Apr 25, 2007 - parents), in discussions within the educational blogging community, and on the front page of the .... instructors do not provide technical support.
Using Popular Video Games in Undergraduate General Education Christian Sandvig, Speech Communication Emily Shaw, Library and Information Science David Ward, University Library Matthew Yapchaian, Art and Design University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
May 2007 Room 1214 Siebel Center for Computer Science Faculty Summer Institute on Teaching and Learning with Technology
AGENDA FOR TODAY’S WORKSHOP I.
Introduction and Overview (Christian Sandvig) Interlude: Introduce with InnisMod/Civilization IV (Sandvig, Yapchaian, and audience)
II.
Do networked simulations have a place in general education? (Christian Sandvig)
III.
Introducing the Case Study: Pedagogy and Objectives (Christian Sandvig) Interlude: Continue InnisMod/Civilization IV Game (Sandvig, Yapchaian, and audience)
IV.
A Review of the Related Scholarship in Teaching and Learning (Emily Shaw) Interlude: Begin 2nd InnisMod/Civilization IV Game (Sandvig, Shaw, and audience)
V.
InnisMod Experiences from the Class; Reading/Demo of Student Work (Matt Yapchaian) Interlude: Continue InnisMod/Civilization IV Game (Sandvig, Shaw, and audience)
VI.
Overview of Gaming in Education, and the Infrastructure for Gaming (David Ward)
VII. Open Discussion (Christian Sandvig and audience)
CONTENTS OF THIS HANDOUT: this page
Agenda for Today’s Workshop
this page
Contents of This Handout
2
About the Presenters
3
Online Resources Mentioned During (or Related to) This Session
4
Case Study: InnisMod
8
A Survey of Undergraduate Students in the Affected Class
9
Example Assignment Prompts
12
Example Student Work and Comments
15
Further Reading
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About the Presenters Christian Sandvig is an Assistant Professor of Speech Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He has taught in graduate and undergraduate programs in law and communication here and at Stanford, Oxford, and the University of Pennsylvania. His research on computing infrastructure and public policy is supported by a CAREER award from the US National Science Foundation. His recent writing on digital learning has been supported by the MacArthur Foundation. His large lecture / lab format undergraduate course “Communication Technology and Society” (discussed in this workshop) has been offered for three years. It has been featured in the campus-wide “Teaching Showcase,” in Postcards (the university-wide newspaper for undergraduate parents), in discussions within the educational blogging community, and on the front page of the student newspaper (The Daily Illini). Emily Shaw is a graduate student of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She graduated from Barnard College in with a degree in Anthropology. Emily is interested in public policy and issues of access surrounding the Internet, especially as they affect underserved communities in the United States and abroad. She is a member of the research team that developed the game mod we will be discussing today, and she is slated to teach the class “Communication Technology & Society” next year. David Ward is the Undergraduate Library Head of Information Services. He is in charge of the library Gaming Initiative, and oversees the gaming collection and related instructional activities. Additionally, he designs and implements online and in person research services geared towards delivering educational content for undergraduate students, via technologies such as Instant Messaging. Matt Yapchaian is an MFA student in Art & Design working to design technologically mediated social spaces. He is part of the Social Spaces Research Group in Human Computer Interaction here at UIUC. His research group recently exhibited an interactive installation about online presence at the San Jose Museum of Art. He has previously taught “Time Based Media” in the Art & Design Department and “Introduction to Design” in the Computer Science Department. He is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design with a B.F.A. in Animation. He was a member of the instructional staff for the class that we will be discussing today.
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Online Resources Mentioned During (or Related to) This Session: Civilization IV (commercial game homepage) http://www.2kgames.com/civ4 InnisMod (free mod to Civilization IV used for the assignments described here) http://pact.uiuc.edu/innismod Download InnisMod (free, requires copy of Civilization IV) http://pact.uiuc.edu/innismod/download InnisMod Tutorial (a 5 minute tutorial movie about Innismod) http://pact.uiuc.edu/innismod/tutorial “Communication Technology & Society” (class web site) http://199.niftyc.org/ Gaming Collection University Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign http://www.library.uiuc.edu/gaming/ Serious Games (irregularly updated) http://www.seriousgames.org Games for Change http://www.gamesforchange.org/ Digital Media and Learning Hub (a MacArthur Foundation initiative) http://digitallearning.macfound.org/
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Case Study: InnisMod (A modified version of the popular video game Civilization IV for educational use.) We are piloting the use of Civilization IV, a popular video game, as an environment for experiential learning in a university general education curriculum.
Rationale There is a long history of simulation in the social sciences -- this project essentially uses the popular game Civilization IV as a simulation. Classes specifically about gaming already directly employ video games, but beyond this undergraduates may be exposed to games and simulations in required courses in statistics (e.g., Monte Carlo), in methods courses, or in courses about agentbased modeling (e.g., Sugarscape). Distance education courses may involve collaboration using remote presence or virtual reality (e.g., Second Life). Some introductory undergraduate courses have developed educational games or simulations to directly reinforce course material (e.g., Smog City in Atmospheric Science). In computer science, recent work has introduced games with a purpose to Artificial Intelligence (such as peekaboom). Overall, a larger movement is underway -sometimes called "Serious Games" -- to evaluate and develop productive uses for games in a variety of contexts, including higher education. However, in contrast to many of these approaches, we will try to view a simulation in the way that we would critically view a text or a reading. Students will not be asked to use a simulation in order to reinforce the laws that drive it. Instead, students will have to experientially discover the rules driving the simulation and critique them. This is a useful skill in that it provides an introduction to the understanding and critique of software "black-boxes" that students increasingly encounter in all aspects of life, while also providing a gentle introduction to the use of simulation methods in social science -- an important general education goal. If there is a lucky confluence between the topics covered by some entertainment software and the material covered in general education courses, commercial game software is a reasonable tool to both teach about the use of simulation and to reinforce course material through critique. Using popular software instead of custom-designed educational software also promises high production values and may improve student engagement. The closest parallel to this is the way that many urban planning departments have used SimCity.
What is InnisMod? Civilization is a turn-based strategy game where each player controls a nation and the goal is to dominate the world. In the most recent installment of the franchise, Civilization IV included a fully developed simulation of culture and nationality: Namely, culture can be created/promoted by manipulating institutions and acquiring/using communication technologies, and it can be used in the game in a variety of important ways. Players can make decisions about investing in the 4
development of writing, mass media, or the Internet. They can construct cultural projects like stone monuments, libraries, and networks of broadcasting stations. They can accomplish globallyrecognized cultural achievements like dominating the musical theatre (Broadway) or the film industry (Hollywood). Their decisions may lead to the birth of iconic cultural figures in their nation (such as well known artists and pop stars) who spread their popular culture to other nations. The "culture points" thus produced can be used in a variety of ways in the game. For instance, culture influences transnational migration, and affects diplomacy with other nations. It can even be used to win the game by creating a culture so powerful, other nations capitulate because they have lost the desire to resist. These features exist in the commercial version of the game available in stores. InnisMod does not alter the gameplay of Civilization IV except to make the game faster so that it can be used in a class assignment. Settings are changed to speed up gameplay and some elements of the game are removed entirely in order to reduce the number of decisions that a player has to make each turn and the number of commands that have to be learned in order to play. For example, the number of units (pieces) available has been reduced and the victory conditions have been made easier so that the game will end sooner. We have created a scenario using InnisMod that employs a small map (to further speed gameplay) where player positions are already determined (to eliminate exploration and placement of cities).
Why is it called InnisMod? The way culture and communication are realized in the game most closely maps the theories of Harold Adams Innis, as best exemplified by his books Empire and Communications and The Bias of Communications. In his writing, Innis used examples from antiquity to the present to argue that each new form of communication technology determined the kinds of social organization that were possible. Several features of the commercial version of the game Civiliation IV closely parallel the work of Innis. For instance, the game encourages the player to build stone obelisks to maintain and extend a civilization's culture. Similarly, the player's discovery of a priesthood class can lead to written law. One route to the discovery of paper is via theology. In the game, shifts from some communication technologies to others profoundly affect the political organization of nations. (For example, discovery of the printing press leads to democracy.) Similarly, the invention of mass communications have soporific effects on the population. The closest match between the work of Innis and the game Civilization IV may be Innis's theories relating culture and empire. He saw culture as essentially linked to nationalism, and described the process by which powerful cultures inevitably dragged marginal cultures into a dependency relationship. He also saw the arts as the key to a nation's vitality, and often used examples of great artists and the circulation of cultural products to explain the rise and fall of empires across history. His work on the political economy of communication would later become the foundation for many scholars elaborating the process of cultural imperialism. Many other scholars could plausibly be the game’s namesake. The more modern components of the game closely simulate the scholarship of Monroe E. Price in the books Television, the Public 5
Sphere and National Identity and Media and Sovereignty (as well as other writings). The in-game mechanics of a player's deployment of broadcasting and the game's model for national identity, transnational migration, and the split allegiances of minority populations reproduce much of Price's theoretical apparatus. In addition, the game's simulation of the international trade in cultural products, international relations and diplomacy related to media products and outlets, and the relation between communication technology and war all reproduce specific parts of Price's writings that he drew from research on recent ethnic conflicts in Bosnia and elsewhere. However, the value of the game in a communication, international relations, or political science general education course is that a large number of theories and research findings can be easily connected to the model of society implemented by the game. Even when existing theory and research may not be good fit with the simulation rules in the game, comparison provides an entry point for discussion, student writing, and critical thinking. (For example, the implementation of the Mass Media in the game perhaps most closely recalls Adorno, but the treatment of religion in the early game contradicts him.) The name "InnisMod" was chosen because of all the possible applicable theories of social organization, Innis's ideas are readily recognizable throughout the game to anyone who has read Empire and Communications. In the words of Harold Innis, this software's namesake: "I have attempted to suggest that Western civilization has been profoundly influenced by communication and that marked changes in communications have had important implications...the alphabet...paper...the invention of printing...the growth of the cinema...and the radio...In each period I have attempted to trace the implications of the media of communication for the character of knowledge and to suggest that an monopoly or oligopoly of knowledge is built up." (Innis, The Bias of Communication, p. 3-4). "I...[am] using the concept of empire as an indication of the efficiency of communication. It will reflect...the efficiency of particular media of communication and its possibilities in creating conditions favourable to creative thought." (Innis, Empire and Communications, p. 9). "Modern civilization, characterized by an enormous increase in output of mechanized knowledge with the newspaper, the book, the radio and the cinema, has produced a state of numbness, pleasure, and self-complacency." (Innis, Political Economy in the Modern State, 1946, p. 383)
Details The class Communication Technology & Society* will play and critique a modified version of Civilization IV in order to formulate and test principles about how human societies develop and employ communication technology, and its relation to human culture. This experiment in using new technologies in university learning has been made possible by a partnership with the Gaming Collection of the University Library. Students will sign up for periods on a dedicated computer hosted by the Gaming Collection and located in the Undergraduate Library. In addition, the game will be played in a computer classroom during regular class hours. Optionally, copies of the game are also on reserve and available for students to check out (at no charge) and take home. In 6
addition, downloadable game keys are also available to students who wish to install the game on their own computer. (Note that if the student takes the game home and installs it themselves, the instructors do not provide technical support.) (* - A proposal for general education credit for this course is pending before the general education board.)
A Research Project in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning In addition to the objectives above, this class is designed as an experiment in the tradition of the scholarship on teaching and learning. Carrying forward the treatment of simulation in the literature on “active learning” (Meyers & Jones, 1993), the use of simulation in this class is designed to capture the demonstrated benefits of active learning with simulation in a slightly new setting: Using commercial video games in a large lecture, general education class. To rigorously evaluate this effort, students will take a pre- and post- game survey designed to capture demographic information, computing/gaming skill, access to technology, learning style, and evaluation of the assignment. In addition, student writing and other class materials will be evaluated in conjunction with the survey materials. The university library will also monitor technology use and circulation of class-related material. Finally, course evaluations will also be used to understand student response to these assignments (although for reasons of confidentiality they cannot be linked with the other material collected from students). This analysis is in process, but some basic frequencies for a few questions are attached.
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A SURVEY OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS IN THE AFFECTED CLASS Basic frequencies from a survey of undergraduate students in “Communication Technology and Society” conducted May 2007 (Overall N = 69). How often do you play video games or computer games? N = 40
22% 30% 15% 28% 7%
I don’t a few times a semester a few times a month a few times a week every day
How skilled are you at playing video games? N = 40
3% 24% 26% 37% 11%
not at all skilled not very skilled fairly skilled very skilled expert
Where did you obtain the game for class assignments?
0% already owned it
N = 65
6% borrowed from a friend 6% checked it out from the library 14% got a free copy from my TA 58% went to computer lab
If you took another class that required a game like this one, which of these would be your preferred way to obtain it? N = 40
18% buy at bookstore with my books 37% check out from library 46% go to computer lab
Do you have access to a computer in your home/dorm room? N = 47 Do you have access to a video game system? N = 47
100% yes
62% yes
Where 1 = “strongly disagree,” 3 = “neutral,” and 5 = “strongly agree,” how much do you agree with the following statements? [Numbers are listed as: mean (standard deviation).] N = 65 3.7 (0.9) 2.7 (1.1) 2.9 (1.1) 2.6 (0.9) 2.5 (1.4) 2.3 (0.9)
Computer games are fun. Computer games are a waste of time. Computer games should be used as class assignments. Computer games are sexist. I would play this game again outside of class, just for fun. Computer games are racist.
Attribution: Sandvig, C., Shaw, E, Ward, D. & Yapchaian, M. (2007). Using Popular Video Games in Undergraduate General Education. Presentation to the 2007 Faculty Summer Institute. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
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ASSIGNMENT:
Civ Lab #1 This assignment involves the class game: Civilization IV. See the game page for all of the information about how to obtain and play the class game. You will want to watch the 5-minute tutorial movie before you begin. Part I. Look at the sign-up sheet for this assignment. Pick a component of the game that you want to investigate that still has spaces left. State which component you chose. Part II. In detail, describe how the component works in the game. Specifically, how does it help you to achieve cultural domination? To answer this, you'll have to play the game and experiment with the component that you signed up for. (Remember, you can change your mind and sign up for a new topic at any time.) IMPORTANT: You need to play the game enough with your feature in mind that you understand the operation of the feature, otherwise you will not have enough to write about. You need to be able to describe the role of the feature in the overall simulation of society. (For example, "I built the library and I won the game." is not sufficient -- you might write about how your component interacts with the other components and how it might play a role in a strategy to win the game.) Part III. Does the operation of the game component contradict or support facts, research, theories, or examples from course lectures and readings? For example: "I will explain how the way the invention of writing functions in Civilization IV totally contradicts Postman's arguments about memory..." or "The way the game depicts immigration supports the points made in lecture about cultural imperialism in three ways..." In your assessment, • • • •
refer to at least one specific example from YOUR gameplay to support your arguments. include at least one screenshot to show what you mean. include at least one quotation from a relevant class reading, lecture, or film screening to support your assessment. finally, upload your most relevant or most recent saved game file to your blog post so that readers can see what you did (saved game files are files with the extension ".Civ4SavedGame").
Further instructions about how to obtain the game are available from class handouts, in discussion section, and on the class games page of this web site. This assignment must be at least 250 words (about 1 page).
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ASSIGNMENT:
Civ Lab #2 This assignment involves the class game: Civilization IV. See the game page for all of the information about how to obtain and play the class game. For this blog post, you will use the game Civilization IV as a way to review for the final exam. Part I. First, look at the sign-up sheet for this assignment and choose a course concept or idea from the class. IMPORTANT: In order to help you review, you must choose something you have not written about before. Choose something that is unfamiliar to you. Do not choose to write on a lecture or a reading that has already been the subject of one of your blog posts. Part II. Play the class game Civilization IV as a simulation of society. Try to discover how the class material you chose functions in the game. Describe the way that the class game simulates the class material. For example: "Ch. 2 of the Media Now textbook explains that there are a small number of basic functions that the media perform in any society. In the game, these functions are represented by..." Part III. Use the correct definitions and concepts from the class to assess the game. You could consider: What is the correct definition of the material or concept? What parts of the game did a good job simulating what we know about that class concept? What parts of the game did a poor job simulating what we know about that class concept? Don’t forget: • • • •
Refer to at least one specific example from YOUR gameplay to support your arguments include at least one screenshot to show what you mean even though the sign-up sheet gives you some sources, you should still cite the exact source of the class material that you are reviewing finally, upload your most relevant or most recent saved game file to your blog post so that readers can see what you did
TIPS and ADVICE: • •
• •
To receive credit for this assignment, use enough detail in your writing that it is clear you understand the operation of both the class material and the game. These class concepts are chosen carefully -- connections can be made between all of them and the game material. (In other words: "This doesn't appear in the game at all" is not an answer to this assignment.) Remember that you may not write about the same game features as you did for the last blog post. One way to get ideas for this assignment is to look at other class member blogs to see what they found out in the last blog assignment. Their descriptions of game features could save you time exploring the game.
This assignment must be at least 250 words (about 1 page).
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ASSIGNMENT:
Civ Lab #3 The simulation Civilization IV describes imaginary societies. George Orwell’s novel 1984 is also a description of an imaginary society. For this blog post, consider: How could you use Civilization IV to simulate 1984? Part I. For this lab, continue to play the game Civilization IV, and concentrate on exploring features or strategies that you did not consider in the last two weeks that may be related to the society depicted in 1984. Part II. Find at least one quotation from the book 1984 that describes the way that Orwell's imaginary future society works. For instance, you might consider: What are the important institutions in society and how do they work? How is communication technology related to the organization of society? What are the rights of individuals in Orwell's 1984? How are politics organized? Part III. Suggest at least one specific modification to the game that would help you use it to simulate 1984. Your suggestion(s) must be your original creative work. To do this, suggest at least one change to the operation of an existing feature of the Civilization IV simulation. That is, the game already has a very large number of things in it: leaders, buildings, and pieces already exist. Don't suggest new things that should be added to the game, instead suggest modifications that change the way that the game works using the parts of the game that you already have. IMPORTANT: Changing the way the game LOOKS does NOT address this assignment. Adding text or references to the novel does not address this assignment (e.g., adding "Big Brother" as a leader, or a picture of Winston). You should suggest a change in the way the simulation works, not in a way that it looks. Include at least one quotation from 1984 in your blog post, and at least one screen shot from your game play to show what you mean. Ideas and Suggestions: • •
• •
It may help to recall the class lecture about simulations. This assignment will probably be easier if you don't suggest changes that would force all of the players to act like "Big Brother." Instead, you could use the game to compare the technology and/or political organization in 1984 to other possibilities. Many features of the simulation are organized as a series of steps. For instance, you must build a "library" to be able to build a "great library". What are the steps that lead to a society like 1984? Things that don't happen in a simulation can be as important as things that do happen. What would prevent 1984?
Just like last week, you may not write about game features you have already discussed in any blog post. Post an answer of at least 250 words to your blog.
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STUDENT WORK: Posted by GBN on April 25, 2007 10:53 AM Spreading the Word of God Civilization Lab #2 PART I: Concept/idea from class to study: the use of communication technology by missionaries PART II and III: In Civilization 4, missionaries can be used to spread religion to other civilizations. I attempted to play the game and observe the connection between the missionaries in Civilization 4 and the use of communication technology by missionaries in The Tailenders, assigned two weeks ago. In Civilization 4, missionaries can convert and spread religion or be given as a gift to another civilization for the civilization's own use. The missionaries can only spread religion to other civilizations if both you and the other civilization have agreed on open borders even if another state religion already exists. Also, they can only move across trade routes represented by the dotted line in the screen capture below. However, with open borders, other missionaries can come into your city and convert it as well. The missionaries are depicted only as males (this can be seen in the screencap below as well in the left corner). This did both a good and bad job of simulating what we know about missionaries from The Tailenders. In The Tailenders, the missionaries were spreading and converting people who often already practiced another faith such as Buddhism, Islam, or Paganism ("spirit-worshipers"). They even had specific "scripts" to target each group. So, Christianity, the religion they were spreading often co-existed with the original religion of the people in the same way that religions can co-exist in Civilization 4 as long as open borders exist. The Tailender missionaries also did not visit any countries that their home country was currently at war with (in line with the open borders aspect of the game). However, the missionaries in The Tailenders specifically said that people who had been uprooted and were away from their homeland were more open to gospel and easier to convert. This contradicts the rule in gameplay that a missionary must go to a city center in order to convert the civilization and spread his religion. Additionally, in Civilization 4, missionaries can help spark a Golden Age which gives you a boost in production and happiness that lasts for eight turns. This Golden Age can only be started with 1 “Great Prophet” and 1 “Great Scientist” working together (this can be seen in the left corner of the screencap below). In the game you can get Great Prophets by building religious centers such as Temples and Synagogues. In the same way, you can get scientists by building the Observatory, Library, and University. Then, if you build the Great Library, you greatly increase your odds of generating a Great Scientist. The concept of a “Golden Age” requiring this collaboration reminds me of the use of communication technology by missionaries in The Tailenders. The Global Recordings Network has their own engineers who designed the audio hand-crank players used to spread the gospel. They even have their own record pressing factory. One engineer who worked for GRN explained his role, saying, "we take what the man makes and revamp it to what we want to do." Civilization 4 represents this relationship by requiring both a Great Prophet (glorified missionary) and a Great Scientist (glorified scientist) to work together in order to create a Golden Age in the same way they worked together in The Tailenders to spread the word of God. Also, in order for Great Scientists and Great Prophets to emerge, institutions that cultivate them must be created such as observatories, libraries, and universities and temples and synagogues respectively. References: Horne, Adele. (2005). The Tailenders. Los Angeles: New Day Films.
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STUDENT WORK: Posted by F236 on April 23, 2007 5:31 PM Being Culturally Victorious is a Lot Safer... The topic I chose to write about this time was the relation between technology and war as discussed by Thomas P. Hughes in the Rhodes reading. I decided that instead of playing with the class mod installed that I would try my hand at starting from scratch. This takes a much longer time to get to “modern” times, but it allows you to really see the evolution of society. The first time I attempted the game from the beginning I played similarly to the way I played in the first lab. I tried to build things that I knew would further my culture. This included theaters, literature, music and drama. After I had a good cultural base, I began to build protection and attack units. As you can see in the below screen shot, I am currently Tokugawa, and I have built many defenses. I have artillery, an ironclad, boats, and many infantry and SAM soldiers. All of these people took “years” to evolve. Each artillery unit began as a cannon unit and until I built the researched modern military sciences, they remained as cannons. The soldiers all began with wooden bats and evolved to guns after I researched iron and steel. This shows how warfare builds off of the invention of new technologies. This second screen shot looks at one of my cities that has now upgraded to a tank. I was able to research robotics and plastics which allowed me to build this tank. With my knowledge of related coursework, I knew that electricity was important to the development of military technologies. Hughes stated, “The technology of electric power systems that was introduced during World War I not only caused perturbations in trends but also carried into peacetime certain aspects of the wartime environment” (Rhodes 1). This proved to be true with my civilization as well. With the discovery of electricity, I was able to research and develop Fission, and Industrialism which allowed me to build windmills in my cities which increased my score. Along with that, those additions allowed me to build more culture things like Broadway. Industrialism allowed me to build marines and other wartime products. This shows that all of these things are interrelated. Christian: I agree, the way the technology tree works in the full version of the games looks just like the Hughes article predicts it would. This may be because the game is also about war (most "real" gamers probably don't try for cultural victories) and so all of the technologies in it are related to war. Some evidence for this: In some attempts at the full version of the game used to playtest this class assignment, players just ignored tech tree branches that were not related to the kind of victory they were trying to achieve. E.g., if they weren't trying for a cultural victory there would be no reason to ever discover some of the things in the game (like "music" I think?). But it is almost impossible to play the game without a lot of the war-related technology. Do you think this reflects the true state of affairs in the world? That is, do we need war to make technological progress? --Christian F236: I do believe that we need war to make technological progress. Nothing seems to inspire people more than the idea that they may lose some of their freedom. In order to beat out the oppressive force, they create technologies that they believe the other force will not have. I have also found that it is impossible to play the game effectively without the use of culture. You cannot easily please the other countries unless you trade with them, and culture is something that is easily traded or "gifted." That makes it easier to focus most of your attention on the art of warfare. –F236 Sid: Good job. Not much to add to this. --Sid
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SAMPLES FROM OTHER STUDENT COMMENTS:
I have to say, I hated this game at first. I was impatient and did not understand all of the complex steps that were involved. I was the girl who could never win a video game to save her life. UNTIL NOW… This game was very difficult to catch on to and I had many problems with it. civ4, civ4, gimme more! After playing Civilization IV many times in order to learn how each unit or structure works in relation to the others, I began to get a good grasp as to what the "proper" way to play the game is. This was not easy, however. After playing this game for two weeks I have decided that there changes that need to be made to it. First off it needs to be more user friendly. The keys that are used to move around should be changed to make more sense. I found that it took me a long time to get accustomed to the game and understand how it worked. I went to the undergrad tonight (Sunday, April 29) to play Civ IV, however none of the computers would load the mod. I talked to the tech staff and they didn’t know what to do about it. Because the last week of the semester is busy for me with many papers to write and tests to study for, Sunday night is the only night I could work on this assignment. I didn’t get to play the game, though I’ll do my best to attempt the assignment. I plan on dropping this blog. I chose simulation because its something I only know a little about and that's what the assignment suggested we chose something we knew nothing about or hasn't been really discussed during lecture. The game was a little confusing therefore, I can't really compare the two orther than I know nothing about the two. (screen shots and copy of saved game unavailable due to technical difficulties :o( ) This game should be dropped because it is not related to the class. This game does a great job of having material from the class.
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Further Reading
Aldrich, Clark. Learning by doing: a comprehensive guide to simulations, computer games, and pedagogy in elearning and other educational experiences. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer, 2005. Burns, Alex. “Civilization III: Digital game-based learning and macrohistory simulations”. Australian Foresight Institute/Disinformation, 2002. accessed 04-06-07 http://www.disinfo.com/archive/images/linda/CivilizationIII.pdf de Freitas, Sara I. “Using Games and Simulations for Supporting Learning”. Learning, Media and Technology. 31(4), 2006. Federation of American Scientists. Harnessing the Power of Video Games for Learning. FAS Report. Washington, D.C.: Federation of American Scientists, 2006. accessed 5-05-07 http://www.fas.org/gamesummit/Resources/Summit%20on%20Educational%20Games.pdf Friedman, Ted. “Civilization and Its Discontents: Simulation, Subjectivity, and Space.” Discovering Discs: Transforming Space and Genre on CD-ROM. Greg Smith ed. NYU Press, 1999. accessed 4-10-07 http://www.duke.edu/~tlove/civ.htm Gee, James Paul. What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. Kirriemuir, John and McFarlane, Angela. "Literature Review in Games and Learning". Futurelab Series 8. accessed 04-10-07 http://www.futurelab.org.uk/research/reviews/08_01.htm Meyers, Chet and Thomas B. Jones. Promoting Active Learning: Strategies for the College Classroom. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1993. (see esp. the chapter, “Simulations”) Rice, John. “Assessing Higher Order Thinking in Video Games”. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education. 15(1). Chesapeake, VA: AACE, 2007. Shaffer, Squire, Halverson, and Gee. “Video games and the future of learning.” University of WisconsinMadison and Academic Advanced Distributed Learning Co-Laboratory, 2004. accessed 4-10-07 http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=cache:vcrJAnRuVj4J:www.mackenty.org/images /uploads/gappspaper1.pdf+ Squire, K. D. “Cultural Framing of Computer/Video Games.” Game Studies, 2(1). 2002. accessed 5-01-07 http://www.gamestudies.org/0102/squire/
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