Design and Development of Games for Learning
Learning Objectives:
After this tutorial, you should be able to:
- Discuss the use of video games in learning
- Discuss how you would teach curriculum that
already exists using a game
- Identify the Four Freedoms of Play
- Explain why you create a game prototype
- Discuss the use of video games in learning
- Discuss how you would teach curriculum that
already exists using a game
- Identify the Four Freedoms of Play
- Explain why you create a game prototype
Design and Development of Games for Learning
The field of learning games is rapidly growing, with interest from academics, publishers, schools, and startups. But what makes a good learning game? Where do learning game ideas come from and how do you create them? This course, offered in conjunction with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, tries to answer these questions by looking at the evolution of educational video games and advice from experts in the field who work on many aspects of learning games from design to development to implementation.
Evaluating a game
Evaluating a game usually involves comparing and contrasting the game with a more traditional curriculum or activity you might think is useful. A useful learning tool is one that engages a learner, is interesting, and conveys information without being detrimental to cognitive load. Here is an example of a game evaluation I completed.
"Oregon Trail was produced by the Minnesota Educating Computing Consortium in 1974 and became a widely popular game within elementary classrooms and often played on an Apple computer. The idea behind the game is to teach students about life as a 19th century pioneer on the Oregon Trail. The player is leading a group of settlers from Missouri to Oregon while facing hurdles such as hunting for food, illness and/or death, and managing supplies. I believe this was a valuable learning tool because it not only allowed students to utilize technology but it also helped students develop their decision making skills. It also provided a bit of a history lesson along the way."
"Oregon Trail was produced by the Minnesota Educating Computing Consortium in 1974 and became a widely popular game within elementary classrooms and often played on an Apple computer. The idea behind the game is to teach students about life as a 19th century pioneer on the Oregon Trail. The player is leading a group of settlers from Missouri to Oregon while facing hurdles such as hunting for food, illness and/or death, and managing supplies. I believe this was a valuable learning tool because it not only allowed students to utilize technology but it also helped students develop their decision making skills. It also provided a bit of a history lesson along the way."
teaching with games
Using a game when teaching can be helpful because it can reinforce previously taught information, introduce new concepts, or act as a supplemental tool to traditional lecture. When you want to teach with a game or design an educational game, it is important to make sure you draft a curriculum design. This allows you to consider who the game is for, what you want them to learn, why this particular game, how you plan on implementing the game, and where the students will play the game. Below is an example of a curriculum design for the game I designed.
assignment_2.1_curriculum_design.docx | |
File Size: | 12 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Four Freedoms of Play
Scot Osterweil and professor Eric Klopfer of MIT (2016) discuss that freedom is central to the experience of play and identified four components that he calls the “four freedoms of play.” Play experience can be compromised or even ruined if these "freedoms" aren't considered.
- Freedom to Experiment- The player’s motivations are entirely intrinsic and personal. The process is open-ended.
- Freedom to Fail- Losing is part of the process.
- Freedom to Try on Different Identities- Players aren’t necessarily limited by their bodies or surrounding physical context.
- Freedom of Effort- As described in Peter and Iona Opie’s classic ethnography of playground culture, children may scramble around in a game of tag, avoiding being caught for twenty minutes, and then suddenly stop and allow themselves to be tagged once they have reached a certain degree of effort or perhaps want to move on to another activity.
designing and prototyping a game
As with any game design, it is always best to begin with a paper prototype because it is cheaper and easier to make changes than trying to make changes in code. Creating a simple paper prototype can help you figure out aspects of the game, get your game into the hands of the players as soon as possible and get feedback to what works and what doesn't. While designing the game, you must recognize the needs of the teachers and students while keeping in mind that games are not meant to be in the same manner as teachers use textbooks or workbooks.
Using Articulate Storyline 2, I created a space science game called "Race to Space" that is meant for students in grades 4-7. The following presentation gives details of the game, how to incorporate the game into the curriculum, and feedback from users.
Using Articulate Storyline 2, I created a space science game called "Race to Space" that is meant for students in grades 4-7. The following presentation gives details of the game, how to incorporate the game into the curriculum, and feedback from users.
assessment
This is a brief quiz to assess your understanding of the material in this workshop. Please answer each question using the information you have learned about Games in Learning. Don't forget to enter your first and last name and click "submit."
references
Osterweil, S., & Klopfer, S. (2016, September 26). Four freedoms of play. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmPhcik0WRw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmPhcik0WRw