Learning through sport - Play with Purpose

  Sport coaches and digital game designers may appear to work in very different worlds. However, both face essentially the same challenge: how do you motivate people to willingly engage in something difficult, complex, and requiring long-term learning? In a study we did a few years ago, we looked at the application of James Paul Gee's video game design principles to youth soccer/football coaching and discovered there is much coaches can learn from digital games as learning platforms. While not every gaming principle transfers into a sport setting, several ideas emerged can help coaches design effective learning experiences. We found a strong alignment between game-based coaching and three key principles of good game design: Empowerment Problem Solving Understanding Empower Players Rather Than Direct Them One of Gee's central ideas is that players should feel like active participants rather than passive recipients. Great digital games give players choices, ...