1st Edition
Learning with Digital Games A Practical Guide to Engaging Students in Higher Education
Written for Higher Education teaching and learning professionals, Learning with Digital Games provides an accessible, straightforward introduction to the field of computer game-based learning. Up to date with current trends and the changing learning needs of today’s students, this text offers friendly guidance, and is unique in its focus on post-school education and its pragmatic view of the use of computer games with adults.
Learning with Digital Games enables readers to quickly grasp practical and technological concepts, using examples that can easily be applied to their own teaching. The book assumes no prior technical knowledge but guides the reader step-by-step through the theoretical, practical and technical considerations of using digital games for learning. Activities throughout guide the reader through the process of designing a game for their own practice, and the book also offers:
A toolkit of guidelines, templates and checklists.
Concrete examples of different types of game-based learning using six case studies.
Examples of games that show active and experiential learning
Practical examples of educational game design and development.
This professional guide upholds the sound reputation of the Open and Flexible Learning series, is grounded in theory and closely links examples from practice. Higher Education academics, e-learning practitioners, developers and training professionals at all technical skill levels and experience will find this text is the perfect resource for explaining "how to" integrate computer games into their teaching practice.
A companion website is available and provides up-to-date technological information, additional resources and further examples.
1. Introduction
Part I: Theory
2. Recognizing the Characteristics of Digital Games
3. Understanding the Pedagogy of Digital Games
4. Identifying Types of Digital Games for Learning
Part II: Practice
5. Integrating Digital Games into the Curriculum
6. Designing a Digital Game for Learning
7. Assessing the Impact of Digital Games on Learning
Part III: Technology
8. Using Existing Digital Games for Learning
9. Developing New Digital Games for Learning
10. Evaluating Digital Games for Learning
11. Case Studies
12. Conclusions
Glossary
References
Index
Biography
Nicola Whitton is a Research Fellow in the Education and Social Research Institute at Manchester Metropolitan University.
"Written from a constructivist learning perspective, Nicola Whitton has gone beyond introduction to provide us with a comprehensive, well-researched one-stop resource on learning with digital games….It is a must read for all educational technologists, teachers and researchers in the field."--Indian Journal of Open Learning
"Overall, Whitton's Learning with Digital Games is successful in arguing that higher education may benefit from the judicious incorporation of video games into the classroom."--Teaching Theology and Religion
