Introduction – Drew Davidson
This book is a combination of two Special Issues of On The Horizon that focused on strategies for applying games, simulations and interactive media experiences in learning contexts. The first special issue came out in early 2004, and the second in early 2005.
Since then we have seen an explosion of academic interest in a variety of new and different interactive media that could be used for education. Some examples of this would be the online world of Second Life and Web 2.0. Also, organizations, like the New Media Consortium and the Serious Games Initiative, have developed to provide forums and communities for academics interested in these topics.
Both of these issues were developed collaboratively. Throughout the process, the authors and editors all worked together, using MovableType (http://www.movabletype.org), to create thematically connected issues. We worked together, creating articles with concepts that resonate with one and other. This book is the work of all of us as a whole and I would like to thank all the authors for their participation.
It is my pleasure to introduce our international group of contributors, each writing in a topic area that addresses various methods for implementing media in learning experiences. Along with myself, our group includes: Clark Aldrich, Ian Bogost, Mia Consalvo, William Crosbie, Simon Egenfeldt-Neilsen, Mindy Jackson, Donna Leishman, Michael Mateas, Marc Prensky, Scott Rettberg, Kurt Squire, David Thomas, Siobhan Thomas, Jill Walker, and Jenny Weight.
• Clark Aldrich outlines four stages of deploying simulations in his article that received the Highly Commended Award from the Emerald Literati Club. 1
• Mindy Jackson looks at how games are being used across disciplines. 1
• Drew Davidson gives an overview of the phenomenon of university programs and degrees in games, simulations, and interactive media. 2
• Simon Egenfeldt-Neilsen defines some barriers to using educational games in a course. 1
• Kurt Squire delves into the kinds of learning that occur during gameplay. 2
• David Thomas discusses the issue of games teaching us violent or educational content, or both. 2
• Donna Leishman illustrates how interactive experiences can help slower learners. 1
• Mia Consalvo explores how cheating at games can be turned into learning opportunities. 2
• Michael Mateas delineates the importance of procedural literacy. 2
• Siobhan Thomas writes an in-depth review of Clark Aldrich’s book, Simulations and the Future of Learning. 1
• Scott Rettberg explains how interactive media can be used to study literature. 1
• Jill Walker illustrates how blogging can be used in teaching and learning. 2
• Jenny Weight explores the possibilities of incorporating computer-based media into courses. 1
• William Crosbie provides an in-depth review of Virtual Humans by Peter Plantec. 2
• Drew Davidson looks at the process of establishing an official university center that focuses on the study and creation of games and simulations. 1
• Marc Prensky sounds a call for open source development of learning software. 1
• Ian Bogost challenges us to become more actively involved in our educations and shows how games enable us to do so. 2
In closing, I would like to note that this book, like the two special issues, is meant to serve as the basis of many more discussions across conference panels, online forums and interactive media that in turn will engender more special collaborative issues and texts. Much has happened since the articles for the special issues were originally written, but there is still much to discuss. As such, this book is being release under a Creative Commons license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/) and can be shared as long is it is properly attributed, non-commercial and not derivative. So, let the conversation continue…