Modern Prometheus Teaches Ethics & Decision Making

Nichola Groom with Reuters has a nice article on Dr. Doug Thomas’ work at USC.

Doug Thomas, an associate professor at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication, is developing a game for students ages 10 to 12 that aims to teach ideas and skills not found in traditional textbooks.

“Because games are experiential they might be good at teaching things that you learn through experience, and that are difficult to teach through books,” Thomas said in an interview.

Various ethical dilemmas abound in the game, with different outcomes depending on choices students make. The game takes an hour or so, and Dr. Thomas expects students and teachers to have a debriefing time following game play in order to cement the learning objectives. It’s possible the game may be incorporated in schools using Quest Atlantis:

One challenge for “Modern Prometheus” and other classroom games is finding teachers willing to incorporate them in their lesson plans.

“It’s really hard for teachers to work with an unfamiliar technology that the kids know more about than they do,” Thomas said. “They feel like ‘my job is hard enough already.”‘

He also acknowledges that the game doesn’t quite fit into many established middle-school curricula.

To overcome that obstacle, Thomas is collaborating with Indiana University Professor Sasha Barab, whose “Quest Atlantis” game is used by 4,500 students around the world. Currently in beta testing, “Modern Prometheus” is expected to be in some U.S. classrooms by spring.

It’s good to see games designed for classroom consumption receive positive press like this. I’ll also be interested in reading Dr. Groom’s forthcoming articles on research surrounding the effort.

References:
Groom, N. (2007, December 6). Universities bring video games into classrooms. Washington Post. [Online]. Retrieved December 6, 2007 from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/
2007/12/06/AR2007120601261.html