players Mission: Can you make a difference to society from gaming?
Welcome to our website that focuses on using video games/gamification to help teach social justice issues to K-12 students!
Students today are growing up in a ubiquitous, media-saturated society and educational systems are being challenged to respond to the rapid growth of digital technologies and their implications for learning in the 21st century. Video games and gamification offer students a sense of “being there” and can help teach complex historic and contemporary social justice issues. However, few classrooms in North America have embraced this form of learning.
We picked this topic as we felt that video games provide students with a valuable experience to connect and relate to issues of social justice. The technology and design surrounding video games are a valuable resource that can provide authentic tasks for students that can provide them with skills for critical thinking and and a sense of empowerment to invoke change.
In this website you will find a variety of reviewed games to use in the classroom, an analysis of popular games today, an assessment rubric when considering potential video games to use in the classroom, and a sample web quest/lesson plan. We will also discuss the benefits video games can provide as well as the challenges. These challenges also include possible solutions that can help any educator face the obstacles that may arise when attempting to integrate video games into the classroom. Finally we also have provided a variety of research on the topic as well as a reflection of our process through the assignment and our thoughts on the final outcome.
Students today are growing up in a ubiquitous, media-saturated society and educational systems are being challenged to respond to the rapid growth of digital technologies and their implications for learning in the 21st century. Video games and gamification offer students a sense of “being there” and can help teach complex historic and contemporary social justice issues. However, few classrooms in North America have embraced this form of learning.
We picked this topic as we felt that video games provide students with a valuable experience to connect and relate to issues of social justice. The technology and design surrounding video games are a valuable resource that can provide authentic tasks for students that can provide them with skills for critical thinking and and a sense of empowerment to invoke change.
In this website you will find a variety of reviewed games to use in the classroom, an analysis of popular games today, an assessment rubric when considering potential video games to use in the classroom, and a sample web quest/lesson plan. We will also discuss the benefits video games can provide as well as the challenges. These challenges also include possible solutions that can help any educator face the obstacles that may arise when attempting to integrate video games into the classroom. Finally we also have provided a variety of research on the topic as well as a reflection of our process through the assignment and our thoughts on the final outcome.
Can Video Games Make the World a Better Place? [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0DiMdmQC1M
Video games that are popular among youth in this information age create virtual worlds that inspire critical thinking and problem solving skills. These virtual worlds provide contexts for learning by creating symbolic representations of the real world. Students gain virtual learning experiences to connect abstract ideas and solve real world problems
(Shaffer et al., 2005)
“Games succeed because they encapsulate powerful design principles for learning environments. When school leaders and teachers begin to appreciate the compelling nature of gameplay and the powerful learning principles embedded in games as positives, they then can consider how games might inspire alternative approaches to learning, both within the existing contexts of schooling and in the development of new learning environments”
(Halverson, R. (2005)
(Shaffer et al., 2005)
“Games succeed because they encapsulate powerful design principles for learning environments. When school leaders and teachers begin to appreciate the compelling nature of gameplay and the powerful learning principles embedded in games as positives, they then can consider how games might inspire alternative approaches to learning, both within the existing contexts of schooling and in the development of new learning environments”
(Halverson, R. (2005)