© 2022 AMERICAN COLLEGE OF EDUCATION 1 Transcript: Game-Based Assessments Games are changing the way we assess digital learners. While games enable instructors to quickly evaluate the level of learning, the assessment piece of gaming is not easy to implement effectively. However, it’s worth the effort as research shows learners’ brains are stimulated by games and play, and this may be reflected in assessment results. If you are a gamer, you probably take different paths through the game every time you play. Do you learn from each experience and try new pathways, new tools, and fresh approaches to master the game? Of course, you do! This is what makes gaming so fun. Therefore, assessing learning through gaming requires a highly sophisticated set of achievement benchmarks. Even though this sounds complex, games such as BrainPOP, an animated educational site, and SimCityEDU: Pollution Challenge!
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based simulation game, assess learners by asking them to problem solve real-world issues. The game provides information to the instructor about the learner’s ability to work within complex systems and resolve a problem. As learners play the game, observation may be another form of assessment. During the observation, the instructor may ask questions about the learner's choices to determine if the learner is being successful or struggling to engage with the content. Post-game assessment may take the form of providing an activity to showcase the learner’s new skills. Games continue to expand the thinking of digital learners of all ages. Games are exciting, challenging, and like no other technique we offer in education. NOTES
