Annotation
Learning Through Play: What is this class about? You may have noticed that most people would much rather play a game than sit in class. Games motivate people to learn in new ways; games are engaging; and games encourage learners to try something new without fearing failure. Educators know this and have created many educational games (some admittedly more fun than others). But can all games teach us something? In this class we’ll explore how different games can encourage learning. We’ll examine which types of games help us learn best, we’ll research what learning scientists know about games, and we’ll test games to see how well they stack up to our fun and learning criteria. We will use what we learn about play and games combined with instructional design principles to create games of our own designed to teach information literacy or related literacy topics. The games you create can be used in your future workplace settings.
Learner Outcomes: By the end of this term, students will be able to:
• Engage in inquiry (including developing a research question; collecting, analyzing and synthesizing information)
• Reflect on educational activities to make meaning of learning experiences
• Learn collaboratively in a classroom setting.
• Practice critical analysis and consider diverse perspectives
• Engage in active and self-directed learning
• Design learning experiences based on instructional design principles
• Design learning experiences based on key tenets of learning through play
How You Will Learn: Learner outcomes will be met through reading, writing, discussions, presentations, self- assessment, and group work.
Readings: All required readings for this course will be either freely available online or freely accessible to Institute of Information Studies and Librarianship students via the library’s journal subscriptions. Links to required readings will be provided.