Today's post is on Education, and using games for teaching and in the classroom. I have used games many times in a classroom setting because I believe that they are a great way for students to use cognitive skills and higher order thinking while learning material in a fun way. I've taught chess to elementary students and refereed games of werewolf for high school students. I have used liar's dice, Apples to Apples, Battleship, and poker in the classroom. I believe any educator should look at using games in the classroom. They are not perfect, and large class sizes, lack of maturity and social skills, and poor understanding of rules can impede the use of games. However, games can be fun and having people doing something fun and interactive is one of the best ways to get people to learn.
A blog that you should check out on this topic is PAXsims. They are, in their own words, "devoted to peace, conflict, humanitarian, and development simulations and serious games for education, training, and policy analysis." PAXsims discusses the use of simulation and wargames as training tools at the college and professional level. I enjoy reading their posts and hope to make use of their material in my classes soon.
Sphere of Annihilation - a blog about tabletop gaming, comics, and other nerdy stuff that I like!
