Using Game Design to Teach Information Literacy Skills

Take notice of The University of Michigan, they might be onto harnessing the potential that games have for teaching students concepts and skills.

A research team at the University have designed a prototype web-based board game for teaching undergraduate students about Information Literacy Concepts and Skills. Students play the game to learn how to conduct library research.

They chose a game for the task for many research-based reasons, but also because

"Games can be with the student when an information expert cannot be. Games can be in the dorm room, at the coffee house, and anywhere else that the Internet can be accessed. Games are a way to bring information expertise to the users where they are already working."

The game called the Defense of Hidgeon: The Plague Years scaffolds the students learning beginning with showing students how-to start their research using encyclopedias and handbooks to develop a broad understanding of their topic, then shows students how to deepen their understanding through bibliographies and databases, and then finally shows students how to use specific tools to find cutting edge research.

Students played in teams adding in the social learning and peer collaboration component of gaming.

For the project evaluation students were surveyed and provided ideas to redesign the game for future use.

It would be interesting to find out if the game actually improved the research ability of the students who participated. I would think so. After all, learning can be fun.