Experience Points — University XP

Episode 6 Serious Games

Many people already know what games are and how to define them. But do you know anything about “serious” games? Serious games are games. But they’ve been designed with an educational purpose. Serious games were not created to be played for amusement or entertainment. For other educators like myself, serious games offer a distinct advantage compared to using commercially available off-the-shelf games. When using those commercial games I have to work to adapt them to what I want my students to learn. Serious games on the other hand are available for teaching and learning right out of the “box.” Serious games have allowed us to improve our teaching practices by using game structures, constructs, and scaffolding directly for learning.

serious gamesDave EngApril 29, 2020serious gamesComment

Episode 5 Remote Adventure with Board Gaming with Education

I connected with my friend and colleague Dustin Staats from Board Gaming with Education on his program Remote Adventure. In this episode we cover Games-Based Learning versus Gamification. There are some similarities and some differences. We also covered some tools that we like to use for integrating games into our teaching, training, learning, and education.

Episode 4 Gamified Learning Outcomes

Games have goals. Classes have outcomes. Learning outcomes are a way for faculty, educators, and instructional designers to form and shape how a class will be structured. Game designers also form and shape the player’s experience through structures, loops, and other activities. Some may think that these two areas are completely separate.

learning outcomes, gamesDave EngApril 14, 2020goals, games, learning outcomesComment

Episode 3 Student Gamer Centric

One of the biggest changes to education has been the creation of a learner-centric model for teaching. I find this kind funny as I believed that teaching had always been learner centric. Aren’t students the main benefactor of learning? Isn’t that why we are all here? I can only come to that conclusion because I think about learning from a games-based mindset. Games are created for others to interact with, play, and enjoy. They aren’t for the designers. Is an un-played game still a game?

learning theory, player typesDave EngApril 7, 2020gamer, studentComment

Episode 2 The Nature of Games

What is a game? What makes a game? Games have been part of human history for many years. But do we even know what we are playing? What makes them fun, interesting, unique, and engaging? A game is a participatory activity where people play for pleasure and without a specific purpose. But can you really say that? Do people really play games without a specific outcome? I know that I play games to have fun, but does that mean that they aren’t serious? Does that mean that my hobby isn’t something as worthwhile as someone else’s?

ludologyDave EngApril 2, 2020games, nature of agmesComment

Episode 1 "Why Games?"

Here’s a question that never comes up in my presentations: “What makes games so appealing?” Usually people already know the answer. So, they don’t ask the question. Lots of people have different reasons why they play games: because they like the characters or the story. Because they want to escape from their everyday lives – even if it’s just for a few minutes.

Dave EngFebruary 11, 2020why gamesComment

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