"I have never seen a good educational game. It's crap for 30 years." - Brenda Laurel

1. Case study of Global Conflicts: Middle EastAssistant Professor Simon Egenfeldt-NielsenIT-University CopenhagenCEO Serious Games InteractiveCopenhagen, 15th May 2006 "I have never seen a good educational game. It's crap for 30 years."- Brenda Laurel “…develop games which contain advanced content, operate according to sound pedagogical principles, enable classroom customisation, and create real excitement within the core game market” - Henry Jenkins

2. My background IT-University Cph. Research in educational potential of games Serious Games Company pursuing development of serious games Framfab Webbureau worked with internet, games and children. Books ‘Den digitale leg – om børn og computerspil’ ‘Digitale udfordringer – informationsteknologi i en skole under forandring’

3. What is a serious game • In principal, any game • Games with an agenda • Educating, enlightening.. • Not only entertaining • Edutainment • Advertainment • Business games • Military games • Political games • Satirical games

4. Problems with edutainment Little intrinsic motivation: Extrinsic motivation through rewards, rather than intrinsic motivation. No integrated learning experience: Lacks integration of the learning experience with playing experience - learning subordinated play experience. Drill-and-practice learning principles: Rely on drill-and-practice rather than understanding – training above learning. No teacher presence: No demands on teachers or parents. Simple gameplay: Built on a simple gameplay from classic titles. Small budgets: Produced on limited budgets with limited technology.

5. Edutainment lacks balance Most of what goes under the name "edutainment" reminds me of George Bernard Shaw's response to a famous beauty who speculated on the marvelous child they could have together: "With your brains and my looks ..." He retorted, "But what if the child had my looks and your brains?" (Papert, 1998: 1)

6. Edutainment crisis

7. Current Research project:Educational Potential of Commercial Game technology • Vision • Goals • Prototype • Learning approach • Teaching • Design process • Classroom use

8. Vision Next generation educational games based on commercial game technology. Involves IT-University Copenhagen, Over The Edge, EA Europe, Alinea, UN Association, a number of schools and several content experts. Create computer games with an agenda beyond entertainment

9. Teaser • Prototype as shared communication space • Growing out of international research • Mix of competences: Gamedevelopers, researchers, educators and content experts • Collaborate with companies • Global outreach through strong network • Strong technology and access to support

10. Research Goals • Explore whether educational computer games have a future in the educational system and the form it may take. • Explore, develop and implement a prototypical educational computer game examining the challenges and possibilities in development process and the educational use of the title • Provide a foundation for a serious games research-based industry through a prototype convincing other developers of the potential in developing educational computer games beyond low-budget titles

11. Play trailer “I learned more history in one day than the last 6 months” Highschool student

12. Play trailer

13. What problems did we try to solve • Perpective: Provide different perspectives on a topic • Involvement: Provide involvement in a topic • Engagement: Make the students feel they make a difference • Realism & atmosphere: Develop realistic atmosphere • Curriculum ties: Fit it in with curriculum

14. Learning approach • Experiential learning: Concrete to abstract • Features: Audiovisual, safety, challenge, interaction, feedback • Strong game universe: Compelling, realistic, engaging • Different forms: Dialogue, group discussions and plenum • Trust & points: Very strong, use to guide and give feedback • Personal stories makes the conflict more present

15. Teaching • Integrated teaching approach: Game, background material, teacher’s manual, primary sources and encyklopedia • Subjects: History, citizensship, geography, english, religion (Cross-disciplinary) • Other skills: Problem-solving, critical thinking, ICT, • Little time to use the game as a educational tool, a one day session could work • Generally, teachers don’t understand playing games as a educational tool, must be taught how to use games

16. Problems in design process so far • Right balance between competences • Terminology between competences • Opposing views on content • Time pressure (dev., content, iterations) • Coordination process • Technology takes much focus, especially early • Hard to change design based on input

17. Problems in classroom use so far • Complexity & branching in content • Triggering reflection • Technical problems limited • Keeping game serious but engaging • Linking to teaching and textbooks • Balance between points, score and learning • Teachers reluctant to engage with games • Teachers and students quite interested • Very different ways of playing

18. Students want more... • 85% students find it to be an interesting course • 72% students find the game is an interesting educational material • 58 % of students find they learned more than usually • 89% of students want to try a similar course again Sample: 51 Danish High school low-middle class students after a one-week course

19. Contact Slides at www.itu.dk/people/sen/public.htm sen@itu.dk Links: http://www.seriousgames.dk http://game.itu.dk http://www.game-research.com