Learning Games: Design for Active Instruction

Games, simulations, and workshops are blueprints for learning. We will focus on the creation of effective learning activities for use in education, employment, and community settings. 

Program work and readings will center first on how people learn, and on connections between learning and personal and community resilience. Then we’ll focus on the crafting of equitable learner-centered activities. Thinking about teaching while we ourselves learn will suggest approaches useful for designing learning materials. Faculty also will offer instruction -- via learning activities! -- in design, development, and assessment of educational activities.  

Most of our 'in-class' work will be configured as discussion, informal small group collaborations, and reflection on our experiences of thinking and learning. Program members will work asynchronously (individually) before class sessions to complete readings and assignments posted on Canvas. This work will prepare us for twice-weekly synchronous (live) meetings conducted remotely over Zoom (roughly 7-8 hours of work together each week). However, if students find themselves unable to participate due to technology, caregiving obligations, economic disruption, health risk, or illness, they can work with faculty to identify alternate options to earn related credit.  

An internet connection and use of a device with word processing capability will be important for accessing readings and other program materials, and for completing assignments. A means for taking photos of your work, such as a phone camera, also will be useful for documenting and sharing your work with others in the program. 

Learning Games will provide opportunity for inquiry into the design of learning experiences for people considering careers in teaching (and application to Evergreen’s Master in Teaching program), communications, management, health promotion, community education, or social change. Credit equivalencies will be awarded in Learning Experience Design and in Resilience Studies.