Electric Worlds in the Classroom: Teaching and Learning with Role-based Computer Games

We all know that kids like video games, so why not help them learn course content in these virtual worlds? This guidebook will help teachers (grades 6-12) do exactly that. The authors provide a diverse collection of lively and engaging virtual spaces where students engage in role-based learning. The context might be a gigantic imaginary plant cell, where students learn the role of a biologist, or it might be a shallow valley where they learn to act like a geologist. Students learn to conduct experiments, analyze results, draw conclusions, and ultimately, write their own story as they experienced it. This book features: a nontechnical presentation that will assist all educators who want to use technology to improve student learning; a large collection of goal-oriented, multi-user games to teach various concepts in geology, biology, computer science, microeconomics, and archaeology; the combined talents of computer programmers, subject matter experts, graphic designers, education specialists, and cognitive scientists who created the virtual worlds presented in this book.