LTS’s advocate for
games and learning
Derek P Robertson
New Technologies for Learning
[email protected]
The Consolarium
• Scottish Centre of Excellence for
Games in Education:
– Comprehensive range of commercial
consoles and games
• PS2, PSP, Xbox360, DS, Wii,
– PC/Mac based games
– Interactive whiteboard
– Wi-fi access
What it aims to do
• Promote games and learning
– LTS web presence
• Provide a centre that teachers and
educational managers can visit
• Develop a community of interested partners
– educational, academic & industry
• Nurture, support and celebrate effective and
innovative practice with games
• Embed games and learning in ACfE
Why the investment?
• LTS has positioned itself as:
– a developmental organisation
– a progressive, innovative and future
looking organisation
– an organisation that will influence &
inform the changing educational
landscape
• We aim to capture the games and
learning agenda in Scotland
Why computer games?
• My own teaching
experience
• Growing body of
professional
practice:
– Range of
games/teaching
blogs
– Conferences
• Wider reading
– Marc Prensky
– James Paul Gee
– Steven Johnson
• Academic Research
– Futurelab
– BECTA
– ELSPA
Enhanced learning?
• Powerful motivational context
• Enhanced learning through games
– Science model
– Problem solving
– Knowledge about other curricular areas
•
•
•
•
Metacognitive development
Collaborative contexts
Affective domain
Cultural resonance
Why games engage us?
Games
Games
arehave
a form
representation
of fun.
and story.
Games have conflict/challenge/opposition.
That
That
gives
gives
us enjoyment
us emotion.and pleasure.
Thatrules.
gives That
us adrenaline.
Games have
gives us structure.
Games have outcomes and feedback.
Games are adaptive. That gives us flow.
Games
That gives
haveus
problem
learning.
solving.
Games
are
interactive.
That
gives
doing.
Games
have
goals.
That
gives
us us
motivation.
That
sparks
our
creativity.
Games have interaction. That gives us social groups.
Games
Games have
are awin
formstates.
of play.
That
gratification.
That gives
gives us
us ego
intense
and passionate involvement.
Guess who?
Don’t have any other hobbies
Don’t talk to others
Don’t talk to families
Hurts their eyes
Don’t get fresh air
Get unfit
Nothing to talk about
Atkins (2003) More Than a Game
Issues of concern…
• Lack of time to familiarise themselves with games;
– Generally not part of teachers cultural framework
• How to identify relevance of game to a particular
curriculum component
• How can learning with games be measured?
• Amount of irrelevant content in game
• Concern about inappropriate content
• Lack of support materials: lesson plans etc.
• Hardware/software conflicts
• Cost
ELSPA(2006) Unlimited Learning
Some examples
• Games as narrative
– Tim Rylands
• Games provide cognitive challenge
– Doctor Kawashima, Big Brain Academy
• Games for active learning
– Dance Mats, Eye Toy, Guitar Hero
• Curricular learning through games
– Darfur is Dying, Election Simulator
• Learners as game designers
– Neverwinter Nights,
• Associated Learning
– Crazy Talk
Moving forward…
• What is already happening?
• Staff development opportunities
• Case studies
–
–
–
–
–
–
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Add Knowledge
Professor Kawashima
Narrative driven contexts
Exertainment in early years, ASN context
Games league
Games design projects
Avatar design
• Interested parties please contact me
Thank you
[email protected]
Work: 01382 443617
Mobile: 0781 121 3952