Defense of Hidgeon

The School of Information at the University of Michigan has released their report on the Storygame project, Engaging Undergraduates in Research Through a Storytelling and Gaming Strategy: Final Report to the Delmas Foundation. I've only skimmed the report but found their premises for further information literacy games useful...

1. Game play must contribute in a useful way to the coursework students are already doing.
2. Game play that gives players mastery over one key concept, task, or procedure is preferable to comprehensive game play.
3. Game play must count toward students’ grades in the course.
4. Game play must give students opportunities to see other researchers at work so they can connect what they do to what others do.
5. Students want positive and negative feedback from games to improve their performance.
6. Although students want to be in control during game play, they will collaborate with their peers when the collaboration furthers what they want to accomplish.
7. Students must have concrete evidence that leaving their computer to do research will have a payoff in terms of improving their research or affecting their grades.
8. Game play must foster opportunities for students to reflect on their own research habits and what they are learning.