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meaningful play 2010 travel

Session Information

TitleEducational Game Design for Everyone: Successes, Challenges and Insights of using Game Design as Pedagogy within Formal and Informal Learning Setting
Presenter(s)Alex Games, Michigan State University
Kirk Riley, Information Technology Empowerment Center
Rachel Schiff, Microsoft Fuse Labs
Idit Caperton, World Wide Workshop Foundation
Scott Quibell, Kodu Club at Explorer Elementary, Kentwood Public Schools
Kurt Squire, University of Wisconsin-Madison
TimeThursday, October 21, 1:30p-2:30p
LocationParlor C
FormatPanel
DescriptionThe potential benefits in terms of meaningful learning that constructing interactive computer software promises for youth has attracted much interest for researchers and practitioners across disciplines from computer science to education over the last three decades. Within this field of research, game design for learning has played a more recent and yet prominent role (Hayes and Games, 2008), as researchers have found games as forms of interactive media that not only appeal to an increasingly broad swath of learners (ESA, 2009), but that can harness the multimodal presentation and simulation capacity of computers to foster in them deep understanding of complex subject matter (Clark, Nelson, Pratim, & D'Angelo, 2009; Gee, 2003; Hayes and Gee, 2010).

Implementing successful learning environments centered on game design is a very complex task that requires carefully orchestrating the participation of multiple actors, including game designers, educators, learners, and community program administrators, to create conditions that allow for a learning context that encourages the self-directed learning, exploration, and creativity required for good game design (Kafai, 1995; 2006). If an expectation of the learning environment is in addition to promote learning and literacy skills within academic disciplines, it is also necessary that it implement mechanisms to foster the hard work and reflective thinking required by them.

Given the relative youth of the field and it's complexity, an effective theory of educational game design is still emerging, with a few state-of-the art research and development programs currently contributing knowledge to this field (Squire, Giovanetto, Devane, and Durga, 2005; Games, 2010; Reynolds and Harel-Caperton, 2009; Gee and Hayes, 2010). This panel seeks to generate insights about the current state of educational game design, it's successes, challenges, and the lessons learned from current research, by bringing into a dialog panelists representing key perspectives of different actors involved in it's implementation within ongoing projects.

Panel members include representatives from industry, academia, non-profit, and community-based settings involved in the following projects: a) Kodu: a 3D game environment for PC and XBOX 360 created by Microsoft Research Fuse Labs, where players explore computer programming by creating their own game worlds and game characters (http://fuse.microsoft.com/projects-kodu.html). b) Gamestar Mechanic: an online multiplayer web browser game where children learn the habits of mind and practice of designers in disciplines within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by designing games (http://www.gamestarmechanic.com). c) Globaloria: a program where young people ages 12 and up learn programming and computer science by creating educational games and interactive simulations using Flash, for their own personal and professional development, and for the social and economic benefit of their communities (http://myglife.org). d) Civworld, a series of after-school camps created by the Games, Learning and Society group at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where children learn history, geography and other subjects by redesigning (modding) game scenarios in Sid Meier's Civilization game.

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