Erin Hoffman-John - Effective Games: Why We Can't Have Nice Things (Yet)

1. EFFECTIVE GAMES: WHY WE CAN’T HAVE NICE THINGS (YET) ERIN HOFFMAN, SERIOUS PLAY 2016

2. CHASING THE FUTURE it’s true because it has a chart 8000 6000 4000 Edtech Investment Social Game Revenue F2P US Revenue Worldwide MMO Revenue growth* 2000 *$millions 0 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 edugames facebook game (“sushi war”) text MMOf2p virtual world social-mobile I was working on:

3. 1998 2003 2005 2006 2008 2010 2012 2013 2014 (you do the math) (I was 17)

4. IN 2013, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED TO ME • I was taken in by scientists. • 24 scientists, to be exact, from the likes of the Stanford Research Institute, NASA, and Educational Testing Service (the folk who make the SAT). • these are nerds among nerds.

5. “To be a teacher in the right sense is to be a learner. Instruction begins when you, the teacher, learn from the learner, put yourself in his place so that you may understand what he understands and the way he understands it.” –SOREN KIERKEGAARD, 1848

6. “To be a teacher in the right sense is to be a learner. Instruction begins when you, the teacher, learn from the learner, put yourself in his place so that you may understand what he understands and the way he understands it.” –SOREN KIERKEGAARD, 1848 “Teaching well is really freaking hard.” –ERIN HOFFMAN, 2015

7. AS YOU MIGHT IMAGINE • game designers spend an awful lot of time talking about what “fun” is • the most widely-accepted definition comes from a game designer named Raph Koster (you might recognize Star Wars Galaxies, EverQuest II, Ultima Online - that’s Raph) • though now he might be more well known for his book:

8. And Raph said… “That’s what games are, in the end. Teachers. Fun is just another word for learning.” –RAPH KOSTER • this hit the world of game design like a bomb — it was so obvious and true

9. world model game design early child psych space whales * world model space whales *

10. But Raph was riffing off the work of a lot of smart people…

11. Leading to what I call the “depth hierarchy of nerddom” on fun: Jesse Schell - “fun isn’t important” Raph Koster - “fun is learning” James Paul Gee - “fun is the scientific method” Fred Rogers* - “play is the work of childhood” Jean Piaget - “play is assimilation without adaptation” (3 kinds of play: practice, symbolic, rules-based) Lev Vygotsky - “play is a self-actualizing tool of the mind that maximizes the zone of proximal development” (some neuroscientist, maybe Judy Willis**) * you could maybe stick Csikszentmihalyi*** here but I like Mr. Rogers better because it’s easier to type ** http://www.psychologytoday.com/files/attachments/4141/the-neuroscience-joyful-education-judy-willis-md.pdf *** but for the record I just wanted to prove that I could spell Csikszentmihalyi image by G. Blackney, middle school earth sciences

12. THE REVOLUTIONARY IDEA BEHIND GLASSLAB WAS • school is really, really boring. • maybe video game designers could make school less boring. • if kids are less bored, maybe they’ll learn better. • and maybe big data could enable the creation of genuine adaptive, personalized learning.

13. No problem!, we thought. If games are about fun and fun is about learning, this’ll be easy! Time to revolutionize education!

14. so we brought the brand new SimCity into classrooms… and the kids said: so this is pretty fun, but we’re not learning anything. (and SimCity historically has been used by teachers to teach all sorts of things)

15. This blew open Raph’s theory. “Fun is learning” wasn’t the conclusive epiphany we (designers) thought it was — it was just the beginning.

16. Over the course of the next two years and three products, I got to watch tons of breathtakingly talented teachers in action. in collaboration with the teachers of Epic charter school, teaches proportional reasoning 2015 in collaboration with NASA and the National Writing Project, teaches argumentation 2014 teaches environmental science and systems thinking 2013

17. when students were really engaged in learning, there was something going on that wasn’t “fun”. it was something deeper, something special. (real kids playing our real games)

18. WHAT GAMES DO • create situated context (Jim Gee) • prepare for future learning (Dan Schwartz) • inspire and engage (every teacher & parent everywhere) • accommodate alternative learning modalities

19. WHAT MOST GAMES DON’T DO • teach

20. WHAT MOST GAMES DON’T DO • teach why? (kind of funny, isn’t it?)

21. “To be a teacher in the right sense is to be a learner. Instruction begins when you, the teacher, learn from the learner, put yourself in his place so that you may understand what he understands and the way he understands it.” –SOREN KIERKEGAARD, 1848 “Teaching well is really freaking hard.” –ERIN HOFFMAN, 2015

22. WHAT DOES A TEACHING GAME NEED TO DO? • it has to be a valid assessment • it has to be scaffolded • it has to have multiple representations

23. THE ASSESSMENT MONSTER • most games do have assessments (that’s what a boss battle is) • but they’re rarely valid according to a learning standard • validity means correctness is inescapable and blocks progression - it means you’re measured from every angle

24. SCAFFOLDING • most games do have scaffolding (that’s what levels are) • most games even scaffold you toward assessment (levels prepare you for bosses) • but few learning games are properly scaffolded • * actually, arguably, few games are properly scaffolded

25. MULTIPLE REPRESENTATIONS • and almost no learning games have multiple representations - I think (it’s just too damn expensive) • multiple representation might be a big part of why minecraft is so effective and engaging • immersive semi-reality is the closest we’ve gotten to true multiple rep

26. how we began with design thinking and turned mars generation one into a valid assessment

27. WE BEGAN WITH PAIN POINTS • Your starting point is probably your user’s pain point. • Don’t run from the pain point, and don’t assume you’ll erase it immediately; to be fulfilled, it must be embraced. • …even amplified. • In a game, pain is challenge, and challenge is good.

28. PAIN IN ARGUMENTATION • When we began Mars Generation One: Argubot Academy, we set out to identify pain in argumentation. • When you’re bad at arguing, you feel: • confused • powerless • unpopular • stupid

29. so we knew we needed to bring about this emotional transition: • confused • clear • powerless • powerful • unpopular • charismatic • stupid • genius our message was: learn to argue well, using evidence, and you’ll become convincing, popular, admired, and powerful

30. EMOTIONAL CLUSTERING aspects of argumentation • We began by digging deeper into the pain point analysis. SUBJECTIVE VAGUE • After many interviews with teachers, the same problems emerged between instructors and students. HARD TO REMEMBER ABSTRACT • These qualities created the dominant emotional reaction of confusion. COMPLEX

31. so we took these qualities and searched for game experiences that were the opposite SIMPLE PRECISE SUBJECTIVE VAGUE CONCRETE HARD TO REMEMBER MASTERABLE ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE COMPLEX

32. it turns out that these are feelings that games innately convey particularly well SIMPLE CONCRETE MEMORABLE PRECISE OBJECTIVE

33. So we applied a concrete system that scaffolded into great complexity (otherwise it wouldn’t ever really feel like argumentation) but was masterable and simple. Aka…

34. GOTTA CATCH ‘EM ALL • Pokemon is an incredibly complex game involving constant computation, comparison, and memorization. • Kids love it anyway because it’s so concrete and memorable. • So the important thing to remove from argumentation wasn’t the complexity, but the abstractness and subjectivity.

35. Our “argubots” paralleled forms of argument, but made them visually memorable, masterable, and full of personality.

36. THE RESULTS • Well, ask the kids: • “BOOM!” • “wait wait wait we want to hear this!” • “that’s TOTALLY not related!” • “that [argument] wasn’t even, like, legit!” • “omg, K-O!” This approach to argumentation was: • “data was inconsistent, it wasn’t supporting” • concrete • “fiiiiiiight!” • exciting • “let’s go CQ!*” • masterable • relatable * a 6th grader referencing philosopher Stephen Toulmin

37. by taking them from one painful side of the emotional map to the other, we changed the way they thought about argumentation and reason winning insight got it can’t abstract remember getting it confused surprise mastery afraid curiosity tenacity stress anxiety failure threat

38. contrast this with the emotionally flat way argumentation is traditionally taught it’s not memorable because there’s no surprise, no discovery, no choice, no tension, no reversal

39. we took them on an emotional journey - this is how transformation happens sadness fear surprise disgust happiness contempt anger

40. but what about the competency?

41. THAT TIME WE TRIED TO ASSESS SIMCITY

42. IT WAS ABOUT THE CORE LOOP • core loop based on a deliberate competency • competency mapped to interaction mechanic • an abstract idea made mechanical

43. TURNING IT UPSIDE DOWN • original IP: pokemon robots on mars competency • made with NASA and the national writing project • attacking argumentation

44. a new kind of game design Argumentation Skill (LP level) Identify Organize Use Evaluate Identify data as pro/com Arrange arg with multiple pieces of data Organize argument with multiple arg schemes Use a critical question Evaluate opposing argument weakness Match data to related argument Chat with characters Take/leave evidence Click on objects select bot type Attach data fuel to claim core Launch irrelevant core attack Launch critical attack Choose shield Explore Equip Battle Mars Generation One: Argubot Academy

45. AND DID IT WORK?

46. (it super did) AND DID IT WORK?

47. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE REQS • it has to be a valid assessment = A • it has to be scaffolded = = B- • it has to have multiple representations = C-

48. THE REAL PROBLEM • (I’m not sure I should tell you this) • MGO took us about 1.5 years and $2m* • (which for what it did and the ice it broke really wasn’t bad, especially in game terms) • but this kind of money isn’t in the learning game system * please don’t quote me

49. THE REAL PROBLEM • (this was why Ratio Rancher was a big step forward - we built it with half the staff and in 6 months - better, stronger, faster) * please don’t quote me

50. HERE’S WHY IT (SHOULD BE) THE FUTURE • games that actually teach may be the only way to achieve globally scalable education