Abstract
As a direct consequence of the realisation by governors and educators of the importance of new business creation for economic growth there has been an emphasis in embedding entrepreneurial attributes in the curricula for students of all ages in Higher education.
At UAD a new programme of study for an honours degree in Food Science and Technology in underway. In this context, it was proposed to develop an "alternative reality game" (ARG) to introduce students the world of food and drink manufacture and teach the basic entrepreneurial skills and commercial awareness required for employment in the food industry. ARGs are a relatively new genre of game defined as a Trans-media story telling, an experience that encourages players to interact with a fictional world using the real world to do it. An ARGs in this context provides the opportunity to create a workplace simulation in a fictional world.
ARGs are based on an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, employing a variety of media such as e-mail, blogs, websites, video clips, puzzles and game elements (puzzles and challenges) to tell a story that may be affected by the participants' ideas or actions. The puzzles and challenges are linked to desired learning outcomes mapping the desired graduate attributes.
The pedagogical advantages and disadvantages and examples of ARG's utilised for educational purposes will be presented in this paper.
At UAD a new programme of study for an honours degree in Food Science and Technology in underway. In this context, it was proposed to develop an "alternative reality game" (ARG) to introduce students the world of food and drink manufacture and teach the basic entrepreneurial skills and commercial awareness required for employment in the food industry. ARGs are a relatively new genre of game defined as a Trans-media story telling, an experience that encourages players to interact with a fictional world using the real world to do it. An ARGs in this context provides the opportunity to create a workplace simulation in a fictional world.
ARGs are based on an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, employing a variety of media such as e-mail, blogs, websites, video clips, puzzles and game elements (puzzles and challenges) to tell a story that may be affected by the participants' ideas or actions. The puzzles and challenges are linked to desired learning outcomes mapping the desired graduate attributes.
The pedagogical advantages and disadvantages and examples of ARG's utilised for educational purposes will be presented in this paper.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Professional practice in higher education teaching |
| Editors | June L. Leishman |
| Place of Publication | Dundee |
| Publisher | Abertay University Press |
| Chapter | 6 |
| Pages | 38-45 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Volume | 1 |
| ISBN (Print) | 1899796266 |
| Publication status | Published - 2012 |
Keywords
- Alternative reality games
- ARG
- Education
- Entrepreneurship