Game-based learning

Game-based learning is an approach to educational activities in which the primary activity is a game or some form of play. Through games, people can participate in structured activities that can deliver content and model real-world actions in ways that can have a substantial impact on learning.

Definition

Game-based learning is any learning activity that uses games or play as the primary activity in which people interact. Game-based learning is a form of active learning as it actively requires the learner to play the game for the learning activity to progress.

A game is any activity that has a set of rules that determine players' actions, and most frequently, a goal or "win state" that players strive to complete. A game does not necessarily have to be fun or designed for entertainment, but most are built to be so.

Additional Information

Games have become a prominent part of the world today as a form of entertainment media. However, games are more than just entertainment or fun distractions from the world. Games are highly interactive in ways that players are actively engaged with content and story, and must regularly take actions for the game to proceed. This type of activity is well suited for educational contexts as a game can keep participants engaged (that the game doesn't play itself) and the game can demonstrate content and skills in ways that are approachable for players.

Games typically operate within a game world. A game world is the overall set of rules of play and any additional story and background about the context in which the narrative takes place. This defined space helps to focus the players and direct their attention and activity to proceeding in the game. Instead of everyday life where any action can be taken at any time, games constrain players to a set of actions that are available to them and push them forward to their goal. A game world can be as simple as a chessboard, with each piece having specific moving capabilities and players that control them. Alternatively, a game world can be as complex as a full simulated world with many characters in a large digital game like World of Warcraft, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, or

Within game worlds, players do the following:

• Perform actions and make decisions that are available to the player (e.g., taking a turn in a sports game, making a move in a board game, visiting different locations in a story game, battling a monster in an action game)
• In many games, the player assumes the role of a character that is to be played
• If there is a story in the game, the player sees how the story unfolds and how the player's character is related to the story
• Move forward in the game to meet their goals (or to win)

Games are therefore driven by the learner. Games do not move forward without the human player's interaction. Therefore, a participant must play a game or it will just sit there idly and have no effect on learning. This makes games an excellent student-centered, active learning approach to educational activities.

Games are also an excellent way to model things that are hard to do in real life or are not accessible to players. Just like movies take viewers to far away lands and show realistic characters with exotic jobs and sometimes even super powers, a game can create both fantasy and realistic game worlds that give players a chance to see how life could be in another context. With games, learners can experience topics and concepts that they may not encounter in other ways through the demonstration of the content in a playful way - much like how a young child plays pretend or make believe that they are a farmer, fire fighter, or airplane pilot. Games simplify the world enough that complex things can be simplified and simulated enough for a player to engage with and learn about the content.

Not all games are videogames, but they often get lumped together. Games can use many types of media to play - some use no technology at all, such as sports, games of tag, duck duck goose, footraces, or a game of soccer only uses a ball and nets. Some use just a few pieces of paper or cardboard, like board and card games. Much like educational products in general, games are built based on the goals that the designer has for the learner and how they want players to behave during the game - and a videogame may not be the best choice for the type of experience that a designer wants to demonstrate to players.

Why games work for learning

There are multiple reasons for why games have been shown to work for learning. This is based on learning theories that suggest that learning occurs best when a learning activity authentically demonstrates knowledge and skills, that learners remain active and not just passive recipients of information in the learning process, and that play with others can encourage a deeper understanding of concepts and skills than when just studying solo.

The reasons for why games work for learning include:

• A well-defined game world. By having a defined set of rules, a game reduces the complexity of choices that are offered to players. If a game is used to teach concepts or skills, reducing complexity can make it easier for players to investigate, test, and try to perform the tasks of the game without having to worry about everything else. This is compared to trying new things in the real world, where people have to balance all of the interconnected concepts and factors that determine whether they are successful or not. A constrained game world instead gives players the ability to focus and concentrate only on specific, achievable tasks. Unwinnable games are a bad design - all game tasks should be finishable!
• Story/narrative. Games can deliver and explore story or narrative, giving meaning making opportunities for players. By interacting with a story, players can see how content and skills can be seen, interpreted, and defined from multiple perspectives. Stories can also demonstrate the interplay between concepts over the course of a story. Humans are wired to understand and remember stories as an important aspect of learning, and games provide an excellent way to tell stories.
• Immediate feedback on performance. A game can provide instant feedback on how well a player performed or what the consequences of their choices were. Feedback can come either from other players (such as the consequence of successfully blocking a shot in basketball or making the wrong move in a chess game), or from a computer system (such as a character in a game telling you that you cant run through a wall or you don't have enough gold to buy a new piece of armor). Players' actions have direct results within a game and the game will unfold accordingly.
• Player control. Players are in control in a game. This is a key component of student-centered learning, where learners drive their activity and take ownership of their interactions. For instance, in narrative games, players choose how the story unfolds and what concepts to explore. Their choices, movements, and actions determine whether they reach their goal or win the game. They take ownership of their play and leverages motivation and interest.
• Perspective taking. With digital characters or other human players, the player can learn about content, gain different perspectives, and practice skills by performing actions in the game.
• Skill practice. As people do things when they play a game, skills and procedures can be demonstrated, practiced, and mastered.
• Model physical and social phenomena. Games can model physical phenomena and social contexts, which can be highly valuable to illustrate complex topics and processes. This is similar to a simulation, which is an activity or interactive learning object that demonstrates how forces and concepts interact using real-world rules.
• Active learning. Because players must play the game to proceed, games are often attributed to principles of active learning, which has regularly been shown to maximize learning in many contexts in comparison to passive media consumption (e.g., reading books, watching videos).
• Low-risk activity. Games provide learners with many opportunities to interact and experiment with the game world and its rules. Games can be played multiple times, or over multiple rounds, without any real-world consequences. As such, this gives players a low-risk, low-stakes environment to practice skills, learn content, and keep trying until they master and progress in the game. This is not always possible in real-world learning situations, making the low risk of games an attractive aspect for learning.

Types of games used in educational contexts

• Narrative and storytelling games. These types of games primarily tell a story through the eyes of a character that the player controls. To proceed in the game is to play the story. To win the game is to reach the end of the story, preferably with a desirable ending. The player's actions often determine the direction of the story in a narrative-type game.
• Roleplaying games. A roleplaying game is one in which the players assume the role of a character in the game and make all of the choices for the character's actions (within the scope of the allowed actions from the rules).
• Escape room and puzzle games. These types of games require players, often collaboratively, to solve problems and puzzles to move forward in the game. Information must be located, analyzed, and deduced to find the necessary components to move to the next part of the game. Escape and puzzle games are often timed with a limited duration as well to add urgency to the game.
• Abstract games. Abstract games typically have no narrative component whatsoever, such as chess, checkers, uno, and yahtzee.
• Tabletop games. Board and card games are used in learning contexts to help teach specific skills to players, to expose the players to content and subject topics, or to give a context for understanding complex ideas and abstract concepts. Most games also can teach skills related to strategy, decision making, probability, and how concepts are interrelated.

Common game play modes

Games are most typically found using these modes:

• Digital. Computer games offer a great range of play opportunities, as games can be programmed for solo players to engage with the game and play to win, or they can be designed to be multiplayer experiences where the actions of other players determine how the game plays out. Digital technologies also are excellent at keeping track of game information so that they do not have to remember everything about gameplay, as well as saving a game's state so that a player may return to the game at a later time.
• Analog. Tabletop, board, and card games are all types of analog games where players do not use digital devices to play, which requires players to be in same physical space.
• Hybrid. Some games use both digital devices and analog components to play a game. Hybrid games are becoming more common as game designers can take advantage of what both the digital and analog modes have to offer.
• Physical games. Sports are the most common form of a physical game, which involves the physical movement of your body. Live action role playing (LARP) is often considered a physical game that is played through human movement.

Tips and Tricks

• Not all educational experiences need to be only a game. Some experiences, such as classrooms, can use small games and scenarios to convey information and get participants actively thinking about and using their knowledge. Consider how you may include play and games in your product, even if it is just a small amount of play.
• If you are designing an educational game, it is important to remember that players will know whether you are forcing content and skills on them as a requirement of play. Consider how you approach content, knowledge, information, and skills in your game so that the tasks do not become repetitive and students do not lose interest right away.
• Fun is a tough concept to translate into learning activities. When thinking about educational games, consider what your audience would consider fun, what they would consider unpleasant work, and try to think of ways that the game can integrate content and skills but not overburden the player with the need to memorize and recite content alone. Narrative games are an excellent option for conveying information in a non-forceful way that may be more pleasant for players to learn about content.

Related Concepts

• Videogame
• Active learning
• Student-centered learning

Examples

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External Resources

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