Fun, entertainment, and socializing are usually the first words that come to mind when we talk about games. But it is possible to go further, even using games in business education.
Methods such as gamification and game-based learning adopt games for a purpose different from the recreational goals for which they were originally conceived. Through these methodologies, games gain the power to change and influence an individual’s behavior, as well as to educate them about concepts and subjects. This is especially useful in the professional and business segment, which daily finds it difficult to train and upskill people.
Besides there being games developed especially for this context, it is possible to take a title originally made to entertain and adapt it to educate. But how do you do that? That is a question many people have, and it is the one we want to answer with this article.
Contents
- So, why use games in business education?
- Challenges in application
- Adapting games strategically
- Practical examples for applying game-based learning
- Assessing learning through games
So, why use games in business education?
There is one main reason people play: games are fun. The game-based learning methodology takes advantage of that fun by turning it into experiences that help people develop knowledge and skills that are useful for life, mainly professional life.
Applying games in business education often starts with taking a game and adapting it so that it becomes a means of teaching and learning. The intention is that this not be a temporary or isolated initiative, but part of a more holistic teaching and training approach. Likewise, games are not meant to replace traditional forms of instruction, but to complement them.
In short, we can say that this methodology is based mainly on learning through experience. With games, it is possible to teach concepts in practice in an environment where, unlike in a real company, mistakes are not only correctable but also tolerable.
In addition, the use of games can make the learning process much more motivating, fun, and, thanks to the enormous range of possible formats and modalities, versatile.
Challenges in application
Before choosing a game to use in a course or training, some factors need to be taken into account. The first is to analyze whether the game under consideration is suited to the audience and to the content to be taught.
Another challenge is dealing with the preconceived notions most people have about games. A participant in a game-based learning activity may arrive expecting something that is not necessarily what they will find.
In addition, games are not a linear teaching tool, but an open-ended process based on experimentation and interaction. Therefore, flexibility must be a trait present in both those who teach and those who learn.
Adapting games strategically
Despite these challenges, there are several viable paths to turn games into legitimate teaching tools. One of them is to select a title that is truly suited to the audience you want to teach, whether from a personal or a professional standpoint.
Typical game dynamics, such as cooperation and competition, can provide an experience capable of transforming the relationship between the person who is learning and the content being taught. An experience that can surprise those used to traditional teaching approaches.
The educator’s role in these cases is to ensure that contact with game-based teaching is as organic as possible. A good way to do this is to start exploring the method with simpler activities and then move on to more complex challenges.
Using stories and narratives is also an efficient way to integrate games into the learning environment. In any case, keep in mind that from the moment a game is chosen for use in a learning context, entertaining is no longer its main focus. The game’s objectives must be aligned with what you want to teach, and not the other way around.
Practical examples for applying game-based learning
The number of games that can be adapted for use as an educational tool is limited only by the number of games on the market. However, the easiest way to implement a game-based teaching approach is to use titles with premises that are more familiar to players.
As we mentioned in the previous section, choosing a game for teaching and training purposes mainly involves making sure that its plot, design, mechanics, gameplay, and objectives are consistent with the concept or content you want to convey.
For example: if the intention is to teach the skill of running a business in an extremely competitive and hostile environment, the RTS game StarCraft 2 is a great option to use in the method.
Now, if the goal is to train more commercial skills, such as negotiation, supply chain, pricing, sales, and investments, a good ally can be the open-world MMORPG World of Warcraft.
Business simulation games, on the other hand, can provide experiences even closer to those of the real corporate world. Titles such as Two Point Hospital, Capitalism II, and Planet Coaster put the player in charge of companies in segments that also exist in reality, teaching routine and often complex tasks in a hands-on way.
Besides video games, there are also board games, which help improve cognition and can be tied to business concepts such as trade-offs, investments, and analytical skills.
Finally, gamified online platforms, such as Kahoot and Quizizz, are also a possibility for teaching different subjects in a light and engaging way.
Assessing learning through games
Assessments within game-based learning should be used both to measure participants’ performance and to determine the effectiveness of the activity. Some types are easier to implement, such as tests and questionnaires that challenge students to apply in practice the skills they have learned.
Other types of content, in turn, may ask participants to go through challenges that, aligned with the game’s themes, require them to apply their new knowledge.
The fact is that in game-based learning, assessing learning is a much more complex task than it would be in a traditional methodology. As excellent as games are at challenging players to put their skills to the test and develop new ones, it is also necessary to know how to measure concretely how well a game connects with the subject you are trying to teach.
The involvement of whoever delivers the content, whether a teacher or a mentor, is also very important to ensure the player/student’s engagement and progress. It is very easy, especially for a less experienced player, to feel discouraged and even incompetent when the game’s progression slows down or when they get “stuck” at a certain point in the game.
Instructors can take advantage of situations like this to draw connections between what happens in the game and what can be taken from it. This approach is valuable for encouraging players to try different tactics and learn from their own failures.
The future of teaching methodology through games lies in a dynamic adaptation of games to students’ needs and characteristics. This is easier to achieve with digital games, which are able to detect and adapt to the player’s behavior and match their skill level with appropriate challenges that help them maximize learning.
As you have seen, adapting a game so that it becomes a real business teaching tool is a task that can be very challenging, but it usually generates great results when done the right way.
The game-based learning methodology offers practically unlimited possibilities. Exploring it may be the answer to the challenges many companies face in teaching concepts, soft skills, and hard skills to their employees. How about pressing start and getting familiar with this form of professional development?
