Education with Games and Simulations-- Mobile Style
The readings that we covered this week brought up new ideas for a topic that I’ve found incredibly interesting since I’ve started this program - educational gaming. The biggest question I have so far that has been developing through the courses I’ve taken in the program, and exemplified in the articles we read this week, is whether there is a difference between simulation learning and game learning. I think both these genres have so many overlapping attributes, it can at times be difficult to tell them apart, but I think that broadly speaking, there might be an inherent difference.
For me, the main difference is this: Simulations create users acting in a new identity, where this isn’t necessarily a requirement of games. Generally, I think non-simulation games might work well for skill development, while simulations might be more effective at synthesizing and providing space for the improvised use of those skills. I think both of the real-world simulation games that we read about for this unit took advantage of either student mobility or location surroundings in a way that made the simulation games motivating, engaging and educationally relevant. One aspect I was confused about in the Lion Pride Simulation Game, was how students were actually participating. It sounded like students needed to actually physically run when prompted to do so by the game. These action-responsive/sensitive gaming styles (which remind me of the wii) seem to be particularly engaging for the age group listed in their study, but I wonder how this could be applied to multiple demographics.
The usefulness and effectiveness of simulated/game-based learning seems so clear to me.
Why isn’t all learning done this way? Is it too expensive? Too exhaustive an effort for teachers/administrators? Too difficult to measure results? Too...non-traditional? I hope this type of pedagogy is able to infiltrate the education system soon – I think it stands to make learning more fun and knowledge and information transfers more meaningful and long-term.
