Game Learning: Authentic Experience
Game Learning: Authentic Experience
Game Learning: Authentic Experience
By Clayton Whittle
April 7, 2021
Summary
The adventures we've already had in our imaginations rival most fantasy books I've read. D&D has helped me escape from the real world, expand my creativity, improve my strategy and problem-solving skills, and stay connected with friends.
My character in D&D, on the other hand, is the most muscular female dwarf in all of Inathra.
During D&D we stay as true to our characters as possible in our mannerisms, personalities, and actions.
When we start up the online version of D&D, Roll20.net, and begin the video chat, I become Kriki, and she becomes me.
In D&D, the Dungeon Master controls the setting, story, and monsters that you fight.
In D&D, the world is your oyster, and those who think creatively on their feet usually.
One of my friend's characters died in a recent fight, and there unfortunately isn't a respawn feature.
Has made it hard for me to see friends from high school, and playing D&D has been a consistent way to bond with them.
No matter the distance, I can count on seeing them for D&D nights and having experiences in another world, literally.
I can be whomever I want and make my character's body do what it wants because Duchenne muscular dystrophy doesn't exist in the world of D&D. Neither do the everyday struggles I have to face because of it.A major part of experiential learning is providing the learner with authentic experience.
We can use games and game learning to simulate authentic experiences to a degree that normal instruction can never reach.
As we mentioned in our article on experiential learning, game learning has several affordances that can increase learning gains and understanding through simulated experiential learning.
The most exciting affordance is the ability of game learning to provide an authentic experience, or, at least, a simulated authentic experience.
Authentic experience is a concept from educational research that, essentially, claims doing is the best form of learning.
Already, we can see how games and game learning apply to this model.
Many scholars argue that games are a "Next best thing" for learning authentic practices as they allow students to situate learning in an authentic situation.
While games of all genres have sought to provide some level of authentic experience, the goal is of specific importance to learning games designers.
Because of that, there are many excellent examples of games providing a balance of authenticity and simplicity that allows a player to engage with the learning in the game.
Below are just a few games that follow the above design heuristics and achieve some level of authentic experience for learning.
Reference
Whittle, C. (2021, April 07). Game learning: Authentic experience - nasaga games for learning blog. Retrieved July 21, 2021, from https://nasaga.org/game-learning-authentic-experience/