Games+Learning+Society 10 Conference

Advancing STEM Learning with Games in Civic and Cultural Institutions: A Play, Critique, and Discussion Session
Edge Quintanilla, Barry Joseph, Marjee Chmiel, David Ng

In 2010 only 16% of U.S. undergraduates declared natural sciences and engineering as their primary field of study compared to higher rates in other countries. Science is seemingly not interesting to youth. This problem is being addressed in and out of school. However, out-of-school learning is crucial and helps youth connect learning that happens in school to learning that occurs in other areas through “ecologies” of learning. These ecologies provide pathways of engagement across the spaces where youth develop (Ito, 2013). The American Museum of Natural History, The Field Museum, Smithsonian Science Education Center and University of British Columbia have contributed to these pathways through the development of STEM games. This panel will explore what the driving ideas are for using these games. Panelists will discuss with the audience on how games are, and might be be used, for STEM learning using civic and cultural institutions as examples.