GAMES AND SIMULATIONS

Games and simulations allow learners to practice tasks, apply knowledge and infer principles as well as having fun. They can be individual Do activities. Even though they are generally thought as just for fun, they are always purposeful. They teach first and entertain second. A game can be thought of as a simulation that involves a personally challenging task. Games and simulations enable types of learning which are not practical in classrooms.

Games provide specific educational advantages over the other forms of learning. For example, they show consequences not normally visible, let learners make mistakes without suffering permanent consequences, encourage learners to pause, reflect and revise. They also simplify complex situations, give opportunities for abundant practice and feedback and reawaken learning by play. Types of learning games are:

Quiz-show games are good for testing factual knowledge. Such games serve as a test and they are efficient.
Word games, such as crossword puzzles, make learning terminology fun. Most are just fill-in-the-blanks tests dressed up as a game.
Jigsaw puzzles and scrambled-tiles games offer a way to let learners discover whole-to-parts relationships and to test them on those relationships.
Branching scenarios let learners proceed toward a goal by making decisions that help or hinder their progress.
Task simulations require learners to accomplish a realistic bit of work. One type of task simulations is software simulations which are becoming a standard way to learn to operate computer software. Device simulations teach how to operate a piece of equipment.
Personal-response simulations pose a series of complex decisions for learners to make. Learners immediately see the results of the decision.
Environmental simulations let learners experiment with natural environment. This game let learners discover both ecological and economic principles and learn to apply them in the simulated environment.
Immersive role-playing games embed learners in a pretend world complete with complex goals, tools, unpredictable events.