN is written in Python programming language. 

With respect to our VN story, a player character initially appears in a vast, empty space, guided only by the distant voice of a mysterious unknown boss character, who presents three doors to the player character, where each door representing the historical subnetting classes A, B, and C.   Once the player selects a door, the VN randomly generates an class appropriate IP address/CIDR for a particular broadcast domain.  The player will then be asked IP subnetting questions related to the IP address presented. 

Preliminary anecdotal testing suggests that our interactive, narrative-driven VN approach will help students understand IP subnetting more effectively than standalone exercises available at the end of an assigned course text book.