David Dogdson: Digital Games & Learning by Design

Recording (46min): http://lancelot.adobeconnect.com/p7yu93zm7by/

Think 'games' and we often think 'fun'; think 'learning' and we often think 'hard work'. So, what should we think of game-based learning? Something that makes hard work fun? Or, as the presenter will argue, something that makes fun hard work?

Based on experience of using games like Minecraft, Undertale, The Long Dark and Can You Escape? with his young learners, David will explore how the rich context and personal investment offered by games can create powerful language learning moments.

However, these moments do not come about by accident. Successful commercial and indie games showcase strong design. Successful language learning tasks also require strong design. This talk will explore how language teachers can design tasks to maximise the learning affordances offered by great games.

David Dodgson, originally from the UK, works for the British Council in Bahrain as an ICT coordinator. He has also worked in Turkey and Gabon, gaining experience with young learners, adults, ESP and EAL classes. He has a keen interest in using digital games as authentic materials for language learning, and blogs about it at eltsandbox.weebly.com. Email: dave.dodgson@gmail.com