Teach Like a Gamer

Digital role-playing games such as Rift, Diablo III, and Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning help players develop skills in critical thinking, problem solving, digital literacy, and lifelong learning. The author examines both the benefits and the drawbacks of role-playing games and their application to real-world teaching techniques. Readers will learn how to incorporate games-based instruction into their own classes and workplace training, as well as approaches to redesigning curriculum and programs.

Carly Finseth is the Senior Vice President of Education at Northwest Lineman College, where she leads and develops educational standards of excellence for the power delivery industry. Her work has appeared in such publications as the Journal of Technical Writing and Communication, the Journal of Applied Instructional Design, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy, the Journal of Teaching Writing and Computers and Composition Online.

Series editor Matthew Wilhelm Kapell teaches American studies, anthropology, and writing at Pace University in New York.

Carly Finseth

Series Editor Matthew Wilhelm Kapell

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 216
Bibliographic Info: 15 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2018
pISBN: 978-1-4766-7054-6
eISBN: 978-1-4766-3182-0
Imprint: McFarland
Series: Studies in Gaming

Acknowledgments vii
Preface 1
Introduction 7
1. Games, Play and the Intersection of Learning 13
2. Games and the Humanities 28
3. Identity Creation and Customization: Finding One’s Place in the Game 51
4. Simplified Subset: Learning Without Risk of Failure 74
5. Exploration and Discovery 95
6. Achievements and Rewards 117
7. How Games Teach Their Players 145
8. Role-Playing Games and Instructional Design: Best Practices, Heuristics, Applications and Conclusions 171
Concluding Thoughts 189
Appendix: List of RPGs Considered for This Study 191
Chapter Notes 193
References 195
Index 201