• Objections• Trivial• Waste of Time• Harmful• Immoral• Not “real” learning

RESEARCHERS

• Becta• GERN• DiGRA• Nesta• Education Arcade• MIT• And many, many others

PRINCIPLES (Prensky)

• Fun• Play• Goals• Interactive• Adaptive• Outcomes & Feedback• Win States• Conflict/Challenge/Opposition• Problem-Solving• Interaction• Representation & Story

PRINCIPLES (Nesta)

• Challenging/Adaptable• Absorbing/Immersive• Non Didactic/Practise-Based• Authentic & Experiential• Rules, Alternatives, Consequences• Feedback & Assessment• Social & Collaborative• Expertise & Apprenticeship• Identities• Literacies• Reflective Practise

COTS

SERIOUS

• Primarily developed for entertainment• Not specifically for learning• Can be purchased commercially• Many are inappropriate• Many have excellent potential• Variety of genres (rpg, simulation)• Must be challenging• Must possess internal structure• Must have the “principles”

SERIOUS GAMES

Corporate, business, industrial, scientific, & military worlds

Marketing, finance, human resources, negotiation, change management, general management, organizational behavior, technology management, innovation, knowledge management, economics, budget simuation, investment, and more!

Corporation: A Global Business SimulationManage the takeover and continuing operation of a multi-divisional, multi-national corporation within the electronic information systems industry.

Human Resources Management Simulation Simulation of human resource environments with real-world decision making.

Collective Bargaining Simulated this simulation allows students to take on the roles of key management and union personnel during the renegotiation of their labor agreement.

The EIS Simulation GameThe EIS Simulation is a change management simulation introducing a major change in an organization.

AirlineStudent teams, acting as the management team, learn to run a small commuter airline.

Negotiator ProNegotiator Pro allows the user to learn about his/her own style, measure your negotiation smarts, AND prepare for real world negotiations.

PeacemakerGame simulation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict designed to promote "dialog and understanding among Israelis & Palestinians

PulseTeaches military and civilian health-care providers procedures and systems simulating operational health-care facilities

The Basketball IntelligymUsed by basketball players for developing their cognitive skills, such as decision making, anticipation, team-play and execution.

Real Lives Life simulation that gives player the opportunity to learn how people really live in other countries.

NanocureReal-time strategy game for teaching kids about nanotechnoloy.about Developed by The Game Design Initiative at Cornell University.

LegSim: Legislative SimulationWeb-based virtual legislature used in college and high school government and civics courses.

Incident CommanderTeaches compliant incident management for multiple scenarios, including terrorist attacks, school shootings, and natural disasters

Food ForceThe UN's World Food Program designed this virtual world of food airdrops over crisis zones and trucks struggling up difficult roads under rebel threat with emergency food supplies.

• 3rd World Farmer

• Climate Challenge

• Crate

• Cyber-Budget

• Dangerous Waters

• Darfur is Dying

• DARWARS

• DoomEd

• Eduteams

• FF56

• FINN

• Full Spectrum Warrior

• GYST

• Harpoon

• Incident Commander

• Infiniteams

• LegSim

• Life Preservers Evolution

• Nanocure

• Re-Mission

• Real Lives

• SimPort

• Steel Beasts Pro

• STRATA

• Thinking Worlds

• Trauma Trainer

• Trex

• VBSI

• Selector of the GameFrom the wide range of games available, select one which has relevance to the curriculum.

• Builder of the Learning ActivityMust PLAY the game and discover what learning experiences will be appropriate for the learners. Must then construct the actual learning activities.

• Facilitator of the ExperienceDemonstrate the game, organize the groups, manage the experience.

• Evaluator Assess the results.

• Teacher As GuideTeacher has control of the game and leads class through appropriate scenarios. Class has to tackle the scenario before moving on. Game control is passed around, or the teacher retains it for the duration of the exercise. Usually uses one computer and a projector.

• Teacher As RefereeClass is split into different teams. The teams collaborate internally, and use the game to compete against one another, e.g., which can develop the most economically stable city using an urban simulator. The teacher sets the task, answers queries, helps the teams, adjudicates, and leads the class debriefing.

• MotivationalReward for good behavior or excellent performance. Lunchtime or after school computer clubs.

• DiscussionTeachers demonstrate a concept by playing a portion of a game which illustrates the concept.

• Media EducationStudents analyze components of the game as media studies (design, graphics, story, etc.).

• Curriculum Integration Embeds the game in a wider set of educational activities

• Zoo Tycoon

• Myst

• Harry Potter

• School Tycoon

• Battle of Austerlitz

• Neverwinter Nights

• Making History

Teacher in Yorkshire, UK - Special needs children

Math language, strategy, cooperation, peer modeling, motivation. Falls under numeracy, money, & real-life problems.

Used as discussion tool, playing by committee. Mouse is passed around as required.

Discuss what they can put in the zoo, how much fencing, terrain, etc.

Has been teaching, cooperation, taking turns, strategic planning, and discussion.

Teacher in Bristol, UK - English - Grades 5 & 6

Uses Myst as a facilitator to inspire speaking, listening, observation, and creative writing.

Game-centered class. Students have never been so attentive. Immense concentration on the game by students. Their desire to improve vocabulary, speaking, and writing skills.

Before the game was introduced, English SATS scores were 66%. After, scores rose to 100%.

Teacher in Cambridge, UK - Media Ed - Grade 8

Uses to teach about video games in the context of Media Education.

Play a game in a lesson. One student plays, another whiteboards, another directs.

Discussion concerning what gameplay is. Comparison of the grammar of gameplay and film.

Analysis of visual and verbal language.

Teachers in Birmingham, UK - Grade 6

Spatial thinking skills, fiscal skills, numeracy, and social awareness.

Student teams constructed their own school within a budget to produce a final school with financial and academic results.

Results were print-screened and collected for group analysis. Group discussion concerning why some schools worked and others didn’t.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Ages 18 -20

Integrated with Western Civilization II Course.

Educate students in Napoleonic battle tactics and to provide them with an understanding of tactics, decisions, and strategies employed in the battle.

Historical scenarios were used and students were divided into teams with varying responsibilities (commander, individuals in charge of moving infantry, cavalry, and artillery).

Occupies an interesting place in the development of games for play in educational settings.

The game (like many others) comes with a game editor. In NWN, this editor is called the Aurora Toolset.

With this editor, educators have started constructing their own games using the NWN game engine.

Two of the most successful projects consist of:• MIT - American Revolution• Linconshire West - Learning

Created from NWN Aurora Toolset as a joint project between MIT and Education Arcade.

Available and can be downloaded from the Internet.

Is played in a 45 minute session with students in a networked environment.

Respond to events, improvise own stories, collaborate, debate, and compete. Journals are kept.

Testing situations have been developed with results forthcoming.

West Nottinghamshire College, UK.

Constructed using NWN Aurora Toolset

Built a game that allows learners to interact in a fantasy setting involving teamworking & problem solving.

Teaches “Key Skills” - Language & Numeracy

Comes complete with Teacher & Student Learning Guides.

Using this method of key skill delivery, results at NSWIncreased from a national benchmark of 22% to 94% success rate.

Key Skills Results

Dave McDivitt - 110 students - 5 classes

Social Studies - Period of Western Europe just prior to WWII.

Objectives - To teach about the causes of WWII and to understand key events and political maneuvers that set stage for global conflict.

He uses a variety of teaching models in his classroom. All highly interactive and successful.

He conducted a research experiment using Making History and control groups. He invited CBS to record the activity.

The Research Study - 5 groups of 110 students

Non-Game Groups (control groups). They addressed the material in traditional ways - textbooks, lectures, reading assignments, and in-class discussion.

Game Groups - replaced all traditional material with the video game. No textbooks. The video game and discussions.

Students were all pre-tested with identical questions before the study (geography, leadership, causes for war.

Students were tested at the end of the game week.

Testing results of the post-game activity

Games do have educational potential according to how they are used in educational settings.

Start playing some games of interest to you.

Seek out valid games and learn to process them for your own situation.

Start demanding games that deal with content pertaining to your situation.

Gain awareness by conducting a continuing exploration of material available on the Internet.

Begin the adventure of using games as learning tools in your particular educational setting.

www.creativeactivation.com/games