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Welcome Educators
Welcome Educators
As Educators, we recognize that finding appropriate, accessible, and relevant games/simulations for business studies courses can be a challenge. This often results in endless searching only to be left wondering if the games discovered are appropriate. Many even find themselves in a position of not knowing where and how to start incorporating games into business studies.
Our inquiry project has led to locating, researching, and testing some of the best free and paid games currently available. This site serves as a resource document for educators hoping to include more games and simulations into their classrooms. The list we've compiled on this site, comes complete with descriptions, curriculum connections, connections to the five critical areas of learning in business studies, an analysis of relevant 21st century competencies, and other pertinent information.
Use the Buttons below or the navigation menu above to explore these games and simulations
WHY GAMES & SIMULATIONS?
WHY GAMES & SIMULATIONS?
Benefits of Games & Simulations
Benefits of Games & Simulations
While games in the classroom have traditionally been frowned upon and seen as a source of distraction, their responsible use within the scope of the curriculum can yield very promising results and open the door to deeper learning.
As students engage with games/simulations, they go beyond lower order thinking skills such as remembering and understanding and begin to utilize higher-order thinking skills such as creating and evaluating (Information Technology University of Florida, 2002). In line with the learning theories of behaviourism and cognitivism, traditional learning tools (ie: lectures and reading) can only go so far in facilitating higher-order thinking .
By contrast, games and simulations provide opportunities for problem-based learning which helps to incorporate constructivism into the mix. By interacting with the complex systems contained in games/simulations and attempting to solve the life-like problems they present, students learn to create their own understanding of the world, build on previous experiences by linking them to new information, and construct their own meaning (Konen, 2022). By incorporating games/simulations, "teachers not only present information, but they also learn along with students and help them become more skillful problem solvers. In this capacity, students are no longer passive recipients of knowledge; they are decision makers about the nature and structure of their own learning (Ontario Public Service, 2016, p 33).
Some of the advantages of learning through games and simulations include:
Higher engagement - stimulating, motivating, enjoyable, and interactive (Doyle & Brown, 2000, p. 3),
Development of valuable skills - problem solving, critical thinking, communication, creativity, collaboration, patience (Doyle & Brown, 2000, pp. 4, 8),
Risk-free environment for individual and teacher - opportunity to try out new behaviours and make mistakes that they wouldn’t normally try in real world due to fear of failure (Doyle & Brown, 2000, p. 3),
Experiential learning - simulations of experience, preparation for action, and application of knowledge to real world problems (Gee, 2006, p 3) ,
The development of empathy for complex systems (Gee, 2006, p 2) ,
An opportunity for meaning to be situated - understanding words in a situated fashion by applying the words to specific situations and to the solution of specific problems (Gee, 2006, p 6)
The ability to explore numerous concepts in one game - promotes a larger scope of learning. The game can be restarted with new ideas by changing various parameters, and role play is one dimensional based on the presumed player’s perception of role but the roles in games and simulations are very real,
Opportunities for competition and collaboration (Gee, 2006, p 6)
Complimentary option to the traditional learning activities such as case studies or lectures (Doyle & Brown, 2000, p. 8),
Experiencing a pleasant level of frustration - well designed games and simulations "adjust challenges and give feedback in such a way that a range of players can experience the game as challenging but doable and feel that their effort is paying off" (Gee, 2006, p 11)
Games & Simulations as Tools for Differentiation
Games & Simulations as Tools for Differentiation
Games and simulations are also an excellent tool for advancing diversity, equity and inclusivity in keeping with educational policies such as the Ontario's Equity and Inclusive Education Strategy which requires that "all boards and schools demonstrate continuous progress towards meeting the needs of our diverse student population and ever-changing society" (Ministry of Education, 2009, p 24) and Learning for All which is based on the idea that "a differentiated approach, driven by an understanding of the student, is thought to contribute to high levels of both achievement and engagement in learning." (Ontario Public Service, 2013, p 17).
In providing students with an interactive environment that balances reading with visual aids and provides opportunities for experiential learning, games and simulations help to adapt instruction to suit differing characteristics, strengths, interests and leaning styles amongst students (Ontario Public Service, 2013, p 17). As a tool, they are invaluable to differentiating:
"the content of learning (what students are going to learn, and when);
the process of learning (the types of tasks and activities);
the products of learning (the ways in which students demonstrate learning);
the affect/environment of learning" (the context and environment in which students learn and demonstrate learning) (Ontario Public Service, 2013, p 17).
The Critical Areas of Learning in Business Studies
The Critical Areas of Learning in Business Studies
The five critical areas of learning as outlined in the grades 9-12 business studies curriculum documents are as follows:
Business skills
Communication in a business environment
Digital literacy
Financial literacy
Ethical, moral, and legal considerations in business
(Fobes, 2018)
The business studies curriculum in Grades 9 to 12 offers a range of courses, all built on the belief that effective learning in all subjects of the discipline depends on the development of knowledge and skills in five critical areas: business skills; communication in a business environment; digital literacy; financial literacy; and ethical, moral, and legal considerations in business. The business studies program comprises a set of interrelated courses that extend and deepen students’ understanding and skills in these critical areas as they progress through the grades, enabling them to apply the relevant concepts and skills with increasing sophistication to a broad range of business-related issues and problems. Recognizing linkages between these five areas of study strengthens students’ understanding of theory and successful practice in the world of business. (Business Studies, 2006, p. 5)
As players progress through simulations and games they are developing various skills in the five critical areas which are highlighted throughout this website and linked to each game. For example, players who progress through a game that is based on business skills they have the potential to develop skills in problem solving; critical and creative thinking; employability skills; applications software; financial planning; entrepreneurial skills; leadership; organizational productivity; risk management; teamwork; strategic planning; business etiquette; and research and inquiry. (Business Studies, 2006, p. 5)
Skills related to communication in a business environment include: literacy skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, representing); business terminology; delivery of presentations; formatting of documents; global awareness; etiquette and protocols in electronic communications; and conflict resolution. (Business Studies, 2006, p. 5)
Digital Literacy skills include: terminology related to ICT; information systems and structures; fundamentals of operating systems and computer hardware; data management; use of various software applications; web and other electronic design; integrated technologies; multimedia tools; and security related to ICT. (Business Studies, 2006, p. 6)
Financial Literacy skills include: money management; fundamentals of economics; numeracy skills; credit; financial decision making; analysis of financial documents; investment; and taxation. (Business Studies, 2006, p. 6)
Skills related to ethical, moral, and legal considerations in business include: principles and guidelines for ethical business practice; privacy issues; social responsibility; equity and diversity; professional standards; responsibility for environmental consequences and sustainability; accountability; and intellectual property. (Business Studies, 2006, p. 6)
Players develop these skills in games using the interactive tools such as setting the price, analyzing detailed financial documents, learning from past performance, strategically planning within the framework of ethical and legal guidelines etc. They have the ability to learn from their mistakes and make better decisions as they continue to play and become successful. Players are so engaged that the learning takes place seamlessly.
The 21st Century Competencies
The 21st Century Competencies
Now more than ever, it has become increasingly important to focus on and nurture 21st Century competencies. The last few decades have transformed the work force from "an industrial model of production to a rapidly transforming, technology-driven, and interconnected globalized knowledge economy. Such an economy requires competencies suited to dynamic and unpredictable models of economic and social development" (Ontario Public Service, 2016, p 6).
The four competencies include:
Critical thinking
Communication
Creativity
Collaboration
These competencies facilitate 'deeper learning' which is the process that allows an individual to take what they have learned in one situation and apply it to a different context. This is also sometimes referred to as the development and cross-disciplinary application of transferable skills (Ontario Public Service, 2016, p 32). The use of technology and technological tools such as games and simulations play a pivotal role in such deeper learning. Thus far, the research on this field show that "students are more engaged, intrinsically motivated to learn, and more successful when they can connect what they are learning to situations they care about in their community and in the world. Technology can provide access to real-time data, simulations to situate learning in the real world, and opportunities for students to link learning to their personal interests" (Ontario Public Service, 2016, p 34).
By: Nia and Karen
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