Explore the pedagogies that support playing and making digital games for the classroom.
Available for credit only | ETEC 565 S
Digital games – the creative medium of the 21st century – are played on phones, tablets and dedicated desktops and consoles by millions of adults and children worldwide. They are also the single fastest growing creative industry on the planet: in North America, the digital games market is expected to grow up to 10% (across all sectors – mobile, PC and console) in 2019 alone. Concomitantly, education authorities, and teachers in particular, have been slow not only to understand the educational value of digital games, but also to integrate these media in teaching and learning ecologies.
This Institute will introduce participants to empirical studies on digital games and learning that show they not only amplify student engagement, but also result in demonstrable learning gains. They have, as well, rich potential to support differentiated learning and instruction, with particular gains for students who do not see great success through more traditional forms of literacy and learning. Focusing on digital games through the lenses of learning and pedagogy, we will examine the growing literature on digital game-based learning, the scant literature on digital games and pedagogies, and create a community of practice in which to experiment with these highly engaging digital media.
For more details see: http://pdce.educ.ubc.ca/digital-games/