Getting started
The course looks at how aspects of learning may be supported and enhanced through the use of games and online games. Your starting point is ‘a need’ within your practice, which you will investigate how to address. This will involve exploring how other people have already attempted to address a similar need in their practice (bringing in some theory and practical examples of how games and online games are used in schools), before you plan their use in your school and reflect and discuss your approach.
In this first part of the course we will introduce ourselves to get an idea of the contexts others are working in, including questions around their use of games out of school, what subjects they specialise in and their experience of other technologies. This will allow for cross-fertilisation of ideas in projects and for supported reflection.
Activity 1 Online introductions and guidance on using course materials 
The objectives of this course activity are:
- to get to know the other participants on this course
- to identify the location of the course materials and the methods by which support can be provided by the course facilitator and course participants and how you can offer support.
Go to the course forum and the ‘Introductions’ thread. There it will explain how these introductions will be done. Introduce yourself, and your context, telling the other course members what you hope to get out of the course.
Go to the course forum and read what others have posted. Reply to some of these messages, identifying areas of overlap with your own context, objectives, interests or expertise.
Activity 2 Reading and viewing suggested materials on games-based learning 
The objectives of this course activity are to:
- develop your understanding of games-based learning
- become familiar with game genres
- view examples of how games are currently used by other teachers.
Look at the resource sheet [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] provided.
- Read the section on genres and ratings.
- Pick one or two examples of the readings and use of games that seem most appropriate to your setting.
- Select some of the information most appropriate to your context to inform your contribution to the online discussion, scheduled for next week.
It might be useful to record some of the key points in your opinion using the points below as a starting point for later discussions:
- any points that need clarifying
- anything you find particularly interesting
- anything that strikes you as particularly relevant to your teaching and learning
- any barriers you identify in introducing games-based learning into your teaching
- any need that you have identified in your practice that online games might help to address.
Course schedule