P08 B.Y.O.L.: Play to Learn—Designing Effective Learning Games
8:30 AM - 4:30 PM Tuesday, September 29
111
Learning games are a hot trend—but why? What makes them work, and how in the world do you go about designing one?
In this workshop, participants will explore a variety of games to identify what makes them playable and then design their own learning games using a step-by-step approach to design. You will build a prototype of your game and actually play it—learning how to play-test and how to iterate to improve the game’s playability and efficacy as a learning tool. You will leave the workshop with a coherent road map to help you design future games (whether those games are online or table-top games). You will also take with you a list of resources to help you further your learning and skill development as game designers.
In this session, you will learn:
- How to use an evaluation checklist to assess a wide array of games for the quality and effectiveness of their game design and their potential applicability to a learning game design
- To recognize and define 15 common game elements and 10 common game dynamics that you can use in the development of learning games
- How to create simple prototypes for learning games
- How to use a play-testing process to do rapid iteration of a game design
Audience:
Novice and intermediate
designers and developers wanting to learn how to incorporate effective games
into their learning initiatives.
Participant technology requirements: Participants should bring a laptop or tablet to use during workshop activities. If you are unable to bring a device, there will be an opportunity to share and work in teams.
Sharon Boller
President and Chief Product Officer
Bottom-Line Performance
Sharon Boller is president and chief product officer of Bottom-Line Performance (BLP), a learning-solutions firm she founded in 1995. Sharon has grown BLP from a single-woman sole proprietorship to a $3 million+ company with 30 team members. Under her direction, BLP created the Knowledge Guru learning game platform, a platform that has received numerous industry awards, including the coveted Brandon Hall Gold award for best innovation in gaming and technology (2014). Sharon co-teaches Guild Academy’s Game Design live online course.
Karl Kapp
Professor
Commonwealth University
Karl Kapp, EdD, is a professor of instructional technology at Commonwealth University in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania who teaches instructional game design, gamification, and online learning design. He keeps busy internationally consulting, training, coaching, and counseling established companies, academic institutions, and startups. He co-founded L&D Mentoring Academy, which helps midcareer learning professionals move to the next level. Karl has authored many books and created several LinkedIn Learning courses. In 2019, he received the ATD Distinguished Contribution to Talent Development Award. His YouTube series, "The Unauthorized, Unofficial History of Learning Game," is his current passion project.
