Dive Brief:
- Arizona State University will debut five games in its environmental science courses, offering students a chance to respond to environmental and sustainability issues.
- eCampusNews reports the games were developed by Toolwire and ASU’s engineering school to challenge students’ critical thinking skills about environmental issues.
- Students and instructors get immediate reports after each module, explaining how well students did in light of environmental, economic, and social concerns and how intently students sought out extra information to guide their decision-making.
Dive Insight:
Gaming has become a key new frontier in education, at the K-12 level and in post-secondary settings. Arizona State University’s latest game-based course format will give students the ability to experience real-life decision-making contexts before they make it out to a job site. Students are asked to make decisions and then adjust their plans based on the consequences. Intricate game scenarios are a new way to emphasize how complicated the world is. In the environmental science realm, one can’t expect to make decisions based on ideals of sustainability without coming up against the realities of financial restrictions, for example. These games will help students hone their own beliefs and prepare them for tough decisions throughout their careers.