About Digital Games Based Learning
Digital Games-Based Learning (DGBL) is emerging as the next generation of e-learning. Organizations are adopting this approach for many reasons: games provide an immersive and engaging way to learn, provide a safe environment in which to fail, and can give learners incremental challenges and control over their progress. What makes games such a powerful platform for standards training is that they are structured using proven and effective learning principles.
Take Monopoly for example - Monopoly is played for fun, but it can also be used to teach economics, accounting, or property management. What about Civilization or Sim City? These are incredibly complex games that teach world history and city planning, respectively. However, it is easy to overlook the value of these games as learning tools, because they are played for fun.
The learning that comes from these games is informal or implicit. The players don't think about how they are acquiring knowledge or skills - they simply react to the situation at hand. The players don't have to consciously realize that they have learned anything - only when similar situations arise in real life do these skills come into play. The same game design principles used in entertainment-oriented games can be applied to training to help learners absorb knowledge in an intuitive and memorable way.
Good games are naturally designed with the principles of adult learning in mind, and DGBL is no exception. Adults need reasons to learn something. Their motivations are personally and practically based. They need to know why they are learning something, how it relates to them personally and what they will get out of it. Adults need to have a sense of autonomy and choice over their learning. They need help and support but they also need to feel respected and valued.
DGBL addresses adult learner needs in several important ways:
Game-based learning is interactive and engaging
The interactive nature of games enables the player to actively engage with the subject matter. How many times have you sat through a video or a lecture and forgotten most of what was taught? According to the NTL Institute, the founder of the Journal for Applied and Behavioural Sciences, most people will absorb less than 5% of information presented to them if they are just passively listening. However, being actively involved in an activity or exercise increases knowledge retention significantly.
Practical examples are situated in a familiar setting
Situating the game in a realistic setting - a workplace - enables us to use practical and meaningful subject matter examples to which the player can relate. For example, learning about standards can be challenging and intimidating for many people because the idea of a standard is quite abstract. Situating the application of a standard in a familiar setting helps bring it to life. The purpose of the standard becomes clear to users as they begin to understand how it applies to their lives.
Practice environments support the building of new knowledge
New knowledge needs to be built on previous knowledge and experience in a supported and incremental way. The mechanism of incremental support is often referred to as scaffolding. Just like a building needs to be supported until it can stand on its own, learners need support until they have a sufficient understanding of the subject matter. Our games support scaffolding through the use of just-in-time teaching. For instance, game characters who function as advisors are available as needed, and the user receives immediate and relevant feedback. Character advisors offer hints or clues about what is the best course of action to take, and feedback describes what is or is not good about a particular choice.
DGBL provides incrementally increasing challenges
As we learn new skills, we crave new challenges. Once we've learned to break the code of 'tic-tac-toe', it ceases to be interesting for us. Our games are designed to offer incrementally increasing learning challenges that build on previous experience. For instance, in the case of teaching emergency preparedness and response, that game (Response Ready) starts with a simple emergency scenario and progresses to incrementally more complex ones.
Learners are in control
Adult learners should feel that they have control over their choices. They should be able to play the game wherever and whenever they want to and be able to access the same information in several different modes. The non-linear nature of games offers precisely the freedom and flexibility to choose the action that the players want to take. Careful design of the game ensures that any choice the player makes will lead to a meaningful learning outcome. This also ensures that the players' learning experience is tailored to their learning needs.
Games make learning more fun
People play games because they are fun, and this feature of DGBL is the key to motivating learners. Adding humour and a touch of suspense and drama to serious games is what makes them come to life. Having a boss chastise or congratulate you can be fun, because it's in the safe world of games. Having an explosion trigger an emergency response adds excitement. Being able to relate to any number of different characters and the problems they are facing creates an emotional attachment. Many kinds of subject matter can be taught in a more engaging and entertaining way through the use of DGBL.
Games provide a safe environment for learning
DGBL transcends e-learning because there is no need to fear failure, which can be very intimidating for many adult learners. Players can question why something is right or wrong and explore different paths, all in a safe and non-punishing environment.
Users are constantly evaluated as they progress through a practice environment, and feedback tells them what they did right and where they need to improve. Evidence of learning can be demonstrated in many different ways. For instance, did you control the emergency more efficiently the second time around? Did you figure out how to implement a standard and increase effectiveness while controlling the cost, time and bureaucracy? As users move through the scenarios, their score tells them whether they are on track with their goals, and their game log keeps a record of their learning progress.
By using proven pedagogical principles and making the game content accessible and relevant, DGBL aligns what we learn with how we learn.
