Designing Serious Games for Medical Education Mark Childs, Warwick Medical School

Designing Serious Games for Medical Education

Mark Childs,

Warwick Medical School

Outline Defining and distinguishing between games and simulations Designing these for education Some examples from medical education Issues important in design

Defining and distinguishing between games and simulations

Designing these for education

Some examples from medical education

Issues important in design

What makes a game? Effective games have: Character role Scoring Emergent narrative Responsive environment Psychosocial moratorium Need an understanding of what makes a game playable Chris Brannigan, CEO, Caspian Learning: “The first academics want to do is to take all the fun out.”

Effective games have:

Character role

Scoring

Emergent narrative

Responsive environment

Psychosocial moratorium

Need an understanding of what makes a game playable

Chris Brannigan, CEO, Caspian Learning: “The first academics want to do is to take all the fun out.”

Psycho what? The merging of action and awareness: Clear goals and feedback Concentration on the task at hand The paradox of control The loss of self-consciousness The transformation of time

The merging of action and awareness:

Clear goals and feedback

Concentration on the task at hand

The paradox of control

The loss of self-consciousness

The transformation of time

What makes a simulation? Effective simulations: Do not require narrative, character role, scoring Do need: breadth of sensory information Depth of sensory information control of relation of sensors to environment ability to modify environment Perceptual feedback of changes And – can be game and simulation

Effective simulations:

Do not require narrative, character role, scoring

Do need:

breadth of sensory information

Depth of sensory information

control of relation of sensors to environment

ability to modify environment

Perceptual feedback of changes

And – can be game and simulation

Learning from games Four models of learning from games transmission model (behaviourist) conveying knowledge, drill-and-practice user-centred model (experiential) exploring, synthesising and constructing knowledge, participation model, consider the “wrapper” for the game, educational context Simon Egenfeldt-Nielson, CEO Serious Games Interactive, “a game is just an excuse for reflection” modding (de Freitas 2006; 20; Bungie 2007; 25)

Four models of learning from games

transmission model (behaviourist) conveying knowledge, drill-and-practice

user-centred model (experiential) exploring, synthesising and constructing knowledge,

participation model, consider the “wrapper” for the game, educational context

Simon Egenfeldt-Nielson, CEO Serious Games Interactive, “a game is just an excuse for reflection”

modding (de Freitas 2006; 20; Bungie 2007; 25)

Other game observations Meaningful play created by entering a “magic circle” (from Huizinga) where objects and events have a “second order reality” (Caillois) Engagement as well as immersion. Engagement is deliberate, reflective (from Carr) where text has a “second order reading”

Meaningful play created by entering a “magic circle” (from Huizinga) where objects and events have a “second order reality” (Caillois)

Engagement as well as immersion. Engagement is deliberate, reflective (from Carr) where text has a “second order reading”

Linking games and education Endogenous v. exogenous Is the educational content appropriately integrated with the gaming elements, or just bolted-on? Two most important questions What aspects of the subject matter in question already exhibit ludic features? And how can a game designer exploit and highlight these aspects?

Endogenous v. exogenous

Is the educational content appropriately integrated with the gaming elements, or just bolted-on?

Two most important questions

What aspects of the subject matter in question already exhibit ludic features?

And how can a game designer exploit and highlight these aspects?

Linking games and education Is learning content? Explicit within game Implicit but made explicit through reflection Completely avoidable

Is learning content?

Explicit within game

Implicit but made explicit through reflection

Completely avoidable

Simulations Common uses of simulations Medbiquitous virtual patient models Triage simulation Medical education in Immersive Virtual Worlds through transmission of information roleplay Should focus on interaction not information

Common uses of simulations

Medbiquitous virtual patient models

Triage simulation

Medical education in Immersive Virtual Worlds through

transmission of information

roleplay

Should focus on interaction not information

Interactive Trauma Trainer ref Human Factors in Defence Medicine Ref Birmingham University

Virtual Healthcare ref Naval Research ref Birmingham University

Health care games Made more difficult by knowledge imparted through non-verbal, non-textual engagement embodied reality involves all the senses critical situations may contain all manner of background sensory noise scalable implementation across diverse learning environments

Made more difficult by

knowledge imparted through non-verbal, non-textual engagement

embodied reality involves all the senses

critical situations may contain all manner of background sensory noise

scalable implementation across diverse learning environments

Health care games Embedding made easier by use of narrative within the paper-based scenarios already used with students Situations already have game-like qualities (identifiable goal, time-dependent, narrative context)

Embedding made easier by use of narrative within the paper-based scenarios already used with students

Situations already have game-like qualities (identifiable goal, time-dependent, narrative context)

Successful health games Appropriateness of the technology. Endogenous not exogenous. Engagement and immersion. Realness and embodiment.

Appropriateness of the technology.

Endogenous not exogenous.

Engagement and immersion.

Realness and embodiment.

A solution looking for a problem Good elearning design starts with the pedagogical issue and decides what is the most appropriate technology Therefore not only need to answer what can we use a game for? But … What is there for which a game is the most appropriate technology?

Good elearning design starts with the pedagogical issue and decides what is the most appropriate technology

Therefore not only need to answer what can we use a game for? But …

What is there for which a game is the most appropriate technology?