Karl Kapp on Video Games TEDx Talk at TEDxNavesink
Often video games are considered to be a waste of time or a frivolous activity. However, there is another side to video games–they can help us in real life. Explore life lessons that can be gained from playing and reflecting upon video games to make our lives better.
The Games and Professional Simulations The Games and Professional Simulations (GAPS) Research Consortium is made up of researchers, educators, and tech developers who study, design, and build virtual internships and innovative assessment tools. GAPS is led by the Epistemic Games Group at the University of Wisconsin, and it includes members from Aalborg Universitet, the Institute for Intelligent Systems at the University of Memphis, the Massachusetts Audubon Society, the Open Universiteit Nederland, the University of Georgia, the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, and the University of Pittsburgh.
The gaming industry has grown to be a behemoth $65 billion-a-year industry, with products ranging from arcade-style shooter games to increasingly complex tools for learning and education. Although games have for decades made their way into classrooms and informal learning outlets, there are few major sources to inform the development and funding of games with overt or subtle educational components. Gamesandlearning.org provides an unbiased source for research to help those producers and funders who want their games to “do good” and to assess what has and has not worked.
To serve game developers and foundations, venture capitalists, government agencies and others who support the development of new games, we will produce a variety of content including:
Market snapshots. These brief reports will help to explain the potential markets for new games, including size, challenges and opportunities.
Translation of Research. These reports will offer possible takeaways that are often hidden in academic journals and highlight the best new research.
Explainers. These reports will explain some of the more arcane and jargon-filled aspects of the educational games market, introducing and analyzing key trends.
Commentaries. Track the thinking of some of the leaders in the industry through timely and engaging op-eds and audio interviews.
Futurelab at NFER
Futurelab at NFER is committed to developing creative and innovative approaches to education, teaching and learning. We achieve this through a mixture of research,school development, CPD workshops, and resources.
Our legacy work covers a range of both topical and forward-thinking areas including curriculum innovation; digital literacy and participation; learning spaces; play and computer games and assessment.
Futurelab was set-up in 2001 with start-up funding from the Department for Education. Our initial remit was to capitalise on the UK’s strength in digital media and content to enhance the learning experience for school children. Early landmark projects included Savannah, MediaStage and Space Signpost.
The remit of the organisation evolved to focus on learning and teaching innovation, maintaining its specialist knowledge of digital technologies but expanding into new areas such as social justice, and digital literacy and participation, typified by projects like Enquiring Minds and Beyond Current Horizons.
In November 2011 Futurelab Education merged with the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER). NFER’s established track record for reliable and authoritative world-class research and assessment combined with Futurelab’s reputation for creativity and use of technology create a unique force for driving change in education. Coming together, the charities offer unrivalled research capacity that will benefit young people, schools and educationalists in the UK and wider afield.
Institute of Play
At the Institue of Play,
"We create learning experiences rooted in the principles of game design—experiences that simulate real world problems, and require dynamic, well-rounded solutions. We support teachers and other learning leaders in making learning irresistible—creating for students a powerful need to know, and a hunger to learn more. We believe in making learning relevant—to the technologies that shape our kids’ lives, the passions that fuel their ambitions, and the demands of life in the 21st century."
Our world is changing so quickly that we can only begin to imagine what the future will hold. But we are failing to teach our kids the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in today’s world.
(Percent of people who report feeling engaged in school or work)
So how will we prepare them for jobs that haven’t even been invented yet?
The real work of a 21st century education is to spark the passion for lifelong learning that our kids will need to navigate their way to a promising tomorrow.
