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Volume 1 No. 1 - Winter/Spring 2005
 Welcome to simZine...
From the editor 
Welcome to a new era of teaching and learning! Simula-tions and Games for learning are showing up at everyage level. Users stand in line for hours for the latest gamehardware and software. Game designers recognize thepower of “playing to learn” and are building sophisticatededucational games. For example, this Christmas, thenumber one toy for 3-7 year olds was the V-Smile byVTech. It is marketed as an educational learning systemthat teaches children basic school skills using interactiveTV gaming! There is now a new generation of people 90million strong (Beck and Wade 2004) who are growing up with video games.There are stores, magazines, websites, blogs, and user groups dedicated to thisgamer generation. Many non-gamers think that simulations and games are a bigwaste of time. But not all! Could there be positive effects from using simulationsand games? Both educational and business researchers are beginning to findout!!Business is starting to take note of how future gamer generation employeescould affect business organizations. Their recent research indicates thatfrequent users of this medium are better at multi-tasking, collaborative decisionmaking and leadership (Beck and Wade 2004). Business is starting to get it….how about educators?Educators want to understand how this gamer generation learns best and areasking questions such as “What is it about simulations and games that makesthem compelling learning environments? What are the benefits of learningthrough games?What effect couldthis medium haveon how futureteachers teach?”As educators,many of us haveseen the power of this new mediumand have asked,"How do we learn more about appropriate simulations and games for use asinstructional tools for learning? Where do we find out what others are thinking?What simulations and games are other educators using in the classroom? Lastly,what is the current research saying regarding the use of simulations and gamesas teaching and learning tools? We at simSchool want to know too!! So, westarted simZine!!
A NEWSLETTER ABOUT GAMES AND SIMULATIONS FOR EDUCATORS
 
 A New Age of Teaching and  Learning Using Simulations and Games Requires a New eZine. Introducing  simZine!! A Newsletter about Gamesand Simulations for Educators.
simSchool.. a powerful online learning experiencethat builds confidence in the classroom.
www.simschool.org
simZine
Screen Shots! 
...page 2
by Bill Halverson
simPortal 
...page 3
by Melanie Zibit 
Broadening Awareness 
...page 4
by Dr. David Gibson and Melanie Zibit 
Games in the Classroom 
...pages 5-7
 An Interview with Dr. Peggy Benton
Observations/Games & Learning 
 An Interview with Dr. Mike Searson
...pages 8-10
Upcoming Conferences 
...pages 11, 12
simSchool Visual Overview
 
...page 13
Will younger teachers think &learn differently? 
...page 14
by Melanie Zibit 
simSchool at Elearn! 
...page 15
Register  
...page 16
simSchool Newsletter 
Bill HalversonDavid GibsonMelanie ZibitMark FavazzaLauren Greenberg
 
simSchool © 2005|www.simSchool.org
2
.....Welcome to the first issue of “simZine.”
 Our goal is to produce an eZine for educators andothers who are interested in understanding thepower and value of using simulations and games asinstructional tools for learning and want to learnmore!!In this Inaugural issue, we include interviews withtwo leading researchers in educational simulationsand games. Dr. Peggy Benton, Professor of Instruc-tional Technologies (ITEC) at San Francisco StateUniversity (SFSU) tells simSchool, “Games providepowerful learning environments where the player can take risks without the “sting of failure.” A player tries over and over again, moving toward excellence,and contrasts that with what happens in school.Dr. Mike Searson, Executive Assistant to the Presi-dent at Kean University in Union, New Jersey talksabout his long-held interest in the complex cognitiveprocesses inherent in play and expresses the ironythat many people think games should not be part of education.These interviews are part of simSchool’s efforts toinvestigate the frontier of educational games and toshare information and resources with the education-al community. Highlights from leaders in educationalgames will be a regular feature of each newsletter.We hope the insights from these pioneers will proveuseful in your own work...Stay tuned!Also, in this issue are selections of recent research,articles, conferences and presentations relevant tosimulations and games for educators. We introducethe new “simPortal” where you can find a widevariety of resources along with simulation and gameinformation.In this issue are excerpts from an interview withsimSchool Co-PI Dr. David Gibson conducted onthe Lucas Foundation radio. You can go to our sim-Portal to read a review of the newly released book“Got Game…How the Gamer Generation is Reshap-ing Business Forever" by Beck and Wade.We are interested in your comments. If you know of interesting stories or people using simulations andgames in the classroom please let us know. If youknow of any research going on in this field, let usknow. Or, if there is simply some interesting nuggetyou want to share, I am always checking my email at
billh@simschool.org.
 A Call to Educational Gamers!
 Do you know someone working in the field of educational simulations and  games or using them in the classroom.We are on the look-out for people whohave exciting ideas about educational  games and simulations to interview  for our next issue and beyond of “simZine” .
Thanks for being part of this new and exciting era of teaching and learning…. Play to Learn!!
❧
Screen shots:
inside this issue
by Bill Halverson
 
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simSchool is funded by the Department of Education's PT3 Program
Overview of simPortal
simSchool wants to keep you informed about this ex-citing world of games and simulations. Go to simPortalhttp://www.simschool.org/simPortal.htmto find thelatest articles, research, and other resources relatedto today’s exciting world of educational games andsimulations. Once on simPortal, select sim
SchoolResources
; then scroll down to
select “Games andSimulations”
and browse recent articles by innova-tors and international educational gaming experts andresearchers. Here are two exciting resources to giveyou a preview of the kinds of items you can find.
Sample article found in simPortal:
Video Game Studies and the Emerging Instructional Revolution by Joel Foreman
An additional development in learning and technologyis the emergence of “Video Game Studies” as anacademic field in higher education. While this trendmay appear recent and relatively marginal, JoelForeman’s account indicates that it has already gainedconsiderable momentum as more scholars explorethe possibilities of gaming as a legitimate vehicle of pedagogy and curricular reform. After surveying thegrowth of this field, Foreman considers how gamingtechnology can allow students to construct newknowledge as they navigate through sophisticatedvirtual environments suited to different disciplinesof study. The future of gaming technology in higher education, Foreman argues, will largely depend onthe increasing demand of students who seek to bridgethe gap between their technological interests and their academic coursework. Aswith other innovations intechnology, the primaryimpetus for revolutionarychange will come from anew generation of learnersand aspiring professionals.
Sample book review found in simPortal:
Got Game: How the Gamer GenerationIs Reshaping Business Forever, John C.Beck, Michell Wade
Think video games are kids’ stuff? Think again.Provocative new data show that video gameshave created a new generation of employees andexecutives that will dramatically transform theworkplace. Got Game reveals the profound impactthat the “gamer generation” (already bigger than thebaby boom) will have on the future of business. Whilegames have made this group dramatically different interms of their attitudes, expectations, and abilities, thepotential of this generation has scarcely been noticedin most organizations. But managers won’t be able toignore gamers for long. Comprised of millions of risingprofessionals in the U.S. alone, the gamer generationwill ultimately dominate the workforce – and they arealready changing the rules of business. Througha large scale survey and hundreds of interviews,strategists John C. Beck and Mitchell Wade findthat gaming is not a time sink, but an amazinglyeffective training camp for critical business skills. Allthose hours immersed in game culture have createdmasses of employees with unique attributes: bold butmeasured risk taking, an amazing ability to multi-task,and unexpected leadership skills.
❧
simPortal:
opening the door to resourcesfor educational simulations and games
by Melanie Zibit
Call for articles or contributions!!You can help make simPortal a com- prehensive, state-of-the-art resource. Send us your favorite articles, web sites, graphics, and films. In the future wewill have a peer-reviewed journal sothat all educators can publish work and make it available to the educational  gaming and simulation community.
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