Approaches in Educational
Design
Phil Garing, Managing Director
Lisa Galarneau, eLearning Solutions Director

Learning Objectives
• Explicit and implicit goals
• Clarity
• Relationship to assessment tools

Learner Profile Analysis
1. The Person
• Demographics
• Pre-knowledge
• Previous experiences
• Position and responsibility
• Goals and motivation

Delivery Methodology

Print Resources
Strengths:
– Provides a permanent record
– More transportable and can be used in a
wider range of situations
Weaknesses:
– Difficult to update
– Costly to distribute

Multimedia Resources
Strengths:
– Makes available a wide range of learning
resources
– Incorporates a range of activities that
stimulate and motivate learning
Weaknesses:
– Difficult to access ‘live’ and update
– Generally more involved development
process

Internet Resources
Strengths:
– Provides access to training in a range of situations
that learners might otherwise not be able to study in
– Provides access to current worldwide resources
– Facilitates communication between students and
tutors at a distance
Weaknesses:
– Limited ability to provide feedback on behaviours (e.g.
practical presentation skills)
– Less suitable for modelling verbal skills or physical
behaviours
– Less interactivity/depth of learning experience than
multimedia

Simulation/Game Resources
Strengths:
– Very motivational and engaging; potentially social
– Learning activities that are impossible or undesirable
in the physical world can be simulated
Weaknesses:
– Difficult to convert existing training to an effective
game medium
– Sophisticated solutions require a large investment of
time

Video Games for Learning?
• TEEM UK Study: simulation games such as Sim City and RollerCoaster
Tycoon developed children's strategic thinking and planning skills.
• Psychologist Dr David Lewis: more than three-quarters of students
absorbed facts contained in a historical video game vs. one-half who
retained information in written form.

Why Games Engage Us
•Games are a form of fun. That gives us enjoyment and pleasure.
•Games are form of play. That gives us intense and passionate involvement.
•Games have rules. That gives us structure.
•Games have goals. That gives us motivation.
•Games are interactive. That gives us doing.
•Games have outcomes and feedback. That gives us learning.
•Games are adaptive. That gives us flow.
•Games have win states. That gives us ego gratification.
•Games have conflict/competition/challenge/opposition. That gives us
adrenaline.
•Games have problem solving. That sparks our creativity.
•Games have interaction. That gives us social groups.
•Games have representation and story. That gives us emotion.
* From Marc Prensky: http://www.marcprensky.com

Different Games for Different Needs
* From Marc Prensky: http://www.marcprensky.com

Game Examples
• 1. Ascolta - Ping the Router. A web-based game for learning computer network engineering
skills.
• 2. think3 - Time Mechanic. The company's second, web-based, game for learning to use their
CAD software
• 3. Imparta - Sales Co-Pilot. The company's sequel to Strategy Co-Pilot
• 4.Learnetix - Zwolf. A game for technical learning. In German.
• 5. Institute for Creative Technologies, USC (ICT) - Full Spectrum Command - A company-
level training game for Army Captains
• 6. Institute for Creative Technologies, USC (ICT) - Full Spectrum Warrior - A Squad-level
Training Game for the Army. On X-Box.
• 7. MIT - Supercharged! - A game for understanding counter-intuitive physics concepts
• 8. MIT - Environmental Detective - A game for determining the source of a water contamination
problem. On Pocket PC
• 9. Carnegie Mellon - BioHazard - a game about dealing with a bioterror attack.
• 10. Will Interactive - Think Like a Commander - Army training game.
• 11. MAK - Marine Air-Ground Task Force -MAGTF XXI - Marines training game
• 12 MAK - Battle Command 2010-BC2010 -Army training game
• 13. SimuLearm - Virtual Leader - A game about driving one's agenda through a variety of
meetings at different levels