A beginning teacher's guide to learning with and from games.

Abstract

This guide serves as an introduction to the use of games in education. This paper describes and synthesizes valuable learning and motivation concepts and discusses their educational relevance. A case is made that many parallels exist between game design and effective instructional practice. This guide highlights many of the important facets of game design and discusses how such concepts might be applied to educational settings. The guide also provides a few case studies that describe how games have been used in school settings to create positive learning environments that allow students to explore content at much greater depth. Implications for future uses of games in research and practice are outlined.