Today I attended a session on the role of games and sims in online learning. The first couple of minutes of the talk were devoted to overcoming the stigma that may be associated with games in the classroom. Some parents and administrators still think education should be difficult and boring. Playing a game sounds like something that goes on during recess.
The simplest solution was to call the activities simulations. No one seems to have a problem with that term.
The presenter went through many years of sim development starting with activities that were really nothing more than an interactive “reading” assignment. Each activity was categorized using Bloom’s Taxonomy. The presenter explained that five years ago, they were learning to create the sims and using the fundamental functions of the environment. This resulted in simple knowledge and comprehension sims that were the technical equivalent of a lecture.
The goal was to create simulations where the students decide the path of learning. The environment would change based on decisions made by the students during the simulation. In the examples, the presenter showed games that do not have a predetermined ending. The students must solve problems or create the circumstances required to complete the activity.
It is important to note that these sims are created by a team of people with very different backgrounds. Some are education experts while others are programmers or artists. The team effort results in the educationally sound, interactive environments of these games.