Gamification and Virtual Worlds

David is an expert in the field of gamification, mixed reality and learning across the lifespan. He is a program coordinator, researcher and Professor at Ryerson University. Currently, he is teaching Gamification and Virtual Worlds at Humber College.

How are game mechanics used in marketing, development and health care?

Game mechanics are used in marketing to onboard and sustain customer relationships through interactivity. We use digital psychology to increase user "attention" on products and services. 

In development serious games are used to increase motivation, skill rehearsal and mark achievement for training and organizational planning. There is a huge literature that shows that contemporary workers prefer game based learning to traditional reading and quiz writing.

In health care games are used to create behavioral change such as harm reduction in addiction, medication compliance in childhood asthma, distraction during painful procedures for children, and training health care professionals. We have won several notable awards for our work in the last category.

Who should take this class?

1. Trainers and instructional designers.
2. K-12 teachers and administrators/curriculum planners.
3. College and university faculty.
4. Chief learning officers and organizational development leads.
5. Marketing professionals.
6. Startup developers (to onboard users and amplify demand).
7. Health care providers interested in behavioral change (addiction workers, health promotion professionals).
8. Social work experts in niche areas such as pre-release preparation in prisons.

What are 3 skills students will learn from taking this class?

1. How to use game-based instruction to increase engagement in employees or learners using online technology.
2. How to design meaningful simulation games for training in both online and face to face formats.
3. How to use narrative, fantasy, positive stress, flow theory and exploration to guide behavioral change in diverse populations.

Share a few assignments or projects students will work on in class.

1. Design jams, where you are given a subject to teach and must work with a small team to create games to use in a limited time.
2. Using LMS software to create compelling games to engage learners or employees working toward organizational goals.
3. How to build virtual learning environments with 360 cameras, apps and analog instruments such as card and board games to increase learning.
4. How to align learning objectives or behavioral change objectives by studying the use of narrative "storification", reward systems, exploration and competition mechanics.
5. Individual game builds and group game builds to create the most interesting system.
6. Chance to use game-based learning software to see what design principles are used.

LEARN MORE: Use Gamification in your work by enrolling in our Gamification and Virtual Worlds class.

Enroll Here