https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk_OfUHpCbM
http://blackboard.cuchicago.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-1495153-dt-content-rid-4929408_2/courses/5352-5356.201520/Week6-reading-Klopher-edt6030-v14.pdf
http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/games/whatis.html
http://edtechreview.in/dictionary/298-what-is-game-based-learning
http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/singapore07/procs/whitton.pdf
https://www.brainpop.com/educators/community/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/PROJECT-TOMORROW-10-3-14.pdf
Game based learning seeks to balance content with gameplay. It is a teaching approach with defined learned outcomes whereby students will be highly engaged. Students can enter into virtual learning environments, work toward a goal, make choices, learn and practice in a risk free setting. The hope would be that learners could easily transfer knowledge, thought processes, and skills into the real world (EdTechReview). There are many elements that create the game framework such as competition, engagement, and immediate rewards. Often, players must collaborate or work as a team to complete a process built into a game. Students receive feedback like scores or rewards almost immediately. Much like the goals of a lesson plan are for achievement, motivation, and assessment, gamification seeks to combine all of those elements for success in learning.
Klopfer (2009) distinguishes digital games by two elements, an interactive playing environment and the struggle against an opposing player. He also describes digital games as being characterized by rules, goals, objectives, outcomes, feedback, conflict, interaction, and representation of a story that the students perceives as fun.
In his video titled Non-Digital Game Based Learning, Kevin Corbitt shared the benefits of any type of game play on learning. He shared that simply playing traditional board games like Monopoly, Yahtzee, Life, and Clue held positive effects of learning. Traditional board game playing teaches players how to invest and make money choices, collect evidence, use deductive reasoning, make sense and consider variables. Mental benefits of game playing include learning decision making, how to predict, recognize patterns, plan ahead, act, strategize, and even sit for an extended period of time. Social benefits include practicing verbal communication, following rules, taking turns, sportsmanship, and self-control. All of these skill are able to be practiced and learned in a non-threatening, low risk setting. Most of these skills that can be practiced in non digital games also transfer in a digital game, creating a low risk learning environment.
Katie Salen, in her video "The Power of Game Based Learning" featured on Edutopia, described digital games as having mission or quest based levels. Learners experience an increased difficulty level as they proceed through the games. She also shared some concerns some parents have about the encouragement of competition and rewards and fears of students becoming addicted to the the games. These are valid points and should be considered and monitored in the classroom.
In a paper by Project Tomorrow titled "Digital Teachers, Digital Principals: Transforming the Ways We Engage Students," teachers who are comfortable integrating technology or game based learning into their classroom see a connection between their use of technology and and their own effectiveness as a teacher. Over a third of the teachers in a digital games cohort in their study commented that technology improved their productivity, helped them manage their classrooms, differentiated more, and assessed student more easily.
Image source: http://www.brainpop.com/educators/community/printable/digital-teachers-digital-principals-transforming-ways-engage-students/
It is clear that across the resources there is a general agreement that learning through game based play results in higher motivation level. It is important therefore that games-based learning applications are designed for the learning context and outcomes, otherwise there is no guarantee that any transfer to real life application will occur. The rationale for using games to teach should be that they can embody sound learning principles that effectively share content.
In the classroom setting, I would like to employ many of the games from gamesforchange.org. This sight presents many real life scenarios that help the students make life choices in a risk free setting. One specific game called playspent.org helps students navigate one month of life by leading them through job choices, grocery shopping budget, insurance issues, and illness. The learner uses math/economics skills while learning about the social issue of homelessness as they encounter each obstacle in their month of survival.
Katie Salen on the Power of Game-Based Learning (Big Thinkers Series). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk_OfUHpCbM
Klopfer, E., Osterweil, S., Grof, J., Haas, J., (2009) The Instructional Power of Digital Games, Social Networking, Simulations, and How Teachers Can Leverage Them. The Education Arcade, Creative Commons, Retrieved from http://blackboard.cuchicago.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-1495153-dt-content-rid-4929408_2/courses/5352-5356.201520/Week6-reading-Klopher-edt6030-v14.pdf
What is Game-Based Learning, Science Education Resource Center, Retrieved from: http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/games/whatis.html
EdTechReview, What is Game-Based Learning, Retrieved from: http://edtechreview.in/dictionary/298-what-is-game-based-learning
Whitton, N. (2007). Motivation and computer game based learning. In ICT: Providing choices for learners and learning. Proceedings ascilite Singapore 2007. http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/singapore07/procs/whitton.pdf
“Digital Teachers, Digital Principals: Transforming the Ways We Engage Students” Project Tomorrow, Retrieved from: https://www.brainpop.com/educators/community/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/PROJECT-TOMORROW-10-3-14.pdf
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