Books on gaming in education

Over the years I’ve had a lot of success teaching James Paul Gee’s seminal book What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy.  Students have reliably found it accessible, useful, and, sometimes, provocative.

But as I look ahead to 2020, planning for two upcoming classes to teach (educational technology and game design for higher education) I wondered about using a book from the distant past of 2003.

  Surely there’s a monograph or textbook that built on Gee’s groundbreaking work, that has more current examples and engages with subsequent research?

Many of my books are still in storage, so I couldn’t raid them for choices and inspiration.

Naturally enough I took to social media for recommendations.  Many people weighed in with suggestions (see credits below), and I’d like to share the accumulated list here.

Fun selection from Sean Holland.

To be clear, what I am looking for is a book that explains the connection between gaming and education.  So I’m not looking for a book about the history of games, the theory of gaming, or how to design games. I also don’t want an article or post.

  I want a book-length exploration of that intersection powerful enough to energize and inspire my grad students.

Here’s the list.  I’ll add more as folks supply titles.  Want me to add purchasing links?

Matthew Barr, Graduate Skills and Game-Based Learning: Using Video Games for Employability in Higher Education. (Palgrave, 2019)

Ian Bogost, How to Do Things with Videogames. (University of Minnesota Press, 2011)

_____, How To Talk About Videogames. (University of Minnesota Press, 2011)

Sharon Boller and Karl M. Kapp, Play to Learn: Everything You Need to Know About Designing Effective Learning Games. (Association for Talent Development, 2017)

Matthew Farber, Gamify Your Classroom: A Field Guide to Game-Based Learning. (Peter Lang, 2014)

James Paul Gee, Good Video Games and Good Learning: Collected Essays on Video Games, Learning, and Literacy. (Peter Lang, 2007)

Lindsay D. Grace, Doing Things with Games: Social Impact Through Play. (Taylor and Francis, 2019)

Yasmin B. Kafai and Quinn Burke, Connected Gaming What Making Video Games Can Teach Us about Learning and Literacy. (MIT Press, 2016)

Myint Swe Khine, Learning to Play: Exploring the Future of Education with Video Games. (Peter Lang, 2010)

Eric Klopfer, Jason Haas, Scot Osterweil and Louisa Rosenheck, Resonant Games: Design Principles for Learning Games that Connect Hearts, Minds, and the Everyday. (MIT Press, 2018)

Colleen Macklin and John Sharp, Games, Design and Play: A Detailed Approach To Iterative Game Design. (Addison-Wesley, 2016)

Jane McGonigal, Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World.  (Penguin, 2011)

Karen Schrier, Knowledge Games: How Playing Games Can Solve Problems, Create Insight, and Make Change. (Johns Hopkins, 2016)

____, Learning, Education and Games: Learning, Education and Games:

• Volume One: Curricular and Design Considerations. (Carnegie Mellon ETC Press, 2014)
• Volume Two: Bringing Games into Educational Contexts. (Carnegie Mellon ETC Press, 2016)

Katie Salen Tekinbaş and Eric Zimmerman, The Game Design Reader A Rules of Play Anthology. (MIT Press, 2005).

Nicola Whitton, Digital Games and Learning: Research and Theory. (Routledge, 2014)

_____, Learning with Digital Games: A Practical Guide to Engaging Students in Higher Education. (Routledge, 2009)

_____, Using Games to Enhance Learning and Teaching. (Routledge, 2012)

(thanks to Sean Holland for the book collection photo; thanks to Ian Bogost, Michaekl Greer, Trent Hergenrader, Sean Holland, Stephen Jacobs, Rolin Moe, Rikke Toft Nørgård, D’Arcy Norman, Jake Orlowitz, Andrew Peterson, Andy Phelps, Ruben Puentedura, Anne-Marie Scott, stabi, and George Station for conversation and contributions)

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