Center for Teaching Excellence

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Using&Games&and&Simulations&for&Teaching&
Why&use&games&and&simulations?&Games!and!simulations!have!potential!to!elicit!curiosity!and!motivation,!promote!
cooperation,!understanding,!and!self7discovery!(Northwest!Regional!Educational!Laboratory,!2005;!de!Freitas,!2006;!
McGonigal,!2011).!These&are&just&a&few&ways&instructors&have&used&games&and&simulations&to&engage&their&students.!

&Incorporating&Games&in&Your&Course&

Target!specific!course!content!and!identify!clear!learning!
objectives!for!using!games!
Simulations!can!support!strategies!already!incorporated!in!
the!curriculum!such!as!providing!feedback,!setting!
objectives,!nonlinguistic!representation,!and!homework!
and!practice!
Research!games!and!explore!online!simulations!that!offer!
skill!or!concept!learning!
Introduce!the!technology!to!students!and!explain!how!and!
why!it!will!be!used!
Offer!training!for!students!
Start!small;!accommodate!the!natural!learning!curve!for!
proficiency!with!new!games!
Allow!sufficient!time!for!students!to!learn!and!engage!in!
the!game!when!played!in!class;!this!will!vary!by!game!but!
should!be!at!least!45750!minutes!!
Use!peer!and/or!student!tutors!for!in7depth!support!on!
interface!issues!
Determine!if!games!will!be!in7class!or!out7of7class!activities;!
blend!game!playing!with!reflective!discussion,!lecture,!
reading!and!writing!activities&

Deepen&Student&Learning&

Create&a&Cooperative&Classroom&Environment&
Have!students!play!in!teams!of!274!to!encourage!
collaborative!decision!making&
Survey!familiarity!with!games!among!students;!Group!

&

gamers!with!non7gamers!to!reduce!barriers!to!
learning!and!increase!class7time!productivity&
Role7playing!simulations!provide!an!excellent!
opportunity!to!teach!competition!strategies,!
cooperation!and!teamwork,!and!conflict!resolution!
cordially!and!without!confrontation!&

Engage&and&Energize&Todays&Learners&

Games!are!dynamic!and!intrinsically!motivating,!
catering!to!the!needs!of!the!modern!student!for!
variety!and!stimulation!in!learning!
Games!and!simulations!allow!students!to!get!outside!
themselves;!encourage!students!to!be!more!self7
reflective!by!having!them!journal!after!playing!or!
facilitate!a!reflective!class!discussion!about!what!they!
learned!and!how!it!can!be!applied!elsewhere!
Tap!into!those!aspects!of!games!that!make!them!fun77!
competition,!failure,!second7chances!and!transgressive!
play!
Online!games!that!are!played!collaboratively!with!
partners!based!in!different!locations!motivates!
students!to!form!and!maintain!peer!and!learning!
communities!without!borders!

After!games!have!been!introduced,!treat!games!like!a!lab;!
games!are!a!great!out7of7class!opportunity!for!students!to!
apply,!probe!and!test!what!they!have!learned!
!
Games!and!simulations!allow!students!to!immediately!see!
A&Note&on&Assessing&Student&Learning&
the!impact!of!their!decisions!(this!is!especially!true!for!
If!assessing!learning!based!on!game!outcomes,!
medical!and!scientific!simulations,!planning!and!policy,!
depending!on!the!game!design,!game!results!may!or!
architecture,!management,!etc.)!
may!not!indicate!that!significant!learning!has!occurred.!
Games!allow!students!to!advance!at!their!own!pace!and!
(For!example,!even!if!a!student!loses!in!a!simulation,!
pursue!individual!interests;!as!with!any!project,!remember!
it!might!not!mean!that!s/he!did!not!learn;!and!
to!keep!track!of!and!hold!office!hours!for!students!who!are!
alternatively,!a!student!who!faired!well!may!have!
struggling!
learned!alternative!strategies!unrelated!to!intended!
Games!deepen!understanding!by!requiring!students!to!use!
learning!objectives.)!
content!and!ideas!that!have!been!taught!and!to!apply!that! !
knowledge!to!new!situations!
*For!more!information!on!gaming!and!simulation!technologies,!please!
contact!Academic!Technologies!at!atc_support@cornell.edu!or!
Games!help!uncover!misconceptions!of!complex!realities!
(607)25579760.!!
such!as!war,!famine,!global!warming,!poverty!and!other!
real7world!issues!and!allow!students!to!uncover!applicable!
and!innovative!solutions!
&

Some&thoughts&on&using&games&and&simulations&in&your&classroom&
Games!motivate!us!to!participate!more!fully!in!whatever!were!doing.!To!participate!wholeheartedly!in!something!means!to!
be!self%motivated!and!self%directed,0intensely0interested0and!genuinely0enthusiastic!(McGonigal,!2011,!p.!124).!!
cornellcte@cornell.edu&

&
For&further&information&on&this&resource&and&more,&please&contact&the&CTE&at:&
607O255O3990&

www.cte.cornell.edu&

&
!
Traditional!approaches!to!learning!have!often!focused!upon!knowledge!transfer!strategies!that!have!centered!around!
textually7based!engagements!with!learners,!and!dialogic!methods!of!interaction!with!tutors.!The!use!of!virtual!worlds,!with!
text7based,!voice7based!and!a!feeling!of!presence!naturally!is!allowing!for!more!complex!social!interactions!and!designed!
learning!experiences!and!role!plays,!as!well!as!encouraging!learner!empowerment!through!increased!interactivity!(de!Freitas,!
Rebolledo7Mendez,!Liarokapis,!Magoulas!&!Poulovassilis,!2010,!p.!1)!
!
The!more!students!use!multiple!systems!of!representing!knowledge,!the!better!they!are!able!to!think!about!and!recall!what!
they!have!learned!(Marzano,!Pickering,!&!Pollock,!2001)Games!and!modeling!activities!can!elicit!curiosity,!create!a!demand!
for!knowledge,!and!enable!students!to!discover!knowledge!through!exploration!(Edelson,!1998)!(Northwest!Regional!
Educational!Laboratory).!!
!
Of!most!interest!is!the!result!that!when!participants!were!given!feedback!represented!graphically!and!brief!multimedia!
explanations,!they!outperformed!all!other!participants!on!explicit!learning!of!the!physics!principlesThe!results!suggest!an!
interesting!approach!to!optimizing!the!experience!of!learning!by!simulation.!Unlike!traditional!approaches!where!simulations!
are!usually!used!as!follow7up!practice!activities!to!tutorialsit!may!be!possible!to!center!learning!on!the!highly!interactive!and!
experiential!nature!of!a!simulation!(Rieber,!et.!al.,!2004,!p.!319).!!
!
Selected&References&and&Resources&
!
Bloomfield,!R.!J.!(2009).!World!of!Bizcraft.!Journal0of0Virtual0Worlds0Research,!2!(3),!3735.!
&
de!Freitas,!S.!(2006).!Learning0in0immersive0worlds:0a0review0of0game%based0learning.!Bristol,!England:!JISC.!Retrieved!!
from!http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/programmes/elearninginnovation/gamingreport_v3.pdf!
!
de!Freitas,!S.!&!Oliver,!M.!(2006).!How!can!exploratory!learning!with!games!and!simulations!within!the!curriculum!be!most!!
effectively!evaluated?!Computers0&0Education,!46,!2497264.!!
!
de!Freitas,!S.,!Rebolledo7Mendez,!G.,!Liarokapis,!F.,!Magoulas,!G.,!&!Poulovassilis,!A.!(January!2010).!Learning!as!immersive!!
experiences:!Using!the!four7dimensional!framework!for!designing!and!evaluating!immersive!learning!experiences!in!a!
virtual!world.!British0Journal0of0Educational0Technology,!41(1),!69785.!!
!
Kirriemuir,!J.,!&!McFarlane,!A.!(2003).!Literature!review!in!games!and!learning:!a!report!for!NESTA!Futurelab.!NESTA00
Futurelab0series0report08.!NESTA!Futurelab.!Retrieved!from!http://www.nestafuturelab.org/research/reviews/08_01.htm!
!
Kumar,!R.!&!Lightner,!R.!(2007).!Games!as!interactive!classroom!techniques:!Perceptions!of!corporate!trainers,!college!!
instructors!and!students.!International0Journal0of0Teaching0and0Learning0in0Higher0Education,!19(1),!53763.!0
!
McGonigal,!J.!(2011).!Reality0is0broken:0Why0games0make0us0better0and0how0they0can0change0the0world.!USA:!Penguin.!!
!
Northwest!Regional!Educational!Laboratory.!(2005).!Researched7based!strategies:!Simulations!and!games.!Focus0on00
Effectiveness.!Retrieved!from!http://www.netc.org/focus/strategies/simu.php!
!
Rieber,!L.,!Tzeng,!S.7C.,!&!Tribble,!K.!(2004).!Discovery!learning,!representation,!and!explanation!within!a!computer7based!!
simulation:!finding!the!right!mix.!Learning0and0Instruction,0140,!3077323.!
!
Wilson,!L.!(January!2009).!Best!practices!for!using!games!and!simulations!in!the!classroom.0Software0and0Information00
Industry0Association0Education0Division.!Retrieved!from!
http://www.siia.net/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_view&gid=610&tmpl=component&format=raw&Itemid=
59!
cornellcte@cornell.edu&
!

&
For&further&information&on&this&resource&and&more,&please&contact&the&CTE&at:&
607O255O3990&

www.cte.cornell.edu&