Oblinger, Diana G. (2004). The next generation of educational engagement.
Journal of Interative Media in Education, 8, 1-18.
Oblinger provides an interesting and compelling case for the use of games in higher education to increase student engagement and enhance student learning. She sets the stage by providing statistics about the "Millenials" or the "Net Generation" who are current college-age students, indicating that they "tend to be experiential learners - they prefer to learn by doing, as opposed to laerning by listening. And, they are community-oriented. Friends, relationships nd contributing to the community are important " (p. 2). She then provides statistics about "gamers," describing who they are, what they tend to do and play, different types of "gamers," and how much time they spend playing.
She makes the case that games provide opportunities for participation in and development of learning communities, quoting Kurt Squire on page 5: "Games encourage collaboration among players and thus provide a context for peer-to-peer teaching and for the emergence of learning communities."
Oblinger provides excellent and concsie descriptions of how people learn that coincide with what we have been studying at Pepperdine: "we have begun to view learning as something that is constructed, an active process in which the learner developers his or her own understanding by assembling facts, experience and practice" (p. 6). She also contends that the "attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge a learner brings into a new situation matter" (p. 7) and explains that games provide a good opportunity to first assess a learner's competencies and provide appropriate learning experiences accordingly.
She provides many examples of games being used successfully as learning experiences, and illustrates how the United States military frequently uses games and simulations in substitution for more expensive "real life" training. She also describes how games provide opportunities for participation in legitimate peripheral participation, and quotes a phone converstaion with Dexter Fletcher who explains that "learning is guided by more experienced members of the military community and the meaning of these activities is negotiated through social interactions" (p. 9). Other examples of games used in educational settings are:
Civilization III;
Revolution, a simulation of colonial Williamsburg;
Thinking Strategically, a simulation used by the University of Phoenix in their MBA program;
VETA's online Learning Games, used in Sweden in high school and college; and
Environmental Dangers, where students participate in a simulated chemical spill and report their findings and recommendations to the university president.
Oblinger explains that games provide excellent opportunities for learning as learners are motivated to seek information they need to be successful, rather than starting with information and trying to determine later what it all means (p. 13). Additionally, the element of competition in a game "transforms knowledge into social capital" [as quoted by Herz, JC. (2001). Gaming the system: What higher education can learn from multiplayer online worlds. http://www.educase.edu/ir/library/pdf/ffpui019.pdf]. In addition, Oblinger suggests that current college students' experiences with a media-rich environment may create a disconnect between their expectations and the experiences provided to them at their colleges and universities (p. 15).
