Introduction to games
Overview of course ...................................................................................................... 2
Learning outcomes ....................................................................................................... 2
The Practitioner Research Cycle .................................................................................. 3
Course information ...................................................................................................... 4
Course schedule ........................................................................................................... 4
Getting started .............................................................................................................. 5
Games-based learning and game identification ........................................................... 6
Lesson planning ........................................................................................................... 8
Reflect, evaluate and share with others........................................................................ 8
Group tutorial, and evaluation and certification .......................................................... 9
References .................................................................................................................. 10
Acknowledgements .................................................................................................... 14
1
Overview of course
This course provides an introduction to games in the classroom. Research has
shown that well planned lessons which incorporate games can achieve a range of
educational benefits. These can include the development of skills such as
communication, problem solving and digital skills, and the enhancement of
knowledge and understanding.
Games are hugely popular with young people and playing computer games at
school can provide a means of overcoming the ‘digital disconnect’ which can exist
between children's and young people's home and school learning. This short course
will:

introduce teachers with no or little gaming experience to different genres of
computer games
 introduce teachers to the theory underpinning games-based learning
 enable teachers to identify a relevant online game and plan a lesson that uses
the game to achieve the desired learning goals.
The course will focus on freely available online games which can provide a starting
point for exploring their use in the classroom without investment in hardware and
software. At the conclusion of this course you will have developed a lesson plan
ready for implementation in your classroom.
Learning outcomes
At the completion of this course, you should be able to demonstrate the following
outcomes:
Professional and reflective practitioner skills

be aware of available online games and how to link them to your curriculum
plans
 be able to reflect on, and discuss, the impact of the use of games to support
learning
Practical skills

be able to support learning through the selection and use of online games in
lessons
Knowledge and understanding

be able to demonstrate an understanding of what constitutes an online game
and how it fits within game genres more generally
 be able to demonstrate an understanding of the benefits of games-based
learning in teaching and learning
2
Cognitive skills


be aware of how to critically review the use of games to support learning
be able to share these reviews with others and constructively critique your
own and others’ views.
The Practitioner Research Cycle
Vital Courses are based on the Practitioner Research Cycle as shown in the diagram
below.
You will no doubt already be familiar with the notion of reflective practice, which
typically has four stages:




Identify needs
Plan
Do
Reflect.
The Practitioner Research Cycle extends that by adding in two further stages:


Find out
Share.
‘Find out’ involves investigating what the wider education community knows about
how to address identified needs (in order to help learn from other people’s prior
experience and avoid re-inventing the wheel).
In the ‘Share’ stage you pass on what you have learnt to the wider community so
that they in turn can benefit from your experiences and expertise. (This is then
mediated by a process of peer review before becoming an established part of the
education communities’ shared knowledge base.)
3
This cycle draws on, and develops, personal and professional knowledge bases
(Pers KB and Prof KB in the diagram). The latter is the knowledge that underlies
professional practice in education, and is reflected in the literature, resources,
policies and other materials that are used to inform practice. Throughout the course
icons will indicate the stage of the cycle being addressed.
This course will explicitly follow the stages of the Practitioner Research Cycle,
starting with identifying needs and moving through to sharing your learning
(initially within your course group). Throughout the course icons will indicate the
stage of the cycle being addressed.
Course information
You will need access to:


a computer with a web browser
headphones (microphone and speakers) for online tutorials (a webcam is
optional).
Duration of the course: 1 to 2 hours per week for five weeks.
Online hours Collaborative (timetabled) 1.75 hours
Collaborative (flexible) 2 hours
Independent study online 2 hours
Sub-total
5.75 hours
Offline hours Independent study offline 1 hours
TOTAL
6.75 hours
Appropriate reading and viewing material and a list of game sites for the course are
listed within the text. There a materials on the Vital website created by other
teachers using games. These can be found by searching for ‘Games’ at
http://www.vital.ac.uk.
Course schedule
Week Activities
1
1
2
Stage* Type
Activity 1 Online introductions and
guidance on using course materials
Activity 2 Reading and viewing
suggested materials on games-based
learning
Activity 3 Discussion around gamebased learning theory and identification
of needs
4
Online
Find
out
Share
Approx time
needed
30 minutes
Independent 1 hour
Online
tutorial
45 minutes
Week Activities
Stage* Type
Activity 4 Identify and select a relevant
online game
Activity 5 Develop a lesson plan
Activity 6 Reflect and critique own and
others planning
Activity 7 Online discussion around
lesson plans and game-based learning in
class
Activity 8 Course evaluation, review and
certification
2
3
4
5
5
Find
out
Plan
Approx time
needed
Independent 1 hour
Independent 1 hour
Share
Online
1 hour
Share
Online
tutorial
1 hour
Online
30 minutes
TOTAL
6 hrs 45 min
*Stage in Practitioner Research Cycle.
Getting started
The course looks at how aspects of learning may be supported and enhanced
through the use of games and online games. Your starting point is ‘a need’ within
your practice, which you will investigate how to address. This will involve
exploring how other people have already attempted to address a similar need in
their practice (bringing in some theory and practical examples of how games and
online games are used in schools), before you plan their use in your school and
reflect and discuss your approach.
In this first part of the course we will introduce ourselves to get an idea of the
contexts others are working in, including questions around their use of games out of
school, what subjects they specialise in and their experience of other technologies.
This will allow for cross-fertilisation of ideas in projects and for supported
reflection.
Activity 1 Online introductions and guidance on using course materials
30 minutes (online) during week 1
The objectives of this course activity are:


to get to know the other participants on this course
to identify the location of the course materials and the methods by which
support can be provided by the course facilitator and course participants and
how you can offer support.
Go to the course forum and the ‘Introductions’ thread. There it will explain how
these introductions will be done. Introduce yourself, and your context, telling the
other course members what you hope to get out of the course.
5
Go to the course forum and read what others have posted. Reply to some of these
messages, identifying areas of overlap with your own context, objectives, interests
or expertise.
End of activity.
Activity 2 Reading and viewing suggested materials on games-based learning
1 hour (individually) during week 1
The objectives of this course activity are to:



develop your understanding of games-based learning
become familiar with game genres
view examples of how games are currently used by other teachers.
Look at the resource sheet provided.


Read the section on genres and ratings.
Pick one or two examples of the readings and use of games that seem most
appropriate to your setting.
 Select some of the information most appropriate to your context to inform
your contribution to the online discussion, scheduled for next week.
It might be useful to record some of the key points in your opinion using the points
below as a starting point for later discussions:



any points that need clarifying
anything you find particularly interesting
anything that strikes you as particularly relevant to your teaching and
learning
 any barriers you identify in introducing games-based learning into your
teaching
 any need that you have identified in your practice that online games might
help to address.
End of activity.
Games-based learning and game
identification
In this week there is a focus on identifying games as well as the first tutorial.
Activity 3 Discussion around game-based learning theory and identification of
needs
45 minutes (online tutorial) during week 2
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The objective of this course activity is to review and extend your understanding of
the resources and games-based learning.
This is the first group tutorial which will use Elluminate Live! Go to the course
discussion forum and to the thread 'Tutorial: Resource and project guidance'. This
will contain guidance on how the discussion will be conducted.
Please refer to your notes from Activity 2 for discussion points.
By the end of the session you will have discussed and identified at least one
learning need that could be addressed through an online game and suggestions on
how you could effectively integrate this game into your planning.
End of activity.
Activity 4 Identify and select a relevant online game
1 hour (individually) during week 2
The objective of this course activity is to identify and select at least one (freely
available) online game appropriate to the learning needs identified in Activity 3.
A range of online games aimed at supporting learning within the classroom are
provided. Your task is to identify and select a relevant game to address your
learning needs. When selecting a game and integrating it into a lesson you might
want to consider the following:












What are your intended learning gains or learning outcomes from using this
game?
How strongly do these relate to the game?
Will the game be used to provide information or give context for other
activities?
Is the game age appropriate?
How long will it be used for?
Will it be used in groups, individually or as a class activity (for example,
children taking turns at the front or giving instructions)?
When will it be used – the start or end of a lesson?
How long will it be before the children reach the learning goal? (In online
games this is less of an issue as they are usually casual and therefore take a
few minutes. However, in some cases they may have to play for several
hours before they have sufficient information to draw conclusions – this
occurs in the Global Conflict game series.)
How will it be introduced?
What will your role be?
How will you highlight the learning gains or intentions to the students?
What evidence will you look for of impact?
There are also practical considerations that would have to be investigated if the
game were to be used in the classroom. Does it run on the school computers? Do
7
you have the appropriate software or version installed, e.g. the latest version of
Flash. Can it be accessed with a student login? Do you need to launch the game
from a saved position? Will you need to save the games for use later? How easy
will that be? Are there any firewall or other security issues?
End of activity.
Lesson planning
In this activity you will think about a game previously identified and consider how
it could be used in your class. These ideas will then be reviewed by your peers and
tutor.
Activity 5 Develop a lesson plan
1 hour (online) during week 3
The objectives of this course activity are:


to develop a lesson plan that addresses the learning need you’ve identified
to become aware of some implementation issues related to using games in the
classroom.
Create a plan, around one side of A4, using a game selected in Activity 4 which
addresses one of your learning needs.
Consider your learning goal, how to introduce it, how the game will be played,
implementation issues and how you will assess the impact.
Consider the questions in Activity 4 when writing it up. Upload the plan to the
shared thread ‘Tutorial: Confirming plans’. You will need to use these plans to
inform the remaining activities.
End of activity.
Reflect, evaluate and share with others
Having planned how you would use games and shared feedback, you will now use
the key questions below to help evaluate your plan and those of others.
Activity 6 Reflect and critique own and others planning
1 hour (online) during week 4
8
The objective of this course activity is:



to reflect systematically on your proposed lesson plan
to critique at the least one other lesson plan
to adapt your own planning based on feedback from others.
You should be prepared to share your thoughts and reflections with others.
Ensure you have read at least one other proposed plan before this session.
Go to the course forum and the thread ‘Tutorial: Confirming plans’. Comment on at
least one other lesson plan and review your own planning, in the light of the work
of others and comments from the course facilitator.
It may help to use the following questions as a guide for giving feedback.

What would the learners do? This is a descriptive activity that explains your
action with the learners.
 What would they learn and how do you know? This is an issue of assessment
including observation, discussion, question and answer, testing, etc
 Would it be worthwhile, i.e. did it succeed in meeting your targets? This
question relates to your purposes and intended learning outcomes.
 What do I intend to do next? This relates to your next steps for action. This is
where you will try to do things to achieve an improvement and to make the
work you do with learners more worthwhile in your terms.
These questions were adapted from Open University Curriculum in Action
materials (1981).
End of activity.
Group tutorial, and evaluation and
certification
In this final week you will discuss the comments made around the lesson plans and
the course in general, as well as provide feedback and if required receive
certification for completing the course.
Activity 7 Online discussion around lesson plans and game-based learning in
class
1 hour (online tutorial) during week 5
The objectives of this course activity are:

to discuss as a group the lesson plans and amend planning as required
9

to share your reflections on game-based learning and how you could
effectively use games in your teaching.
This is the second group tutorial which will use Elluminate Live! Go to the course
discussion forum and to the thread 'Tutorial: Resource and project guidance'. This
will contain guidance on how the discussion will be conducted.
In this tutorial we will focus on evaluating and amending our own planning
In addition to reviewing lesson plans there will be an opportunity to discuss any
comments posted in the reflection thread over the period of the course.
End of activity.
Once the plan has been discussed you may wish to implement it in a class.
Activity 8 Course evaluation, review and certification
30 minutes in week 5 (online)
The objectives of this course activity are:



to complete an evaluation form and, if you wish,
to print a course completion certificate and
to rate and review the course.
Your task is to complete the evaluation questionnaire, which can be found on the
course page. There are also links there to print a certificate and rate the course. The
certificate will be ‘released’ by your facilitator.
End of activity.
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10
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12
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13
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Acknowledgements
This course has been developed in collaboration with Futurelab. For more
information about Futurelab and to access a range of related resources, please visit
www.futurelab.org.uk
Authors: Mary Ulicsak and Dan Sutch
Editors: Joy Hooper, Matthew Driver and Pete Bradshaw
14