COVID 19 has disrupted the world. The pandemic has crippled world markets, shuttered businesses, and threatened our very lives. Many countries, states, provinces, and cities have wisely closed their schools to prevent the spread of the virus. Unfortunately, it has left teachers and parents struggling to teach the children forced to stay at home. Many learning institutions have published plans to try and reestablish learning with their students.
These emergency protocols strive to provide learners with a way to continue their academic work while remaining safe at home. The plans connect learners with meaningful tools and resources to continue their academics using the philosophy of “something is better than nothing.” As schools try to develop more robust remote or distance learning plans to reestablish education with their students, more and more teachers and parents are turning to digital resources to help fill the learning void.
For years, games have provided learning opportunities to the digital generation. Educators and parents have seen the popularity of games such as Fortnite, Pokemon Go, and Minecraft gain the attention of today’s children. Globally, over 2 billion people play digital games because they are highly interactive, engaging, and fun. There is also a growing body of research that supports that players can learn deeply through gameplay.
Learning with Digital Games: A Guide for Educators and Parents during the COVID-19 Crisis is a free resource with the purpose of providing some relief for the educators and parents of K-12 learners trying to provide learning experiences for the digital generation. This resource is not a comprehensive solution. However, it does provide educators and parents with over 40 learning games and 10 learning game hubs to supplement instruction for learners during the pandemic. Created by passionate educators working to help quarantined learners, this guide is free to you - please use it or share it with an educator or parent you feel might find it useful.
Ryan L. Schaaf is Associate Professor of Educational Technology at Notre Dame of Maryland University and author of Game On: Using Digital Games for 21st Century Teaching, Learning & Assessment. If you are interested in more teaching resources, please visit https://www.ryanschaaf.com.
Learning with Digital Games: A Guide for Educators and Parents during the COVID-19 Crisis is a free guide that will provide educators and parents with over 40 learning games and ten learning game hubs to supplement instruction for learners during the pandemic. https://www.ryanschaaf.com/post/learning-with-digital-games-a-guide-for-educators-and-parents-during-the-covid-19-crisis
Globally, over 2 billion people play digital games. They are highly-interactive, engaging, and fun. There is a growing body of research that supports that players can learn through gameplay.
Digital learning games are available and can help both parents and educators provide academic experiences for learners, while schools are closed.
Each game entry in the guide provides the title of a game, its suggested age range for players, a game description, and the academic content covered in gameplay.
Gameplay for learners may include independent play, where children are simply learning as they play. Some games may require support and guidance from parents or educators.
