GAMES AND GAMIFICATION TOOLS FOR CREATING INNOVATIVE LEARNING SOLUTIONS physical world and that interactions among people within a virtual world are similar to interactions between people in the physical world. In a video game, people behave as if they were the avatar in the 3D virtual space and not simply manipulating a character on the screen [1]. This means that the decision-making and behaviors of the players are the same as they would be in the actual situation. Therefore, the behavior of the player can be monitored and mistakes corrected so that the next time, the person within the video game can exhibit the correct behavior. In other words, video games can serve as effective
COMBAT DECISION MAKING One such example is Decisive Combat, a thirdperson shooter game, designed to teach young military professionals critical thinking and decision making skills. It was developed jointly by the Singapore Armed Forces Centre for Leadership Development , Defense Science & Technology
Agency and Singapore Technologies eSERV. The video game is instructional and provides training in core values as well as critical thinking and decision making. In the game there are eight mission scenarios all taking places as
training environments. Learners can learn from their mistakes in a safe, forgiving environment and try again
and again until they get it right. Well-designed performance They
require
video before a
games
put
competence.
learner
to
do
something, to take action, to make decisions
before
the
learner
different key installations such as an The fields of learning and KM are bursting with innovations such as the use of smartphones for distributing learning content or the augmented realitybased instructions via a tablet PC
is
presented with an explanation. Action and activities provide instruction, not text, words,
diagrams and explanations. This translates into “learning by doing.� It means leaners have a deep, encoded experience which they can recall and remember in the future. A carefully designed video game can articulate tacit and explicit knowledge and present it in an interactive, easy-to-understand format within a training program that teaches up-and-coming professionals.
airport and an oil refinery. The game is an ideal mixture of adventure, decision
making,
critical
concentrated
thinking
learning.
and Unlike
commercial video games, the goal of this game is not to shoot first and ask questions later, the goal is to reinforce key values and to help the future commanders make quick and accurate decisions in the heat of battle. This is
accomplished by having the learner take on the role of a Second Lieutenant. As the Second Lieutenant, the learner must deal with chaotic situations while deciding what actions to take first, how to best deal with enemies and how to accomplish missions such as defusing a live bomb. Decisions include whether or not to wait for orders or take independent actions while saving hostages or storming the oil refinery. The video game teaches future military commanders to prioritize one strategic objective over another. 37