Game Curriculum Paper
Each group is responsible for turning in both a presentation on their off-the-shelf game curriculum and a paper (10 pages). The presentation should reflect your collective experience in learning (from) the game together as well as outline the curriculum. The curriculum should be further developed in the paper. Refer to the readings for your game, as well as outside readings if you deem them appropriate.
Having used your various games, you have developed some experience in them. We’ve also heard that these games are used in classrooms around the country, possibly with little evidence for learning. What do you think? How would you use these games in a learning context (could be a school, informing policymakers, informing community members, etc.)? Define an appropriate context, and describe how you would use a simulation to help people learn. Given your experiences in learning the software, how would you introduce the software to this hypothetical class? Describe the specific activities that you would do and what you would expect people to learn. Also provide information on the timescale you would do this on, and how you would assess what people have learned.
Gamer Profile Assignment
Prepare a case study of a gamer describing their habits, preferred games, style of play, preferences, and reflections on their own learning. This case study can take many forms (video, online interactive, photo essay) but it cannot be a paper or PowerPoint.
For most students this takes the form of a video profile, approximately 5 minutes in length. In planning your project you should both think about what you want to show and how you will show it. Some of this might be through narration, asking questions, through video of the player, or screencast of what they are doing. But also think about how you present this to tell a story and make a point. Can you show why this person chooses certain games? What makes it compelling? What have they learned from the game? How does it make them feel? Is there a social component to their play and learning?
You are essentially amateur field anthropologists—you should be trying to document the player’s practices, motivations and what they might be learning through the game. Make an effort not to judge or influence your subject; only observe and understand.
Board Game Presentation & Documentation
Each group is required to produce an educational board game. The definition of “board” is a bit flexible and can include anything you would play on a tabletop, including card games or classic tebletop RPGs. You must define the topic, learning goals, rules and the physical game. Your documentation (10 pages) must include
- Who the audience for your game is and why you chose this audience
- What you expect the audience to learn and how they will learn it
- How the game is played and why you chose this design
- Where you might use the game (i.e. the different learning contexts in which it could be situated)
In order to assist in the process, you will have prototypes and documentation are due along the way. This is an opportunity to get started early and iterate on the feedback given in class.
Digital Game Presentation & Documentation
You should, in groups, develop a digital game that, like the board games, has a clear learning objective and audience. You can use whatever technologies / scripting languages etc. are appropriate an available to you in order to develop the game. The game should be developed to the point that we can understand how it would be useful for someone’s learning. As we have discussed in class, the game need not stand on its own—it can be supported by a facilitator and extra materials (which should be provided as a part of the written part of the project).
Some criteria for evaluating your simulation include for testing and for final grading:
- Ease of use—can a user figure out how to use the game?
- Choice of learning goals—does the design include appropriate learning goals?
- Achievement of learning goals—does the game fit the stated learning goals?
- Engagement—is the game engaging for the user?
- Feedback—does the simulation represent things in a useful way to the user (e.g. graphs, scores etc.)
- Aesthetics—is it well organized and “nice to look at”
In addition to the game itself, and the written component, a presentation about your project is required. The presentation should include a description of your project including information on how it works, the assumptions that you made, what the underlying model is, and some background information. The other part should include some brief analysis of your simulation or game including how someone would use it and possible results / scenarios as well as what and how someone would learn from the program.
Your final project should also include a small study of how people learn from your games and simulations. You must decide on the learning goals and criteria for assessment, and then actually go out and conduct the study with an appropriate audience. You should also back up any of your methodology and findings with appropriate literature from the field.
Written Component (10 pages)—Simulation or game itself & description of what it is and how it works as well as some “user testing” that provides some informal feedback on the simulation / game. Supporting documentation and materials should also be included.
Oral Component—Presentation of game / simulation addressing questions above.
