Tia Carr Williams

Clark Quinn, in his book Engaging Learning (Pfeiffer, 2005), points out that the same elements that make learning highly effective are also the ones that make up highly engaging experiences. And that modern computer games, being highly engaging, share those elements: clear objectives, a relevant frame of reference, challenging, interesting and interactive.

Quinn says, "Doing good engagement is hard, as is doing good education. Doing both together is even more difficult, but even if the effort is double, the product is more than doubly worthwhile.

Hard Fun. Quinn goes on to say that "Learning can, and should, be hard fun." Serious games, when done right, are hard and challenge the learner. When the player fails, they learn something about why, are motivated enough by the story to try another approach, and ultimately get rewarded in a fun way.

Deep Learning. Highly engaging learning games also work because they have the potential to assist in deep learning. Dr. Merrilea Mayo of The National Academies has presented it this way:

• Learning by doing: Players make decisions that have consequences; they actively participate in the game environment.
• Learning by experimenting: Players can safely try out multiple solutions, explore and discover information and skills.
• Life-like learning situations: Virtual worlds can provide environments that respond the same way the real world responds, allowing the player to transfer knowledge and experience between the two.
• Believing in abilities: Rewards and levels in games foster the belief you can achieve goals. This generates a positive attitude towards overcoming obstacles and increases the player's success rate.
• Clear objectives: Well-defined game goals allow players to make more progress toward learning objectives.
• Team learning and skills: Multiplayer games allow for group problem solving, collaboration, social interaction, negotiation, etc. Players learn not only from the game, but from each other.
• Learning without limitations: Game environments naturally transcend barriers of language, geography, race, gender and physical abilities. Players who are self-conscious in real life because they are "different" have no way of being set apart online.

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How can we verify the potential skillsets that are identified in the above statements?

What sort of ways can we effectively measure 'before and after' states that might clearly indicate learning has occurred?

What different types of games have you personally had first hand or observed experience of that might cause you to be able to believe that adaptive skillsets are being demonstrated?

Video games are particularly expensive to build say the Federation of American Scientists, a prominent Washington-based group, which issued a report last year calling on the departments of Education and Labor, along with the National Science Foundation, to pay for the development of “serious” games.

“I think there’s more enthusiasm around gaming for learning than almost any topic I’ve ever seen,” says Roy D. Pea, an education professor at Stanford University. He adds, nevertheless: “This is a very big hunch. Lots of research questions need to be addressed.”

“I think there’s more enthusiasm around gaming for learning than almost any topic I’ve ever seen,” says Roy D. Pea, an education professor at Stanford University. He adds, nevertheless: “This is a very big hunch. Lots of research questions need to be addressed.Rather than just learn how to use technology, students in today’s Web-dominated environment need to learn how to prioritize and manage a dizzying array of information coming at them through Web sites and e-mails, how to think critically about what they find, and how to use multiple media to communicate well, among other skills. Educators, scholars, and policymakers have yet to agree on what those new skills should be, much less on how best to teach them.

“We still have a lot to learn about supporting a whole range of digital-literacy skills,” says Margaret A. Honey, a vice president of the Education Development Center Inc., a Newton, Mass.-based research group, and a co-director of its Center for Children and Technology, in New York City. And, she says, new research in that area could provide a lasting payoff.

“Technologies are always changing,” she says, “but skills of discernment don’t change.”

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This is an extract from an Education Week article. What it brings into sharp focus is the knowledge gap that needs to be filled by educators who seek to fulfill their students learning needs revolving around their digital savvy.

I welcome the commentary from our esteemed assembled contributors to this conference to help us all understand how they have experienced both the barriers and opportunities in introducing learning games to their teaching environment and, as Professor Pea articulates, where do we optimally need to focus our attention and intention?

 

Here I propose to place the valuable contributions from registrants and facilitators for quick and easy reference.

As we already have a good corpus registered to start building some dimensions into our thinking process, I wanted to begin our journey in this thread by posing our first thoughts about what we have as expectations for Serious Games.

Net Geners Learn Differently

Although they value education highly, Net Geners learn differently from their predecessors. This generation is unique in that it is the first to grow up with digital and cyber technologies. Not only are Net Geners acculturated to the use of technology, they are saturated with it. By the time he or she has reached 21 years of age, the average NetGener will have spent

• 10,000 hours playing video games
• 200,000 hours on e-mail
• 20,000 hours watching TV
• 10,000 hours on cell phones, and
• under 5,000 hours reading

Having been raised in an age of media saturation and convenient access to digital technologies, Net Geners have distinctive ways of thinking, communicating, and learning.

(Source article)

Wikipedia defines Serious Games as:

Serious games (SGs) or persuasive games are computer and video games used as persuasion technology or educational technology. They can be similar to educational games, but are often intended for an audience outside of primary or secondary education. Serious games can be of any genre and many of them can be considered a kind of edutainment.

A serious game may be a simulation which has the look and feel of a game, but corresponds to non-game events or processes, including business operations and military operations. The games are intended to provide an engaging, self-reinforcing context in which to motivate and educate the players. Other purposes for such games include marketing and advertisement. The largest users of SGs are the US government and medical professionals. Other commercial sectors are actively pursuing development of these types of tools as well.

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However, the the juxtaposition of 'serious' and 'game' suggests something that is imbued with intent over and above pure enjoyment, that there is an agenda, a defined outcome to be achieved. Does this detract from the sense of game? Can Edutainment as a genre fully engage and supply learned skillsets that, as Bronwyn has alluded to, be transferrable and sustainable?

I believe the answer is yes. I postulate that the brain, engaged in repeated behaviour models a synaptic pathway in just the same way as any real world exchange. And, if this is the case, it can be fairly argued that this can indicate 'learned behaviour' which is a component of conditioning, such as is enabled by the Armies who use Serious Games to entrain fighting forces or pilots.

I welcome comment regarding this notion.

Good Morning and welcome everyone to Serious Games and Virtual Worlds.

During the next three weeks we will hope to explore, debate and share our collective understanding of these two subjects which are currently being developed both academically and commercially to great effect and success.

Today, Wednesday, we request that registrants post a brief introduction and indicate what specific interest they have in Serious Games and what questions they are seeking answers to.

All registrants have been accorded a 30 day free licence to register at www.IndustryPlayer.com, for which I am the VP of Corporate Relations. To download a special SCOPE code has been created in the dropdown at the download menu. Select SCOPE and you will receive free credits to play for 30 days. IndustryPlayer is unique in its immersive dynamic business world design as an MMOG, and the creator, Thomas Lehnert, has much improved the game dynamics in the last couple of months to offer educators offline versions for classroom application. We can discuss the ways that MMOG portals can provide a cosntructive, stimulated learning environment and see what people think about this type of serious game from first hand experience.

On Tuesday, 10th April,  we have a special guest, Ron Edwards, CEO of  www.ambientperformance.com who will co host a simulcast in Second Life and skype and we recommend that anyone wishing to attend, create their avatar in good time and have their skype id available.

I believe that the future of Serious Games in education will enhance the ability of the educator to truly engage the 'digital native' in ways that make learning more enjoyable and continuous. The Digital Classroom is prescient, is this something you believe, as educators, will improve your ability to achieve learning objectives and outcomes?

These and other questions can be explored in the coming weeks and Im delighted to have this opportunity to meet so many educators who are seeking greater understanding of what can be accomplished with games.

Tia Carr Williams