Bring It On
Game Design as a Mechanic for Assessment
All images used from the public domain

WHO AM I?
Caryn Swark
swarkc@holyspirit.ab.ca
www.gamifymyclass.blogspot.com

WHY GAMES?

What makes games good for learning?

http://pixelearning.wordpress.com/2012/08/14/why-are-games-good-for-learning/

Designing Games gives…
1. The Opportunity for
Instant Feedback

Designing Games gives…
2. The opportunity to learn
from mistakes (failure is
not the end)

Designing Games gives…
3. The chance to deeply
engage students in
learning

Designing Games gives…
4. The ability to create
multi-disciplinary learning
opportunities

Designing Games gives…
5. Students the ability to
work collaboratively on a
real life project

TYPES OF GAMES
Students can create a wide variety of games!

Main Types of Games for Student
Creation
-Video Games
-Board Games
-Roleplaying Games
-Text Adventure Games

Video Games
-Can be used for a wide variety of
subject matters
-Without complicated coding, may be
difficult to cover difficult concepts
-Allow integration of technology
outcomes

Gamestar Mechanic
www.gamestarmechanic.com
http://tinyurl.com/7fqnn4o

http://gamestarmechanic.com/game/shared/208
067/c649934b5b6274a9b76b6407f9e54cbb
Sample Game: Slavery
and Child Labour

Sploder
www.sploder.com

Kodu Game Labs
www.kodugamelab.com
www.kodugamelab.com/resources/

The kind of game you can
make using Kodu Game Lab

Board Games
-Can be used for a wide variety of
subject matters
-Low tech option works for many
students and teachers
-Sometimes lends itself to overly
simplified presentation

Roleplaying Games
-Low tech with good focus on story
-Can be complicated, especially if
teacher isn’t familiar with them
-Good option for students

Happy Birthday, Robot
$9.99 for digital download at http://tinyurl.com/lunpn3r

Text Adventures
-Can be very difficult to create, but
fun to play and good offline
opportunities
-Worth exploring for those interested
in coding

Playfic
www.playfic.com
www.playfic.com/games/cooper/tutorial

Create Text Adventures
www.textadventures.co.uk

ASSESSING GAMES
How do I assign grades and marks to a game?

1. Decide (and communicate) in
advance what you’re assessing

2. Try to balance assessing the
game itself and learning
objectives

3. Wherever possible, assess
multiple subjects from one game

4. Make sure you’re assessing
enough to compensate for the
time spent teaching the project

5. Remember that your initial
investment will pay off in
assessments throughout the year

QUESTIONS? COMMENTS?
swarkc@holyspirit.ab.ca @missrithenay www.gamifymyclass.blogspot.ca