Here are the highlights:
How do you inspire a new generation of
political deal makers while educating youth about the political process? In the
article, Chris Parsons from Muzzy Lane Software explains how they took a tough
subject and made it engaging through Serious Games.
“There are few freshman college classes more
dreaded than Introduction to American Government. So when publisher McGraw-Hill Higher Education asked Muzzy
Lane Software in Newburyport to make a game for students taking
“AmGov,” we knew that to engage those teens, we had to give them some actual
power to make decisions that mattered. But what role would best help them learn
about how government works?”
“A lot of us here at Muzzy Lane are history
buffs and political junkies; none more than Dave McCool, our chief executive
and the lead designer of Practice Government in Action. For this project,
Dave and McGraw-Hill brought together groups of teachers and subject matter
experts to draw upon their knowledge and expertise.”
“There was a lot of early interest in having
players take the role of presidential candidate, but eventually it became clear
that a role in Congress would allow them to touch more elements of an American
Government course—media, interest groups, legislation, the Presidency, the
Supreme Court, and political parties.”
“The next step was inviting our own
congressman, John Tierney, to visit our Newburyport office to share exactly
what a member spends his or her time doing. Tierney was very generous with his
time, explaining that most of the work performed by a member of congress is
two-fold: law-making in Washington, D.C., and time spent in the home district
listening to constituents.”
“But there is a lot more to it…” please find
the full article here.