Where We Begin
Exploring games and education is inherently controversial. Games can seem uneducational; they are typically associated with play and childhood. Even the name implies that games are the opposite of work. Assertions that games must be used to make learning “fun” ignore the fact that students who are deeply engaged in learning consider it both fun and hard work.
Most of us begin a discussion of games with some discomfort and with an incomplete experience base. For many educators, the term “game” conjures up a mental image of playing cards or a game like Jeopardy. These “casual games” are brief (five minutes to two hours) and simplistic. Today’s games are complex, take up to 100 hours, require collaboration with others, and involve developing values, insights, and new knowledge. They are immersive virtual worlds that are augmented by a more complex external environment that involves communities of practice, the buying and selling of game items, blogs, and developer communities. In many ways, games have become complex learning systems.
It is hard to understand something without direct experience. Yet that is how many approach games in education. Most educators are neither game players nor game developers. How much of our skepticism about the educational value of games is tied to experience (or lack of experience)? If we had the same experience base as a 15-year-old game enthusiast, might we view games differently? If we were discussing “virtual worlds,” “synthetic worlds,” or “immersive multiuser environments,” would our mind set be different? Our own biases and experiences can influence the exploration of games in education. Although definitions vary, digital games provide visual information to one or more players, accept input from the player(s), and use a set of programmed rules. Unlike more traditional games, the rules are not described in an instruction manual; they are programmed into the code. The sensory interface and story adds emotional appeal, as well. Games should be thought of as a family of related items; they are not all alike—they are not designed for the same audiences, nor do they incorporate the same features of game play. Among the common categories of games are