08.08.08
Serious games and learning in SA
Steve Vosloo
Why games and learning?
Serious games
South Africa
Design thoughts
... even the harshest critics agree that we learn something from
playing video games. The question is: how can we use the power of
video games as a constructive force in schools, homes, and at
work?
Shaffer, Squire, Halverson, Gee (2005)
Video games and the future of learningPublication Type Journal
ArticleYear of Publication 2005Authors Shaffer, D. W.; Squire, K.
R.; Halverson, R.; Gee, J. P.Journal Title Phi Delta KappanVolume
87Pagination 104-111ISBN Number 0031-7217Accession Number
ISI:000232242500005
http://www.academiccolab.org/resources/gappspaper1.pdf
Play
Earliest forms of learning (Vygotsky)
Try, fail, experiment / die and do over
Experiential & immersive
Motivating
Theory of situated learning learning to be
Learning through games?
Highly engaging
Communities of practice:
News, FAQs, discussion forums
Ecology of games:
Strategy, dialogue, mentoring
Develop community social practices
We dont learn from games, we learn through them.
In SA, gaming can be used as a learning tool when it is
conceived and designed as the vehicle that provides the opportunity
for social dialogue in a learning activity.
Alan Amory (2008)
Said during presentation Q&A at ED-MEDIA 2008.
Beyond their value as entertainment media, games ... are
currently key entry points for many young people into productive
literacies, social communities, and digitally rich identities.
Katie Salen (2008)
Toward an Ecology of GamingKatie Salen (2008)The Ecology of
Games: Connecting Youth, Games, and Learning: 117.
http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/dmal.9780262693646.001
Learning through games?
Experiment with identities
The harder the better
Form of problem solving
Gee's 36 learning principles of good games (2004)
James Paul Gee (2004): What Video Games Have to Teach Us About
Learning and Literacy
http://www.amazon.com/Video-Games-Teach-Learning-Literacy/dp/1403965382/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218454089&sr=8-1
In some sense, a game is nothing but a set of problems. We're
actually selling people problems for 40 bucks a pop ... And the
more interesting games in my opinion are the ones that have a
larger solution space. In other words, theres not one specific way
to solve a puzzle, but, in fact, theres an infinite range of
solutions ...
Will Wright (Jenkins 2005)
Jenkins, H. (2005).Buy These Problems Because Theyre Fun to
Solve! A Conversation withWill Wright. Telemedium:The Journal of
Media Literacy, 52 (1 & 2), 20-23.
Serious games
Developed for a primary purpose other than pure entertainment
(Wikipedia 2007)
Education, training (military / commercial), health, public
policy ...
Social change, content or language learning, raising awareness,
cross-cultural sensitivity ...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serious_game
Browser-based Flash game
Players must keep their refugee camp functioning in the face of
possible attack by Janjaweed militias
Sponsored by MTVu
Between April & Sept 2006, 800,000 played the game
Peace Maker
Peacemaker (Mac/PC, $20) A commercial game simulation of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict designed to promote "dialog and
understanding among Israelis, Palestinians and interested people
around the world". (Wikipedia 2007)
http://www.impactgames.com/media/PeaceMaker-Screenshot_2.jpg
http://www.re-mission.net/site/game/index.php
Re-Mission
Participants who played Re-Mission:
maintained higher levels of chemotherapy in their blood
took their antibiotics more consistently
showed faster acquisition of cancer-related knowledge
This study on Re-Mission is the largest randomized, controlled
study of a video game intervention ever conducted, following 375
teens and young adults with cancer at 34 medical centers in the
United States, Canada and Australia during three months of cancer
treatment.
We now know that games can induce positive changes in the way
individuals manage their health. The game not only motivates
positive health behavior; it also gives players a greater sense of
power and control over their disease in fact, that seems to be its
key ingredient.
Cole (2008)
http://www.hopelab.org/2008/08/04/study-shows-playing-videogames-can-change-behavior-biology-press-release/
http://www1.worldbank.org/devoutreach/article.asp?id=493:
In a span of 14 months, there was a record download of 10.4
million game sessions. The games were specially designed for
low-end black-and-white mobile devices, to be able to reach the
grass-root communities.
Freedom HIV/AIDS comprises four different types of mobile games
involving different mindsets and psychologies of mobile users. The
game Safety Cricket is a role-play game with awareness messages
based on Cricket, which is like a religion in India with a huge
following. Ribbon Chase is an arcade based game, and is for people
who are engaged in game playing. The Messenger is an adventure game
for casual users, who enjoy playing exciting but easy-to-handle
games. Finally, Quiz with Babu simulates a live quiz show,
attracting users whose bent of mind is more towards quizzing,
questioning and reasoning.
http://www.volny.cz/havlikjosef/historyenglish.htm
Microsoft Flight Simulator
subLOGIC Flight Simulator 1 for Apple II, released 1980 (made in
1979)
http://www.bruceair.com/msfs/images/C172NormalPanel_03.jpg
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Mobile games
Mostly Augmented Reality games, e.g. Sick at South Shore Beach:
A Place-Based Augmented Reality Game as a Framework for Building
Academic Language in Science
Virtual game overlaid onto physical space -- location-aware
Players as field researchers
Advanced (GPS)
Simple (SMS)
Image ref:
http://infocult.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/savannah.jpg
MUVEs
Eg: Quest Atlantis: 3D multi-user virtual environment to immerse
children, ages 9-15, in educational tasks
Improved disposition to information and learning, specifically
science topics
ARGs
An alternate reality game (ARG) is an interactive narrative that
uses the real world as a platform, often involving multiple media
and game elements, to tell a story that may be affected by
participants' ideas or actions. (Wikipedia)
Puppetmaster, rabbit hole
i love bees, the lost ring
South Africa
Cellphones:
72% own a cell phone
60% talk on a cell phone almost daily
Nearly half text message almost daily
MXit: 6 million subscribers
Computers and Internet:
Only 17% have ever used the Internet
6% use it almost daily
15% have a computer in their home
9% have Internet access at home
Young South AfricAnS, BroAdcASt MediA, And hiV/AidS
AwAreneSS:Results of a NatioNal suRvey by the Kaiser Family
Foundation & SABC (MaRch 2007)
M4Girls Project
Improve maths in grade 10 rural girls by Mindset
Mathstermind and Fashion Empire
Nokia 6300
Energy saving game
Standalone / networked (ProBoPortable)?
Platform?
Narrative?
E.g. Enemy is darkness, wastage is the evil force ...
Define learning outcomes
Learning environment: Formal/informal?
Define supplementary learning materials / complimentary learning
environment
Augmented reality, ARG, people network
Blog about ProBoPortable:
http://innovatingeducation.wordpress.com/2008/07/01/proboportable-development-of-cellular-phone-software-to-prompt-learners-to-monitor-and-reorganize-division-of-labor-in-project-based-learning/
Mobile games
Portability - can take the computer to different sites and move
around within a location
Social interactivity - can exchange data and collaborate with
other people face to face
Context sensitivity - can gather data unique to the current
location, environment, and time, including both real and simulated
data
Connectivity - can connect handhelds to data collection devices,
other handhelds, and to a common network that creates a true shared
environment
Individuality - can provide unique scaffolding that is
customized to the individual's path of investigation.
Klopfer (Jenkins 2008)
Eric Klopfer being interviewed by Henry Jenkins (2008):
http://henryjenkins.org/2008/07/an_interview_with_eric_klopfer.html
Design challenges
Beyond chocolate covered broccoli (Bruckman 1999)
Problem 1: Contradiction between playing the game and
learning
Problem 2: There can be too much interactivity with a game and
not enough reflection
Learning happens through social interaction how to achieve
this?
Bruckman, A. (1999). Can educational be fun? Paper presented at
the Game Developers Conference '99, San Jose, CA.
Problem refs: see
http://innovatingeducation.wordpress.com/2008/07/02/designing-game-based-learning-a-participatory-approach-ed-media-2008/
Disclaimer
No panacea
Violent / stereotypical / misogynistic
Teachers: Play is not work
Gaming is not for everyone (is anything?)
Competing against commercial games
Still an emergent field
New theories of learning
Difficult to assess
Opportunities
Open and new area in SA (in Africa)
Mobile games
Interactive fiction game on MXit
Thank you
Steve Vosloo
[email protected]
innovatingeducation.wordpress.com
www.techleader.co.za/stevevosloo
References
del.icio.us/stevevosloo/research+gaming
Click to edit the title text format
Click to edit the outline text format
Second Outline Level
Third Outline Level
Fourth Outline Level
Fifth Outline Level
Sixth Outline Level
Seventh Outline Level
Eighth Outline Level
Ninth Outline Level
Main heading application
Sub-heading goes here
This is mock copy, and only indicates the size, type of font and
colour
This is mock copy, and only indicates the size, type of font and
colour
www.shuttleworthfoundation.org
