Play is an increasingly popular process for working with groups of adults in a range of contexts. We are increasingly sophisticated in our ability to integrate creative forms of play into our... Show More

Play is an increasingly popular process for working with groups of adults in a range of contexts. We are increasingly sophisticated in our ability to integrate creative forms of play into our facilitated work with groups, often with excellent outcomes. Experience and research have deepened our understanding of how to design and implement powerful and effective playful scenarios in connection to objectives for adult learning and performance. We are convinced, intuitively and experientially, about the value of play. However, our confidence in the efficacy of play seems not to be matched by clear insights into why and how play actually achieves results. This conceptual article builds a case for the importance of understanding the nature of the influence play has on psychosocial spaces and group energy in the interest of better informing our application of play as a learning intervention. It advocates for designing ways of systematically and qualitatively researching the influence of play as it unfolds in real time. A brief case study of a simple experiment undertaken by the author at a session of the 2016 Playful Learning Conference is described here as a thought-starter for ways we might explore the psychosocial and energetic dynamics fostered when we introduce play as a way of purposefully engaging adult learners.

The United Nations (UN) Convention (1989) on the Rights of the Child changed the way children are viewed and treated worldwide. The Convention has been affecting governments, civil society and the... Show More

The United Nations (UN) Convention (1989) on the Rights of the Child changed the way children are viewed and treated worldwide. The Convention has been affecting governments, civil society and the private sector. ICT driven companies on the internet should not be an exception. According to Livingstone, Carr and Byrne (2015), Internet governance bodies have given little consideration and reflection to children's rights. In this paper, it is proposed that in order for youth actively participate in an increasingly digital environment; they need to know better their rights to privacy and freedom of expression, among others. Although the understanding of the digital environments principles lies beyond the scope of average children's school curricula, they can however play and discover simple technological concepts in the classroom. Thus, by early developing their literacy on digital identity management, they will be able to navigate, communicate, play and learn online more safely, achieving a responsible connected presence. A qualitative study on a visually oriented encrypted learning activity (game) among a group of students aged 16-18 years old, of the third cycle of Basic Vocational Education has been conducted with the following aims: a) to understand how knowledge about security technological processes can improve youth's capability for managing their digital identities; b) to understand the value of pedagogies of play. Using participant observation, focus group and interviews, youth behaviours and attitudes towards this game based learning approach as well as their perceptions of their digital rights are presented.

Playful and kinaesthetic learning approaches are used in numerous early years (birth to 5 years old) learning environments, however studies in HE STEM disciplines are uncommon. This study aimed to... Show More

Playful and kinaesthetic learning approaches are used in numerous early years (birth to 5 years old) learning environments, however studies in HE STEM disciplines are uncommon. This study aimed to explore the use of Play-Doh in an undergraduate anatomy module as a method of enhancing engagement. 63 students attended the ‘kinaesthetic play' lecture, where students worked in teams to make a variety of epithelial cell types using Play-Doh. Before and after the activity, students were asked to ‘choose one word to describe how you feel'. Before the activity, 48.3% of responses were negative (E.g. confused, worried, childish). However, after the activity not a single negative response was recorded. 98% of students reported that they enjoyed the activity and 84% reported that the activity increased their understanding. This data suggests a utility for kinaesthetic playful practice in STEM teaching. Overcoming initial student perceptions towards alternative teaching practices is a challenge to be considered during session design.

Story writing is a complex semantic and creative task, and the difficulty of managing it is made greater by attempting to write in collaboration with others. This complication can deter students... Show More

Story writing is a complex semantic and creative task, and the difficulty of managing it is made greater by attempting to write in collaboration with others. This complication can deter students from experimenting with collaboration before mastering their own practice in relative privacy. Such reticence is in spite of the fact that there are many clear benefits to collaboration. These include peer support and feedback for the student on their practice (Leach, 2014; Vygotsky, 1978), and the development of collaborative skills and experiences that are easily transferable to a range of creative contexts in future (Ravetz et al., 2013). Specially designed games have the potential to help to facilitate collaboration, by making the difficulty of telling a story as a group part of the game's challenge.

This paper discusses the first iteration of Game Changers Programme hosted by Coventry University's Disruptive Media Learning Lab (DMLL), an open game design initiative. The Programme had the goal... Show More

This paper discusses the first iteration of Game Changers Programme hosted by Coventry University's Disruptive Media Learning Lab (DMLL), an open game design initiative. The Programme had the goal of facilitating new models of teaching and learning, new practices in cross-faculty learning/collaboration to make game design and development more culturally open and accessible to staff, students and the broader informal communities surrounding the University. The paper will discuss the theoretical foundation of the GameChangers Programme, grounded in a conceptualisation of design as a holistic, modular and creative process, and in an ethos of sharing, collaborating and remixing. The paper will present the outline of the Course and the Community that constituted the core elements of the Programme, and discuss a plural showcase of a variety of outcomes from the GameChangers Community, focusing on the Programme's cultural impact and on how the Programme as a whole disrupted established notions of game based pedagogy, and the customary hierarchical relations between producers and users of learning games.

This paper offers an approach to designing game-based learning experiences inspired by the Mechanics-Dynamics-Aesthetics (MDA) model (Hunicke et al., 2004) and the elemental tetrad model (Schell... Show More

This paper offers an approach to designing game-based learning experiences inspired by the Mechanics-Dynamics-Aesthetics (MDA) model (Hunicke et al., 2004) and the elemental tetrad model (Schell, 2008) for game design. A case for game based learning as an active and social learning experience is presented including arguments from both teachers and game designers concerning the value of games as learning tools. The MDA model is introduced with a classic game- based example and a non-game based observation of human behaviour demonstrating a negative effect of extrinsic motivators (Pink, 2011) and the need to closely align or embed learning outcomes into game mechanics in order to deliver an effective learning experience. The MDA model will then be applied to create a game based learning experience with the goal of teaching some of the aspects of using source code control to groups of Computer Science students. First, clear aims in terms of learning outcomes for the game are set out. Following the learning outcomes, the iterative design process is explained with careful consideration and reflection on the impact of specific design decisions on the potential learning experience. The reasons those decisions have been made and where there may be conflict between mechanics contributing to learning and mechanics for reasons of gameplay are also discussed. The paper will conclude with an evaluation of results from a trial of computer science students and staff, and the perceived effectiveness of the game at delivering specific learning outcomes, and the approach for game design will be assessed.

The paper first outlines a differentiation of play/game-motivations that include ‘negative' attitudes against the play/game itself like cheating or spoilsporting. This problem is of particular... Show More

The paper first outlines a differentiation of play/game-motivations that include ‘negative' attitudes against the play/game itself like cheating or spoilsporting. This problem is of particular importance in concern of learning games because they are not ‘played' for themselves – at least in the first place – but due to an instructional scheme. So they are likely to provoke resistance among the ‘players' or learners. However, because they are introduced as a games, a certain extent a playful sphere is created. This opens the space for a previously neglected negative behaviour: ‘playing against the game'. The player – not so much the learner – creates a new game by ‘testing' the game, by acting at specific points in contrast to the instructional scheme and/or the original idea or narrative of the game. Secondly, the paper will present empirical evidence concerning this phenomenon of ‘playing against the game'. The evidence comes from the evaluation of three different learning games. Student answers to usual motivational questions like: “The game was fun” – “I wanted to be better than the others” – “It was a good feeling to make strategic decisions”, will be compared to questions of resistance like: “I wanted to know what happens when my avatar was not doing well” – “I wanted to see what happens if I choose a bad strategy.” – “I wanted to know when the company goes bankrupt.” The data shows that – partly depending on complexity, playfulness and anonymity of the game – a relevant number of players/learners use this negative behaviour. Nevertheless, this behaviour can still be a way of interacting with the subject matter of the game.

Teamwork and cooperation are important 21st century skills and therefore important parts of the higher education curriculum. Following Kolb's ‘experiential learning cycle' model a combination of... Show More

Teamwork and cooperation are important 21st century skills and therefore important parts of the higher education curriculum. Following Kolb's ‘experiential learning cycle' model a combination of project work and moderated reflection can help students to acquire these skills. This article elaborates how LEGO® Serious Play® (LSP) an be used to stimulate and moderate student's reflection on their teamwork skills in the setting of a university course. A focus is placed on the process and goals of the LSP method, the implementation in the workshop and the benefits of using LSP for this reason.

This case study draws on some experiments I have been doing in the use of dice in the ideas generation phase of a creative project. It draws on workshops I have run with creative technology students... Show More

This case study draws on some experiments I have been doing in the use of dice in the ideas generation phase of a creative project. It draws on workshops I have run with creative technology students at Goldsmiths, with a range of adults at the Counterplay Conference in Aarhus (Denmark) and the Playful Learning Conference at Manchester Metropolitan University, in workshops for museum professionals I have co-led with Rachel Briscoe and in teaching Drama and Performance students at London South Bank University.

Game jams, hackathons and similar group game creation events have become increasingly popular over the past decade (Fowler et al., 2015). They provide new and exciting opportunities for education... Show More

Game jams, hackathons and similar group game creation events have become increasingly popular over the past decade (Fowler et al., 2015). They provide new and exciting opportunities for education and research. They foster creative thinking and innovation (Preston et al., 2012), and strengthen project management and communication skills (Smith & Bowers, 2016); all of which are essential skills for working in industry (Pirker et al., 2016).

This case study tracks the development of a digital induction resource implementing game elements that focuses on the first two stages of Gilly Salmon's Five Stage Model, namely ‘access and... Show More

This case study tracks the development of a digital induction resource implementing game elements that focuses on the first two stages of Gilly Salmon's Five Stage Model, namely ‘access and motivation' and ‘online socialisation' (Salmon, 2011). In the summer of 2016, a prototype was developed and presented at the Playful Learning conference, with a view to completing a full evaluation for the next cohort of the programme.