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Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

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Games are a ubiquitous part of life in our culture, and experts suggest they will become even more deeply embedded in the coming years. Games help people develop a disposition toward collaboration, problem-solving, communication, experimentation, and exploration of identities, all attributes that promote success in a rapidly-changing, information-based culture ( 2011 Horizon Report). Research into the cognitive and socio-cultural aspects of gaming has exploded in the last decade as people have begun to realize the potential for game-based learning (Gee, 2003; Salen, 2007).

Some games aim to increase content knowledge by letting the players "live" the scenario. They may also create a sort of apprenticeship model in which players identify with experts and take on those roles as they move deeper into the game. Participation in so-called "serious games" has been shown to help change attitudes and affect players' actions in the real-world ( TED Talk by Jane McGonigal). Games seem to be particularly successful in helping people develop problem-solving and decision-making skills and encouraging innovation. Without a doubt, gaming prompts people to do a tremendous amount of research and inspires participants to spend an extraordinary amount of time on task.

Using Games in a Class

Consider using single- or multi-player serious games (see gamesforchange.org) as a warm-up for an in-class or online discussion.

Have students play and critique a video game for content accuracy (Civilization series).

Design roller coasters and other amusement park rides to explore forces and motion in physics (Roller Coaster Tycoon series).

Have students build and run their own amusement parks (Roller Coaster Tycoon) or cities (SimCity series).

Explore global issues and learn to take on differing identities in conflicts (Games for Change).

Learn team-building and collaboration in multiplayer games.

Have your students design a game. It doesn't have to be a video game.

Who Is Teaching with Games on the IUB Campus?

Anne Massey, Lee Sheldon, and Jeanne Johnston ran an Alternate Reality Game (ARG) called The Skeleton Chase during 2008-2009 to encourage a more active lifestyle.

Ed Castronova does research on the economies of virtual worlds and massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). He calls them "petri dishes" for economics and other social sciences research.

Keith Dayton uses simulations in his business classes.

References

Gee, J.P., 2003. What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. Macmillan, pp. 225.

Groundbreaking book on learning in games. Gee believes that good games embody good learning theory.

Salen, K. ed. 2008. The ecology of games: Connecting youth, games, and learning. MIT Press, pp. 278.

Eye-opening book with chapters from some of the giants in the field. Available free for download.

For More Help or Information contact CITL.

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Games are a ubiquitous part of life in our culture, and experts suggest they will become even more deeply embedded in the coming years. Games help people develop a disposition toward collaboration, problem-solving, communication, experimentation, and exploration of identities, all attributes that promote success in a rapidly-changing, information-based culture ( 2011 Horizon Report).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Games are a ubiquitous part of life in our culture, and experts suggest they will become even more deeply embedded in the coming years. Games help people develop a disposition toward collaboration, problem-solving, communication, experimentation, and exploration of identities, all attributes that promote success in a rapidly-changing, information-based culture ( 2011 Horizon Report). Research into the cognitive and socio-cultural aspects of gaming has exploded in the last decade as people have begun to realize the potential for game-based learning (Gee, 2003; Salen, 2007).

Some games aim to increase content knowledge by letting the players "live" the scenario. They may also create a sort of apprenticeship model in which players identify with experts and take on those roles as they move deeper into the game. Participation in so-called "serious games" has been shown to help change attitudes and affect players' actions in the real-world ( TED Talk by Jane McGonigal). Games seem to be particularly successful in helping people develop problem-solving and decision-making skills and encouraging innovation. Without a doubt, gaming prompts people to do a tremendous amount of research and inspires participants to spend an extraordinary amount of time on task.

Using Games in a Class

Consider using single- or multi-player serious games (see gamesforchange.org) as a warm-up for an in-class or online discussion.

Have students play and critique a video game for content accuracy (Civilization series).

Design roller coasters and other amusement park rides to explore forces and motion in physics (Roller Coaster Tycoon series).

Have students build and run their own amusement parks (Roller Coaster Tycoon) or cities (SimCity series).

Explore global issues and learn to take on differing identities in conflicts (Games for Change).

Learn team-building and collaboration in multiplayer games.

Have your students design a game. It doesn't have to be a video game.

Who Is Teaching with Games on the IUB Campus?

Anne Massey, Lee Sheldon, and Jeanne Johnston ran an Alternate Reality Game (ARG) called The Skeleton Chase during 2008-2009 to encourage a more active lifestyle.

Ed Castronova does research on the economies of virtual worlds and massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). He calls them "petri dishes" for economics and other social sciences research.

Keith Dayton uses simulations in his business classes.

References

Gee, J.P., 2003. What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. Macmillan, pp. 225.

Groundbreaking book on learning in games. Gee believes that good games embody good learning theory.

Salen, K. ed. 2008. The ecology of games: Connecting youth, games, and learning. MIT Press, pp. 278.

Eye-opening book with chapters from some of the giants in the field. Available free for download.

For More Help or Information contact CITL.

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Games are a ubiquitous part of life in our culture, and experts suggest they will become even more deeply embedded in the coming years. Games help people develop a disposition toward collaboration, problem-solving, communication, experimentation, and exploration of identities, all attributes that promote success in a rapidly-changing, information-based culture ( 2011 Horizon Report).

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"PLAYING SHOULD BE FUN! In our great eagerness to teach our children we studiously look for "educational" toys, games with built-in lessons, books with a "message." Often these "tools" are less interesting and stimulating than the child's natural curiosity and playfulness. Play is by its very nature educational. And it should be pleasurable. When the fun goes out of play, most often so does the learning."
- Joanne E. Oppenheim ( Kids and Play, ch. 1, 1984)

Games Engage People

Making learning fun motivates students and helps them pay attention and stay focused on the subject.

One reason to promote educatonal games is to encourage students to learn outside of class. Young adults will go out of their way to play games, even a single game, for hours on end.

There is also evidence that games allow students to focus well enough to learn better. Lepper and Cordova, 1992 have found that rewriting a lesson with a story context combined with a challenge for the student to overcome (in other words, making it into a game) significantly improves the learning performance of children.

Bridging the Digital Generation Divide

Unsurprisingly, 21st-century college students are somewhat different from those of the preceding decades, even as those differed from earlier students. Games will help us work with them.

In particular, 21st-century students have grown up using different technology from that which their professors grew up with.

The World Wide Web has had a significant effect on the way they think and learn.

Marc Prensky, an educational video game designer, argues that they are used to thinking on multiple tracks at once, but have little patience with linear reasoning or delayed gratification (Prensky, 2001a ; Prensky, 2001b ).

Using games, not necessarily video games, for teaching is one way to shift to a more appropriate learning format for the Digital Generation.

Make learning more fun, and students will be more motivated.

Competition and teamwork are also motivating for students

Quick and specific feedback enables students to figure out the right way (or a right way, whatever works) to succeed

Learning from Mistakes

One reason that games (outside of gambling) are such a great escape from the real world is that bad consequences are rarely serious or lasting.

"It's only a game."

If you lose, start the game over and try again.

Often, it's possible to recover within a game, and to use what you have learned to successfully complete a task.

Characters and pieces may die, but this is rarely permanent.

There are no consequences for the player personally.

Grades can tell students if they have failed to learn something, but for a variety of reasons, students may not make good use of that feedback.

By the time students get their grades, it's often too late to do anything about them. So it's not possible to correct mistakes.

The value of grades is for rewards that are not part of the learning process like parental approval, reduced car insurance, access to a good job or medical school.

There is probably no way to escape from giving grades, but games that allow students to assess their knowledge for themselves give them a chance to see where they are having trouble before a test.

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"PLAYING SHOULD BE FUN! In our great eagerness to teach our children we studiously look for "educational" toys, games with built-in lessons, books with a "message." Often these "tools" are less interesting and stimulating than the child's natural curiosity and playfulness. Play is by its very nature educational.

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A didactic game is construed as some sort of game where set rules are observed. It is an educating tool serving the didactic purpose. An important aspect of the game is to achieve a strictly defined score. Competences acquired when playing didactic games, e.g. persistence, critical thinking or readiness to run risk, facilitate the development of entrepreneurial attitudes. Examples of didactic games strengthening those competences are location-based games and strategic games.
(Article by Natalia Kaszkowiak and Joanna Tobys, based on the Erasmus+ project Trio2Success outputs)

A complex and multifaceted nature of teaching - learning requires a rich repertoire of teaching methods. The essence of modern understanding of methods is the evocation of action, development of thinking and creativity (Kruszewski 2005; Król 2007). Coping with risk, persistence and critical thinking are ones of many skills that we can develop using available teaching methods, which are frequently still seen as unconventional. Those are for instance didactic games.

Use of games dates back to the antiquity. The oldest board game was found in China - it dates back to 3000 BC (Faria, Nulsen, 1996). Some ethnographers are convinced that it was education that was the reason for creating many games. Their task was to reproduce natural living conditions of humans, share knowledge with the next generation and prepare them for proper functioning in the society. A good example may be chess, which was used as a typical simulation game 2000 years ago. Its aim was to prepare soldiers to do battles (Surdyk, 2008).

The creator of modern pedagogics - Jan Amos Komeński - recommended methods that taught through play. He gave most credit to simulation and competitive games. They were to maintain the attention of the student and evoke their motivation (Siek-Piskozub, 1995). Many authors claim that each game is a play, but not each play is a game (Galant, 1987). Therefore, it is essential to grasp the differences between them. The most significant factors distinguishing the game and the play are the following:

meaning of score - stronger in the game than in the play,

nature and meaning of rules - explicit and formalised in the game,

competition in the game,

limitation of illusion in the game (Okoń, 1987).

Hence, the game is a higher form of play based on respecting strictly set rules by at least two students (Grzesiak, 1984). The literature includes other definitions and classifications of games as well although most authors use the term of didactic game directly. Wincenty Okoń characterises the game as a form of play where set rules are observed. In this case an important aspect of the game is to achieve a strictly defined score. He also underscores the educating functions of the game: respect for norms, possibility to compete, teaching how to win and how to lose. On the other hand, the didactic game is a game with a certain didactic purpose, a teaching tool (Okoń, 2007). Similar stance is expressed by Czesław Kupisiewicz, who - underlining the features of play in the didactic game - classified them a well, distinguishing the following types of games (Kupisiewicz, 2009):

simulation games - the task is to present a specific fragment of reality in a simplified manner, which makes it easier to observe or manipulate it;

situational games - the idea is to challenge children and the youth to solve fictional tasks,

staging games - they require the reproduction of past events or create new plans of those events.

Franciszek Szlosek provides a slightly different classification of didactic games, which he ranks among activating teaching methods. He distinguishes the following game types:

simulation-based - actions taken by players resemble actions taken by people in real situations in everyday life;

decision-based - role play by students with presentation of thoughts, statements and attitudes;

psychological - based on interactions between individuals or groups striving to achieve set goals (Szlosek, 1995).

On the other hand, Krzysztof Kruszewski says that the didactic game is a problem-based teaching method. He underlines its role in shaping creative thinking, which makes it possible to rebuild old and create new patterns. Therefore, what is present here is thinking and learning characteristic of the problem-solving process (Kruszewski, 2005).

Upon analysis of the definitions made by the said educators, the didactic game can be understood as a teaching method facilitating the acquisition of knowledge and skills, containing components of play, based on observance to strictly set rules and allowing the student to learn how to win or lose. Ever more often, games - simulation-based in particular - are based on computer programmes and the Internet. The most significant features of didactic games are the following (Wawrzeńczyk - Kulik, 2013; www.womgorz.edu.pl; www.lscdn.pl; www.graszkolneniowa.pl):

purposefully organised didactic situation which allows to achieve the set goals, not only didactic ones, but also education-related ones;

explicitly set rules which largely pertain to subject-matter and time limits;

activity of students and other interactions between participants;

introduction of competition.

Didactic games are an effective measure in shaping general competences. Participation in the game reinforces and emotional and motivational sphere of the student. The most important competences developed with games are the following:

teamwork, formation of and leadership in a team;

communication and cooperation, especially active listening, argumentation, asking questions, expressing and accepting criticism, negotiating and coping in conflict situations;

time organisation and management, that is the determination of priorities, classification of tasks, work planning and acting when there is time pressure;

a range of other analytical skills, which include goal determination and critical thinking (Wawrzeńczyk-Kulik, 2013).

Many authors underline that didactic games are an efficient method of developing persistence. Gabriela Kapica claims that they develop willpower, willingness to overcome difficulties and persistence. They bear successes, which evoke optimism and self-faith (Kapica, 1991). Maria Noga adds that "they develop such character traits as regularity, persistence, self-discipline and feeling of justice. They teach how to take up tasks on one's own and how to get on in a peer group" (Noga, 2009).

Persistence in didactic games allows students to overcome problems, see them as effort on their way to success. It increases motivation and optimism concerning learning new things, rules and dependencies. Therefore, participants of games are not discouraged by difficulties and learn from their failures. Such an attitude allows them to develop another competence, that is readiness to cope with risk and running risk.

The didactic game sets students before the necessity to make decisions and be responsible for them. It is connected with acting when there is uncertainty and a chance of failure (Wawrzeńczyk-Kulik, 2013). Participants realise that making decision under risk bears mistakes. Movements at every game stage are the mastering of the previously made, frequently risky, decision and modification of assumed game strategy. It is therefore necessary to use yet another competence in this case, that is critical thinking. It is connected with sober, reasonable and reflexive and logical thinking and investigation. It is characterised by use, analysis and assessment of information obtained from the host or other participants or independent formation of it (www.criticalthinking.pl). Critical thinking is a component of creativity and problem-solving, particularly in crisis. It allows to see differences and make decisions.

Didactic games used in the teaching process are met with growing interest and recognition at schools and in institutions. The recent years have witnessed a some kind of renaissance of games and plays. Learning with them has undisputable didactic merits in comparison to the traditional teaching model (Surdyk, 2009; Kapp, 2012). There are many studies on correlations between the use of didactic plays and games and the effectiveness of teaching many subjects. Johan Huizing Roger Caillois proved the importance of ludic activity as the basic human activity. It is them that are considered the most eminent precursors of ludology (i.e. science dealing with games) (Surdyk, 2009). Other game examiners are for instance as follows: Jespera Juula, Gonzalo Frasca and Markku Eskelinen (Surdyk, 2009). On the other hand, as for Poland what needs to be remembered are the theoretical assumptions set forth by the already-mentioned Wincenty Okoń and Florian Znaniecki.

Studies confirm the attractive and activating function of games. This is so as games teach seeking, creating, consolidating and using necessary information. They allow to go beyond information found in books, bear new ideas, develop social competences and build the foundations for teamwork. Teresa Siek - Piskozub invokes the results of numerous empirical studies which prove increased effectiveness of education with simulation (Siek-Piskozub, 2001).

On the basis of the results of studies by Kapp and Sheldon, it may be assumed that games are an opportunity for teachers to improve the effectiveness of the teaching process. They allow for increasing involvement of students. They are efficient in overcoming significant deficits of traditional teaching methods (Kapp, 2012; Sheldon, 2012). The development of computer technologies more and more frequently allows for a wider use of teaching electronic games.

In January 2004, by the initiative of researchers, academic lecturers, PhD students and students, the Games Research Association of Poland was established. Its main aim is to study widely understood games in many aspects and use them in education as well as promote and develop knowledge on games both in theoretical and practical terms, i.e. creation and distribution of games. The Association promotes the idea of games as a form of creative use of time (Surdyk, 2007).

Location-based game and strategic game on the basis of Poznań

The location-based game is a play performed in the urban area, where the participants solve tasks set in the scenario according to their own variants. The factors decisive in winning are time and number of quality of solved tasks. The game combines components of on-street happenings, stalking and computer games. It is classified as a didactic (simulation) game requiring mental effort, movement-based and sport games requiring physical effort and territorial games requiring special preparation (Warcholik, Leja, 2012).

Location-based games date back to the 1920s and are connected with the United States. In Europe, the first game was organised in 1970s. In Poland, their history is much shorter. The first games were organised here at the turn of the 20th and the 21st century (Warcholik, Leja, 2012).

Browsing through the literature, it is well worth paying attention to an attempt to systematise location-based games. One of the classifications was made by Olga Nowakowska, who divided those games into lover's, commercial and educational (Nowakowska, 2011). Lover's games are organised by private initiative by person or people who do not act commercially, but mainly out of passion. On the other hand, commercial games are mostly organised by touristic companies and advertising companies or travel agencies with view of profit. They are frequently part of city touring during integration or motivation trips (Nowakowska, 2011). Last but not least, the educational game combines practical skills of participants with theoretical knowledge. It serves to obtain new information and it stimulates intellectual activity (Warcholik, Leja, 2012).

The game can have any subject matter. The goal of participants, moving around a city, is to perform tasks and reach the set points, that is places where the so-called agents can wait for them. The give the participants a task to complete. The winner is the participant who completes all tasks the fastest or who has got the best score (Nowakowska, 2011; www.lscdn.pl).

So far, Centre of Professional Counselling for the Youth (CDZdM) in Poznań was twice involved in the organisation of a location-based game in the area of entrepreneurship for students from upper secondary schools. The first edition was held in October 2014, the next one two years later, in October 2016. Every time, the Centre is the content partner of the game and cooperates with associations and foundations from the poviat of Poznań. Their task is to achieve a grant for performance of a public task (a round of a location-based game) from the Poznań City Council and then to settle those funds with the donor - Business and Agriculture Department of the Poznań City Council. The amount of such a grant is PLN 10,000 (EUR 2,380). The content partner is responsible for recruitment of participants and contact with schools and for content-related support.

The aim of the location-based game, in which CDZdM is involved, is to provide the participants with skills useful in establishment and running of their own business, with particular attention drawn to modern business and creativity in seeking the idea for the business activity. Students obtain knowledge on business plan formation rules and establishment of their own business, starting from dreams, through a plan and business concept, and ending on actual implementation.

The game is preceded by a preliminary stage, where the coordination team is created. Its task is to create the terms and conditions, application form, list of Internet tasks, description of stations and instructions for their agents and to create the map of the game. A graphic artist prepares promotional materials (logo, letter sheet, etc.) and the look of the participant sheet. The promotion is performed by means of the traditional and local media and subject-related websites as well as social media. Information is also sent directly to schools. Three-person teams of students of upper secondary schools in Poznan can participate. Recruitment is performed by filling in the application form at the website. At this stage there are no limits as to the number of teams.

The game starts at an Internet stage. Its aim is to provide the game participants with knowledge in the area of entrepreneurship, creation of attitude of in-depth analysis of information about business, investing in oneself and manner of thinking about earning their first money. The condition for participation in the game is to read and accept the terms and conditions and a consent by a parent/legal guardian for participation in the game. The Internet stage is performed via specially designed website and it lasts two weeks. Each task has to be solved within two days. During that time, the participants receive tasks to complete, for which they are granted points by entrepreneurship experts appointed in the game. The task of the experts is also to sent back remarks, reservations and ideas The experts are usually business consultants, employees of Project Coordination and City Revitalisation Bureau, professional economists and bank representatives. A condition for further participation in the game is the completion of tasks within the time limit specified by the organiser. The prepared tasks pertain to the following:

idea for business: description and justification of the idea and its goal;

sales: determination of the strategic client, goal of sales, investigation of the business's environment (competition, suppliers and recipients);

business's resources: financial, tangible and human resources, provided services, prices, distribution and promotion;

concept of business: it contains components included in the third task and additionally includes the strategy and general justification of the idea. It shows components which can prove whether a given idea is feasible;

preparation of a sale strategy: creation of the idea for seals, indication of manner and stages in which it will be carried out;

creation of a product logo and name: preparation of a marketing strategy, general vision on promotion and presentation of the business or a product;

creation of presentation of business's idea; a task summarising the previous tasks. The presentation is prepared in the multimedia form.

In 2016, 41 teams participated in the Internet stage, 10 out of which went through to the on-site stage. Its aim is to familiarise the participants with various types and forms of business activity, teach them how to cooperate and teach them consequences of their choices and how to take risk. At the start, the players receive a starting pack consisting of a T-shirt with the game logo, beverage, snack, compass, map, notebook and pen. Additionally, students and volunteers are covered with accident insurance.

The on-site stage lasts ca. 3 - 4 hours. It is held in the area of the city of Poznań, where there are points where the teams perform various tasks in the area of business activity:

sale of a product to a difficult client: a volunteer plays the role of a difficult client and the participants are to sell them their product;

business promotional campaign: determination of components of promotion adapted to the idea of the business;

creation of a promotional video: assessment of time, idea and used methods;

interview with an entrepreneur; acquisition of information on the specific character of a business or a product, learning about the successes and difficulties of the entrepreneur;

presentation of the business plan: the concept of the business is assessed by a jury.

The game ends once all teams perform the tasks. At each station, the participants receive 0 - 5 points, depending on the quality of performance of a given task. The general score from the Internet and on-site stages are taken into consideration to determine who wins. At the end of the game, in a room at the Poznań City Council the winners will be announced and awarded. Board games were the prize in 2016. The class of the entire ceremony is bettered by the presence of the Mayor of the City of Poznań.

In 2014, 18 people and 10 volunteers participated in the location-based game and in 2016 - 123 people at the Internet stage and 30 participants and 15 volunteers at the on-site stage.

Another example of the simulation-based didactic game is the strategic game. It is frequently referred to as the business simulation game in the literature. It is a form of conducting business activity under virtual, not real, conditions. Its main advantage is the possibility to observe the behaviours and effects of activity of businesses without risk and costs related to experimenting (Gaweł, 2016).

The history of development of simulation games is several thousand years old and pertains to the military. Simulation games used nowadays for education purposes in the area of economy and administration stem from war games. In this day and age, business simulation games appeared in mid-1950s. The first business game was created in the United States in 1956 by American Management Association. In a short time, consulting companies and universities became interested in the games. Over five years they became exceptionally popular and their use for educational purposes soared (Gaweł, 2016; Wawrzeńczyk-Kulik, 2013).

Business games are a simulation of operation of a business or its part. The participants play roles of members of the management of the company. They have to make managing decisions reflecting the operation of the company. Actions are taken with incomplete information on the game and the market. Via the trial-and-error method, the participants can analyse the effects of their decisions. Therefore, they gain better understanding of and insight in various aspects of business management (Gaweł, 2016).

Business simulation games are composed of four parts:

rules showing the types of managing decisions that need to be made and their limitations,

structure indicating the parameters of the game and their correlations,

competition resulting in the situation where decisions made by one team have an impact on the results obtained by all participants of the game,

feedback received after each decision rounds (Gaweł, 2016).

This type of games more and more often employs computer programmes serving to make decisions in the so-called virtual reality. The programmes are developed on the basis of mathematical models reflecting certain market phenomena in simplification (Wawrzeńczyk-Kulik, 2013).

In years 2014 - 2016, by the initiative of the employees of the Centre of Professional Counselling for the Youth and the employees of the Business Faculty at UMP, four editions of a strategic game took place, which were a supplement to class in business basics. The games were held in cooperation with the Poznań University of Economics and Business. They are organised free of charge by one of the game authors, professor Aleksandra Gaweł from the University of Economics and Business.

3- and 5-person teams of students from upper secondary schools in Poznań can sign in. The event is promoted via the website of the Centre, social media and on the basis of the contact database of schools and educators.

The first presented game was developed and implemented as part of project named "Strategic Management Games - innovative teaching method for business education (SMGBE)", number 2011-1-PL1-LEO05-19884, financed as part of programme Leonardo da Vinci, Transfer Innowacji. The project is coordinated by the Poznań University of Economics and Business and implemented in cooperation with University of Graz (Austria), ISM (Lithuania) and the Wielkopolska Chamber of Industry and Commerce (Poland).

The organisation of the game requires the preparation of at least one computer station per group and Internet access. The prerequisite is the registration of all players at website http://bizarena.eu.poznan.pl (Gaweł, 2016).

The participants of the game - on one hand - use their knowledge and skills in the area of entrepreneurship on the basis of their qualifications - they analyse possible options, make decisions and examine the effects of their steps. On the other hand - the seek answers on their own, preparing the most effective strategy of operating on the market (Gaweł, 2016).

During the game, students are divided into teams, where they make decisions connected with the establishment and operation of a virtual enterprise (they e.g. establish the business name, split functions or define the strategy of business operation). The game consists of 10 decision rounds. The winner is the virtual enterprise that develops and releases an assortment of services most adapted to the needs of target groups. Players compete for demand on their services. The make all decisions related to the operation of business, including those connected with marketing policy or human resource management. The game takes nine hours in total and is usually spread over three days. Each game features five competing teams.

The starting market position of each player is the same. The have the same starting capital and identical possibilities to enter the market. They receive PLN one million at the start. Starting with round two, the standing of businesses changes. This is a result of teams making various strategic decisions, which has an effects the financial standing of an enterprise, its demand for service and profitability of sales (Gaweł, 2016).

The winner is the team that has the biggest capital after ten rounds. Each round finishes with feedback showing the effectiveness of the employed strategy. Awards for the participants are closely connected with the theme of the established enterprise.

In the first three editions, each team became a chocolate manufacturer and started to expand onto the European market. In the last edition, the participants established virtual fitness clubs. 65 players participated in all editions. Usually, the games are organised as part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week, becoming an effective tool in entrepreneurship teaching.

Benefits and conclusions

The competences acquired during didactic games, particularly in strategic and location-based games, facilitate the development of entrepreneurial attitudes. The most important benefits from the use of games in the teaching process can be seen from the point of view of three groups of stakeholders: young, entrepreneurial employees, professional consultants and teachers.

The benefits for young, entrepreneurial employees:

learning about new areas of knowledge and their assessment - didactic games evoke positive motivation for learning and they consolidate obtained knowledge. They deepen the interest in the topic, understanding of basic notions in the area of management and they integrate knowledge from various domains;

mastering entrepreneurial skills - the games also make it possible to acquire practical experience in making strategic and tactical decisions related with a virtual enterprise, such as : understanding of market mechanisms of operation of enterprise, solution of micro- and macroeconomic problems connected with the establishment and conduction of one's own business activity. They evoke the willingness to win and stand out. The allow for sense the bitter taste of failure;

acquisition or development of key competences connected with various interactions, such as: development of teamwork skills, persistence, critical thinking and analytical thinking. Games allow for acquisition or strengthening of readiness to act, take risks and assume responsibility. The develop perception and precision (Siek-Piskozub, 1997, Wawrzeńczyk-Kulik, 2013).

Benefits for professional consultants:

increased knowledge on the student - games allow for better insight in professional interests, stronger and weaker spots of young people. They allow to check the competences declared by students. The show team roles and so show the predispositions of the student.

motivation of students to actively seeking new solutions and breaking old patterns - games make competences connected with creative approach to problems and orientation to risk more dynamic;

mastering of the skills required for the capacity of professional consultant and influence in their reputation among students. Games can show creative approach of the consultant to work with students. They present a competent and creative educator open for novelty (Dołęga-Herzog, Rosalska, 2014).

Advantages for teachers:

getting to know the student in various situations - games make it possible to see character traits that are usually not visible. They allow to assess the student's lacks and deficiencies in situations which are not connected with stress;

presentation of issues related to various phenomena, technical processes included in the curriculum - games develop interest in the topic of class and positively influence the relation of the student to the subject (Gulińska, 2008);

more effective educational impact of the teacher during the game - games allow to shift the centre of gravity from the teacher and their teachings to the student and their independent action.

Teachers or professional consultants creating and implementing scenarios of didactic games, particularly location-based and strategic games, should mind several basic activities. They will be decisive in the correct course and effects of games. First of all, the recipient is to be specified. Then, proper level of difficulty is to be selected. It is also important to set the rules binding to all participants. It may be useful to hold an organisational meeting where the rules and conditions of participation in the game will be presented. Increase in the level of students' involvement will depend on the level of variety of tasks. A well conducted play will allow to use the benefits derived from didactic games, that is the development of entrepreneurial and social competences.

From the moment of employment of didactic games in the teaching process, their popularity keeps increasing. They are becoming ever more various, the game market is expanding, and so they become the object of interest on the part of many authors. The issues of games and plays for children and the youth were in Poland touched on by - inter alia - W. Okoń (1987), G. Kapica (1991), T. Siek- Piskozub (1995), Cz. Kupisiewicz (2000), M. Bondarowicz, T. Staniszewski (2000), K. Kruszewski (2005), A. Surdyk (2008 - 2009). It is also possible to familiarise oneself with a ludology-related scientific periodical - and at the same time the official magazine - of "Homo ludens", the Polish Association for Game Studies. As regards foreign literature, it is worth reading the works of the following authors: R. F. Barton (1974), G. Gordon (1974), J. Huizinga (1985), R. Caillois (1997), I. Flemming (1998), D. Chauvel , V. Michel (1999), R. Portmann (2001), J. Juul (2003).

References

Dołęga - Herzog H., Rosalska M., 2014. Wykorzystywanie metod kreatywnych w przygotowaniu uczniów do wyboru zawodu. Propozycje rozwiązań metodycznych, Warsaw: Koweziu.

Faria, A. J., Nulsen, R.O., 1996. Business Simulation Games: Current Usage Levels. A ten Year Update. Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Exercises, 23/1996.

Galant J., 1987. Dostrzeganie i rozwiązywanie problemów w klasach początkowych. Warsaw: WSiP.

Gaweł A., 2016. The Managment of Virtual Games During the Education Process [in:] Perspectives on Computer Gaming in Higher Education red. Wach - Kąkolewicz A., Muffoletto R.,. Poznań: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Bogucki.

Gaweł, A., 2006. Wirtualne gry strategiczne - narzędzie edukacji przedsiębiorczej czy eksperymentalna metoda badawcza w badaniach nad przedsiębiorczością, Przedsiębiorczość - edukacja, 12/2006.

Grzesiak J., 1984. Gry i zabawy matematyczne - zadania dla dzieci w młodszym wieku szkolnym. Życie szkoły, 4/1984.

Gulińska, H., 2008. Gry edukacyjne w nauczaniu chemii [in:] Homo communicativus red. Surdyk, A., Szeja, J.Z., 2(4)/2008. Poznań: UAM.

Kapp, K.M.,2012. The Gamification of Learning and Instruction. San Francisco: Pfeiffer.

Kruszewski, K., 2005. Gry dydaktyczne [in:} Kruszewski K. (ed.) Sztuka nauczania. Czynności nauczyciela. Podręcznik akademicki. Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Król R., 2007. Efektywność gier dydaktycznych w procesie kształcenia. Kraków: Oficyna Wydawnicza Impuls.

Kupisiewcz, Cz.,, Kupisiewicz, M., 2009. Słownik pedagogiczny, Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.

Kupisiewicz, Cz., 2000. Dydaktyka ogólna, Warsaw: Oficyna Wydawnicza Graf Punkt.

Noga, M., 2009. Zabawa jako źródło twórczych działań dziecka, [in:] Dziecko w świecie zabawy, [ed.] B. Dymary, Kraków: Oficyna Wydawnicza Impuls.

Nowakowska O., Wszystko gra! Gry miejskie w przestrzeni Warszawy, Homo Ludens, no. 1(3)2011.

Okoń, W, 2007. Nowy słownik pedagogiczny. Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Akademickie Żak.

Okoń, W.,1987. Zabawa a rzeczywistość. Warsaw: Wydawnictwa Szkolne i Pedagogiczne.

Sheldon, L., 2012. The Mulitiplayer Classroom. Boston: Course Technology.

Siek - Piskozub T., 1995. Gry, zabawy i symulacje w procesie glottodydaktycznym. Poznań: Academic Publishing House of Adam Mickiewicz University.

Siek - Piskozub, T., 2001. Uczyć się bawiąc. Strategia ludyczna na lekcji języka obcego. Warsaw: PWN.

Surdyk, A., 2007. Charakter i cele Polskiego Towarzystwa Badania Gier oraz perspektywy badań nad grami w Polsce, Kulturotwórcza funkcja gier - Gra jako medium, tekst i rytuał, [ed.] Surdyk, A., Szeja, J., volume I, Academic Publishing House of Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań

Surdyk, A., 2008. Edukacyjna funkcja gier w dobie „cywilizacji zabawy". Homo communicativus 3(5)/2008.

Surdyk, A.,2009. Status naukowy ludologii. Przyczynek do dyskusji. Homo Ludens: PTBG.

Szlosek, F., 1995. Wstęp do dydaktyki przedmiotów zawodowych. Radom: Wydawnictwo ITE.

Warcholik, W., Leja, K. 2011. Gry miejskie jako innowacyjne produkty turystyczne, Kraków: Annales Universitatis Paedagogicae Cracoviensis,Studia Geographica III/2012, Academic Publishing House of Pedagogical University of Cracow.

Wawrzeńczyk - Kulik, M., Symulacyjna gra decyzyjna jako narzędzie wspomagające nauczanie w ramach przedmiotu „Podstawy przedsiębiorczości". Zeszyty Naukowe WSEi seria Ekonomia, Volume 6 (1/2013).

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A didactic game is construed as some sort of game where set rules are observed. It is an educating tool serving the didactic purpose. An important aspect of the game is to achieve a strictly defined score. Competences acquired when playing didactic games, e.g.

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It can be a struggle to continually maintain student engagement in the classroom. Game-based learning is an excellent way to boost engagement, but it can be tricky to know how to get started. Fortunately, there are faculty leading the way in game-based curriculum - with impressive results.

Cheryl Bodnar, Assistant Professor of Experiential Engineering Education at Rowan University and VentureWell Faculty Grant recipient, is a longtime implementer and advocate of game-based learning. Gamification became a go-to pedagogy for Bodnar when she noticed that students quickly engaged in game-based learning; they were hooked while wanting to master the game. Her classroom successes were supported by literature stating that people who experience these types of authentic learning experiences retain information for months and years after.

Clemson University professors Erica Walker and Bre Przestrzelski worked with VentureWell Faculty Grant recipient John Desjardins to transition a Senior Design course from being lecture-based to being game-based. As Walker and Przestrzelski shared in a at our 2017 conference, students in the game-based course learned the required material equally as well as the students enrolled in the lecture-based course. However, student groups from the game-based course had more positive working relationships within their teams and exhibited more entrepreneurial-related skills. Visit gamebasedbioe.com to learn more about the innovative game-based classes developed at Clemson University.

We recently spoke with these professors about best practices for game-based learning in the classroom. Below is a highlight of their key learnings and recommendations.

Collaborate with Game Designers or Adopt Existing Games

Educators shouldn't feel pressure to reinvent the wheel when it comes to game-based learning for the classroom. One approach is partnering with professional game designers when incorporating games into a course. "Educators have a clear understanding of learning objectives, but don't necessarily know what makes a game successful," said Bodnar. "That's why games they create can sometimes feel like work rather than fun."

Building partnerships with professional game designers can really help - and designers are typically very happy to help. Some examples of educational game developers include , which was created as part of the Ideas at Play Workshop at the VentureWell OPEN 2015 conference. MIT's Serious Games Lab , Kurt Squire , Schell Games , and Carnegie Mellon's Simon Initiative
Even if an educator has experience integrating games, Bodnar recommends looking for and adopting or adapting a game that already exists. "There are already many tried and true games available on the market," said Bodnar. For a starter kit, she recommends the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Games Toolkit

Consider Learning Objectives While Developing Game-Based Curriculum

Game-based learning is only beneficial if it relates to desired course outcomes. Bodnar always considers the learning objectives when incorporating games into the curriculum. The professors from Clemson used a Design Canvas to identify learning objectives or key takeaways for each lecture. "These are the points where the instructor might say 'if you remember one thing from today, this would be it,'" said Walker.

Walker also suggests using games as a way to discreetly combine difficult course content with opportunities to practice different skills in a low-stakes, engaging environment. "Games can trick students into learning while they engage with the material," said Walker. "The students benefit from experiencing an interactive classroom in which they actually learn material rather than just memorize it for an exam."

Use Game-Based Learning to Boost Students' Skills in Other Areas

Game-based courses also offer students the opportunity to learn or hone critical soft skills, which can be difficult to develop in the context of an engineering class. A particular favorite of Bodnar's is the game ROYGBIV. "This game helps students work on those important soft skills like oral communication and collaboration," said Bodnar. "The game also breaks down social barriers and prepares students for the sometimes daunting task of networking during school and beyond."

Clemson students also gained additional skills from the game-based course. "We saw students from the game-based classroom develop more positive working relationships within their teams," said Walker. "Interviews with those students also revealed increased self-efficacy in areas relating to entrepreneurship and 21st century skills such as teamwork, perseverance, communication, and leadership."

Plan When and How to Integrate a Game into the Classroom

It's important to think about when and how to integrate games into a course to best meet specific learning objectives. For example, Bodnar sometimes introduces a game as an icebreaker to lead in to a specific subject without sharing topic specifics with the students; it's only in the debrief with the students that the topic is revealed. She also incorporates a game in the middle of the class to break things up and reinforce learning that has already occurred on a specific topic.

For the Clemson course, Walker and Przestrzelski faced the challenge of keeping many students engaged in large classrooms. To help determine the right time to incorporate a game-intensive lesson into the class, the professors met weekly to address potential issues that may come up during the game play. The weekly meetups allowed the professors to brainstorm class facilitation plans and keep students on track.

Debrief with Students and Faculty Regularly

Successful game-based courses are often the result of an iterative design process. A key component of the process is debriefing with students and faculty. A debrief with students is important for two reasons: it's helpful for them to process their learnings, and it's insightful for instructors to hear how the students benefitted (or didn't benefit) from the experience.

Walker and Przestrzelski also gained insights from weekly reflection time regarding what worked and what to do differently next time. That included soliciting feedback from students to help iterate and improve game plans. "We conducted several rounds of feedback and iteration to ensure that the games actually addressed teaching objectives and prepared the students for meeting the course requirements and doing well on the exams," said Walker.

Game-based learning can help educators engage today's increasingly tech-distracted students. Before introducing games into a learning environment, try to find or design the right game that aligns with the teaching objectives. Use game-based learning as an opportunity to help students develop other skills they normally wouldn't gain in a lecture-based classroom. Ensure a successful integration of games into the classroom by soliciting feedback from students and other faculty to help fine tune the curriculum or the teaching process.
Content from this post originally appeared in two LinkedIn articles by VentureWell Senior Program Officer, Victoria Matthew : Using Game-Based Learning to Increase Student Engagement and How and Why to Integrate Game-Based Learning into Your Classes.

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Activities for Teaching Innovation: Game-Based Learning in the Classroom

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It can be a struggle to continually maintain student engagement in the classroom. Game-based learning is an excellent way to boost engagement, but it can be tricky to know how to get started. Fortunately, there are faculty leading the way in game-based curriculum - with impressive results.

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by Mike Acedo

It is well known, that the 21st century student is constantly bombarded with digital imagery. Whether it is from television, social media, advertisers, or smart phones, the relentless visual stimulation that students face has some declaring it as detrimental to student development.

It is argued that with so much visual stimulation, it had become harder for students to keep their focus, hampering concentration, and hindering their ability to process information. Though this can be debated, it imperative that teachers take the necessary steps to combat these potential negative effects. This has forced teachers to recognize the importance of imagery and it's use in their classrooms.

It is important for students to be able to use images as a tool to advance their own knowledge and achievement. In this capacity, students are able to think abstractly about complex ideas and information, transforming the curriculum into more of a narrative they can absorb through creative imagery. There are several ways teachers can use images to extract the inherent creativity from their students, while simultaneously promoting deep thought, and honing their attention to detail.
5 Smart Ways To Use Digital Images In The Classroom

In many aspects of education, a student's true potential shines through when the subject is personal to them.

Teachers can tap into this in a variety of ways; such as having students create visual biographies that represent their lives. Students can find powerful images online or through social media, and compile them in a slide show that highlights their past, present, and future.

These images can symbolize important events, people, or places in their lives. They can also be representative of each student's personal goals, interests, and future aspirations. This will not only tap into the student's creative nature, but will also encourage them to think deeply about which images truly embody them, and their aspirations.

Slideshows can subsequently be presented to the class, giving classmates the opportunity to peek into the personalities of their peers. Students can comment on the images, draw similarities to their own lives, and build stronger class camaraderie.

This can be a fun and effective way for students to use imagery as a tool to express themselves, foster creativity, and learn about their classmates.

Visual biographies are not the only way to utilize images in the classroom. Pictures can also be used as a way to represent student understanding of material. Photo essays are an excellent way to accomplish this, and can be applied to any subject.

To achieve this, students can work in teams or independently compile digital images that pertain to a relevant topic. Captions can be added to each photo, explaining the photo's relation to the subject and giving insight into the student's thought process.

This can be a little tricky, as student interpretations are relative to their own personal understanding. Therefore, it is important for educators to use discretion when implementing this tactic, and make sure students make a clear relation between the image and the subject matter.

A prime example can be gathering images of a historical event, and comparing them to images of similar current events. Students can then draw similarities between past and present issues, and draw conclusions on how those issues can be prevented.

Another example is inviting students to utilize their phone cameras to document the step-by-step process of a science experiment. This will not only allow students to use the technology that is integrated in their lives, but also enable them to use it as a way that enhances their learning experience.

Teachers and students can get creative in how they wish to incorporate images. However, using images as a way to measure understanding not only taps into student ingenuity and resourcefulness, but also emphasizes quality in all facets of student work.

Through incorporating digital images in the class, teachers can encourage students to create narratives for particular pictures. Many students have taken exams or had homework assignments that display an image, and ask the students to write a story describing what is happening. This can be an excellent exercise that not only stimulates student imagination, but tests their focus and attention to detail.

Teachers may find a photograph online, display it in class, and invite students to create a narrative for the image. Ask students to identify certain details of the image, such as the setting, the characters, and what is happening. Have students discern the emotions of the characters based on their body language. Are they happy, concerned, upset? Why? Is there a conflict? What can be a resolution?

Students can brainstorm as a class or in groups, feeding off each other's inductive reasoning. Afterward, students can be instructed write a short reflection based on what they see in the image. This can be a useful exercise that empowers students to use inductive reasoning to tell a story. Each story can be different based on individual interpretation, which empowers students to freely exercise their originality and inductive skills without fearing failure or ridicule.

In today's society, it is vital that students are aware of what is happening in the world. Therefore, involving students in photojournalism can present a number of benefits, including an appreciation for the education you provide them!

In class, educators can use photos to inform students of current events and also invite them to do their own research on the images. By projecting an image in the class, teachers can provoke deep thought from students as they ponder the issues the image represents.

Teachers can encourage students to ask questions, write a reflection, or procure their own photos or political cartoons to present to the class as weekly assignment.

Photojournalism can be a very powerful way to engage students in deep and complex issues. It is also an effective way for students to communicate their own opinions, and encourages them to choose images that draw attention to issues that are important to them.

In any language arts course, images can be a useful tool for students to build on vocabulary and word association. By presenting a carefully selected group of images, teachers provide a tangible example of the words they are trying to teach. Furthermore, it makes it easier for student to remember new words, as they are automatically associated with the visual representation.

Educators can also experiment in exercises that allow students to draw vocabulary from images. One can present a selected group of images to the class, and allow students to work together to extract as many adjectives as they can out of the image.

This is a simple, but effective way to get kids thinking creatively about what they see in images. Educators may even transform the exercise into a game, assigning points to students who come up with the most creative descriptions or analogies.
Conclusion
In today's classrooms, teachers need every resource at their disposal to attract the attention of their students.

As students are being constantly visually stimulated, the use of imagery in the classroom can be a very useful and effective tool. Images allow students to tap in to their inherent creative nature, while promoting attention to detail, critical thinking, and resourcefulness. It also allows students to process deep and complex issues in abstract, and mentally stimulating ways. It makes sense that every classroom incorporate images in some way, as it is a very efficient method in advancing student learning and achievement.
5 Smart Ways To Use Digital Images In The Classroom; image attribution flickr user ap and woodleywonderworks
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5 Smart Ways To Use Digital Images In The Classroom

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by Mike Acedo It is well known, that the 21st century student is constantly bombarded with digital imagery. Whether it is from television, social media, advertisers, or smart phones, the relentless visual stimulation that students face has some declaring it as detrimental to student development.

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18 digital game based learning - learning and teaching through having fun

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Gamify learning Learning and Teaching through having fun CITERS 2011 @Hong Kong University June 30 th 2011 Frankie Tam, FifthWisdom Technology Limited Cl...

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Today's students are surrounded by visual media in their everyday lives. With their heavy use of the Internet, they are accustomed to accessing information in both textual and visual forms. The use of images in the classroom is a pedagogical strategy aimed at engaging students who have grown up in a media-rich environment. Digital technology has made images more readily available and easier to incorporate into teaching and learning materials.

While teaching with images has been at the core of disciplines like art history for decades, all courses can benefit from the use of visual materials in class lectures, assignments, exercises, and resources. Images can be an effective way of presenting abstract concepts or groups of data. Instructors have reported that their use of images in the classroom has led to increased student interactivity and discussion. Teaching with images can also help develop students' visual literacy skills, which contributes to their overall critical thinking skills and lifelong learning.

Finding images
While a Google Image Search, which draws from the many images available on the Web, can be useful for finding a specific or obscure image, there are problems associated with this method. Google retrieves images based on the text appearing nearby or on the image file names, often resulting in hundreds of unrelated results that have nothing to do with your subject. In addition, images posted to the Web may have incomplete or incorrect data attached and may have rights restrictions. Finally, the images found by Google are often of insufficient resolution for classroom projection or printing.

High quality images can be found through the Johns Hopkins Libraries, which provide access to a number of specialized image resources. These databases provide downloadable, high-resolution images, include reliable information about the images, and allow advanced search capabilities. The resources include:

ARTstor, a database of over one million images in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.

Digital Image Database at JHU (DID@JHU) provides JHU faculty and students with access to thousands of images in a variety of subjects. You can also request to add images for specific courses to the database.

Accunet/AP Multimedia Archive, a database of images, audio files and texts from 160 years of news and world events.

There are thousands of free, public domain images available through the U.S. government, easily searchable at the USA.gov website.

The Image Research Guide contains search tips, information about copyright and publications, and subject-specific web recommendations.

The CER has a list of websites containing freely available images and multimedia for educational use

Copyright & Permissions
While technology has made it easier than ever to download, manipulate, and re-publish images, it has also made it easier to inadvertently violate the copyrights associated with them. The use of copyrighted images foreducational purposes is allowed under the Fair Use exemptions to the US Copyright Act. As there are several factors to take into account when determining whether your use of an image may be considered a fair use, it is a good idea to familiarize yourself with these criteria. Many image databases and websites will stipulate the extent to which educational use of their materials is permitted.

There are resources available online to help guide you in determining whether your use qualifies under the Fair Use exemptions.

In addition, there are some best practices to follow to facilitate the legal and ethical use of images. These include:

Restrict online access to images to class members only. Post images to a password-protected website or space, such as Blackboard, or in a shared folder in ARTstor or the Digital Image Database (DID@JHU). If you're not sure how to do this, consult your Research Services Librarian or a CER staff member.

If you are posting or publishing images to a forum that is open to members of the public, use public domain or Creative Commons-licensed images.

Uses of Images
Images will be more effective in the classroom if they are meaningfully integrated into course curricula. Think of ways images can support the delivery of content, illustrate class themes, serve as primary research materials, or be built into assignments.

If you would like to learn more about integrating visual materials into your teaching, contact Macie Hall, Instructional Designer, CER: macie.hall@jhu.edu. The following are additional resources on how to use images in the curriculum:

Some ways you can introduce images into your course materials:

Presentations in PowerPoint, Keynote, the ARTstor Offline Viewer, or the DID@JHU image viewer

Blackboard resources

Other learning tools, such as the CER's Timeline Creator or Interactive Map Tool

Primary source materials: photographs as historic documents, maps to inform urban planning and site architecture, diagrams and technical drawings to show the evolution of bridge design, or medical images to practice diagnosis

Class assignments: images can be powerful as illustrations, didactic materials, or stimulating starting points for structured writing exercises

Adrienne Lai, Emerging Technologies Services Librarian, North Carolina State University Libraries

Ms. Lai was the 2008/9 Art Libraries Society of North America Intern and did her internship at Sheridan Libraries and Department of the History of Art, Johns Hopkins University. She wrote the original Innovative Instructor print series article, Teaching with Images, adapted for this blog post. She completed Master's Degrees in Library Studies and Archival Studies at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC, Canada and holds a Master's Degree in Fine Arts from the University of California, Irvine. She came to the library profession from several years of teaching art, art history, and cultural and media studies at art colleges in Canada and the US, and is interested in the possibilities of collaborative instructional efforts between libraries, faculty, and technology.

Image Source: Images in the collage were obtained from USA.gov Photos and Images and include images from NASA, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, and National Agricultural Library, ARS, USDA.

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Today's students are surrounded by visual media in their everyday lives. With their heavy use of the Internet, they are accustomed to accessing information in both textual and visual forms. The use of images in the classroom is a pedagogical strategy aimed at engaging students who have grown up in a media-rich environment.

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USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS AS A POWERFUL TOOL IN TEACHING/LEARNING ENVIRONMENT: AN EXPERIENCE - IATED Digital Library

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Information about the paper titled "USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS AS A POWERFUL TOOL IN TEACHING/LEARNING ENVIRONMENT: AN EXPERIENCE" at IATED Digital Library

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Multiple Intelligence: The theory of multiple intelligences suggests that there are a number of distinct forms of intelligence that each individual possesses in varying degrees. Gardner proposes eight primary forms: naturalistic, linguistic, musical, logical-mathematical, spatial, body-kinesthetic, intrapersonal and interpersonal. A number of others also suggest an additional one: technological.

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Educational Games

While playing games is a great leisure activity that people of all ages can enjoy, games can also be used for learning and educational experiences. Some games have been found to improve cognitive functions like memory and reasoning. Other games have the potential to reverse aging related brain function problems such as short term memory loss.

The decision making processes required to play certain games makes the brain work hard. These cognitive exercises can range from simple decisions to the formulation of complex strategies. Children and adults of all ages can benefit from the mental stimulation that game-based learning provides.

Game Based Learning Explained

Game-based learning is a teaching method that allows learners to explore different parts of games as a form of learning. Games can be designed by teachers and other education specialists in a way that balances academic subjects such as history with the strategies, rules and social aspects of playing a game.

As a side-effect of technological growth, game-based learning often generates negative connotations because of its close association with video games, which inevitably raises questions about its consequences. However, these games are typically designed at different ability levels and with the goal of helping the players to retain the information that they learn and apply it to other problem solving situations. Many of these games are relevant to real life situations and will help children to make informed decisions when doing so matters.

Game-based learning can also be done as a collaboration between learners and educators. This type of game creation enhances the playing experience and can lead to a depth and scope of game that are not available through other types of learning experiences.

Motivation and Engagement

Games feel more like a form of entertainment than a method of learning. Because games include rules, definitive objectives, measurable goals and competition, they deliver an interactive experience that promotes a sense of achievement for all of the participants.

Learners are often motivated by hands-on and active learning opportunities. The students are able to work on accomplishing a goal by choosing specific actions. They experience the consequences of the actions, which is one of the ways that a game-based learning experience is similar to real life.

The engagement between learners keeps them coming back to learn even more. The ongoing practices of decision making, planning and learning in a game environment are easy to translate to everyday situations that children will face as they become older.

Immediate Feedback

Learners benefit from the immediate feedback that takes place during game playing. Instead of having to wait days or even weeks for an assignment or test grade, students get instantaneous results about whether or not they made a good decision. They also get to find out the long-term effects of their decision making. One decision at the beginning of a game could have lasting effects throughout play. The rapid feedback helps kids realize when they made a good decision or a bad one.

Educators are able to get rapid feedback by watching how the children engage and react. While playing a game, children also have the freedom to make mistakes without any major consequences of physical or mental harm. They can experiment in a safe environment while playing games. Any mistakes that are made can be discussed in a group setting afterward. This allows students to reflect on what they did and perhaps change their strategy for the next time.

Cognitive Growth

Each time children play the same game, they perform cognitive actions such as recalling the rules, keeping track of hazards and remembering how the sequence of play works. Kids utilize their strategic thinking skills, including using logic to make sound decisions and to plan ahead by making predictions about what might happen next.

Children also develop strong problem solving skills. They will need to think quickly on the spot without being able to hesitate, which is a skill that will serve them throughout their lives. Learners also learn how to think creatively and plan out their moves a few steps ahead. Educational games can result in higher retention rates compared to book learning.

Digital Literacy

Digital literacy is also present in gaming and is an important skill for a lifetime of technology use. The Global Digital Citizen Foundation found that students need to acquire basic skills such as problem solving, developing creativity, analytic thinking and collaboration with others. Other important skills kids must have in the digital age include strong communication skills, ethics and accountability.

Skills Development

Educational games allow kids to practice and develop physical skills such as hand-eye coordination. They can also work on spatial skills and fine motor skills. Interactive games help kids to do this in an integrated learning environment.

Game-based learning allows kids to develop cognitive, social and physical skills simultaneously. This learning enhances essential life skills like cooperation and teamwork. The knowledge and skills acquired through game-based learning are retained longer than information from other learning methods.

Be sure to check out our articles on various educational games you can include in your classroom!

Image by Jan Kosmowski from Pixabay
About the Author: Joe Peters is a freelance writer and an ultimate tech enthusiast from Baltimore. When he is not working his magic as a marketing consultant, this incurable tech junkie enjoys reading about latest apps and gadgets or binge-watching his favorite TV shows. Feel free to reach him on

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While playing games is a great leisure activity that people of all ages can enjoy, games can also be used for learning and educational experiences. Some games have been found to improve cognitive functions like memory and reasoning. Other games have the potential to reverse aging related brain function problems such as short term memory loss.

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Understanding The Power Of Visuals: The Advantages Of Visual Learning
Which of the following will appeal to a student more?

Textual description of a chemical process.

A video or pictorial representation of that chemical process.

A majority will learn better with the second option. It's simply because visuals hold more appeal than plain text to those curious and intuitive young minds.

Till date, several studies have been conducted which prove the power of visual aids in eLearning. And there are some interesting results drawn from them. Such as, learners respond to visual information faster as compared to text only materials. Also, visuals help improve learning tremendously and on multiple levels. Hence, around 65% of the population comprises visual learners.

There are several advantages of visual aids. Let's learn what they are to help you better understand the power of visuals in eLearning:

1. Help Store Information Longer

Images are the simplest and the most effective way to make sure that the information gets stored as a long-term memory. As per Dr. Lynell Burmark, an education consultant, our short term memory processes words and can only retain about seven bits of information. Whereas, images are directly processed by our long-term memory, where they get indelibly etched.

2. Make Communication Quicker And Simpler

Information listed in bullets is no doubt simpler to process. But, that same information in the form of an image or a video is processed even more quickly. As per the Visual Teaching Alliance -

Of all the information transmitted to brain, 90% is visual.

As opposed to text, visuals are processed 60,000x faster.

Humans are capable of getting the sense of a visual scene in less than 1/10th of a second.

40% of nerve fibres are linked to the retina.

Our brain can see images that last for only 13 milliseconds.

Human eye can register 36,000 visual messages every hour.

Hence, the eLearning programs which incorporate suitable visuals gain a higher preference over the text-only ones.

3. Aid Better Comprehension

Visuals help learners grasp concepts easily by stimulating imagination and affecting their cognitive capabilities. Besides, the visual language is also known to have the potential to stretch 'human bandwidth' - which comprises absorbing, comprehending and analysing new information. For example, the infographic below represents how we are pre-wired to automatically interpret relationships between objects which ensures instant comprehension with almost zero effort:

4. Act As Stimulators For Emotions

Emotions and visual information are processed in the same part of the human brain. Visual stimuli and emotional response are linked in a simple way and these two together generate what we call memories. Hence, powerful images and visual metaphors create strong impressions and lasting memories in learners.

5. Drive Motivation

Most of the students struggle with some of their subjects because they find them uninteresting and hence lack the motivation to put in the required efforts. Visuals are the best bet in such scenarios. Captivating images, engaging videos, interesting info graphics, etc. help learners fight the boredom and motivate them to do better.

6. Unsuitable Visuals Equals Unhappy Learners

The positive aspects of visuals hold true only when they are used appropriately. The quality and relevance of visuals matter a lot. Say for example, you have the most meaningful images, charts and videos which make your online tutorial way better than those of your competitors. But, if the images are of low resolution or pixelated, they fail to solve their purpose and the learner loses interest. Apart from poor quality, if the visual aids are generic in nature and fail to explain the subject in a specific and clear way, it will not appeal to the learners.

The images which will add value to your course material and actually help the learners should meet the following requirements:

Simplify the difficult-to-understand and text heavy topics.

Explain using actual people, places, or objects.

Help the learners connect the familiar materials with the unfamiliar.

Hence, the key is to treat visuals like power boosters for your eLearning courses. If irrelevant they can cause distractions from the actual topic and in worst case scenarios, put off your audience. But, if used effectively, it can add value to your online tutorials and draw more learners to your online education platform.

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Visual Learning: 6 Reasons Why Visuals Are The Most Powerful Aspect Of eLearning

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Which of the following will appeal to a student more? Textual description of a chemical process. A video or pictorial representation of that chemical process. A majority will learn better with the second option. It's simply because visuals hold more appeal than plain text to those curious and intuitive young minds.

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In terms of mental images, the literature review mentioned above emphasizes that children should be trained in how to use imagery so that positive effects are seen. One type of effective training consists of instructing children to mentally visualize a word, then a sentence, then a paragraph and then a whole text. Structure words can also be introduced to help with the mental task. For example, instructing students to imagine the number, size, shape, colour, background, movement, etc.

In summary, the use of dual-coding has gained popularity in schools. That is, teachers and students are becoming aware that combining verbal and non-verbal information facilitates understanding. New research also indicates that creating mental visualization enhances learning and boosts reading comprehension.

When you go to school tomorrow, don't forget your crayons and your imagination!

References:

(1) Clark, J. M., & Paivio, A. (1991). Dual coding theory and education. Educational Psychology Review, 3, 149-210.

(2) Godden, D. R., & Baddeley, A. D. (1975). Context‐dependent memory in two natural environments: On land and underwater. British Journal of Psychology, 66, 325-331.

(3) Bramao, I., Karlsson, A., & Johansson, M. (2017). Mental reinstatement of encoding context improves episodic remembering. Cerebral Cortex, 94, 15-26.

(4) Cuevas, J., & Dawson, B. L. (2017). A test of two alternative cognitive processing models: Learning styles and dual coding. Theory and Research in Education, 1-21.

(5) De Koning, B. B., & van der Schoot, M. (2013). Becoming part of the story! Refuelling the interest in visualization strategies for reading comprehension. Educational Psychology Review, 25, 261-287.

(6) Van Meter, P., Aleksic, M., Schwartz, A., & Garner, J. (2006). Learner-generated drawing as a strategy for learning from content area text. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 31, 142-166.

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In terms of mental images, the literature review mentioned above emphasizes that children should be trained in how to use imagery so that positive effects are seen. One type of effective training consists of instructing children to mentally visualize a word, then a sentence, then a paragraph and then a whole text.