Do-it-Yourself Game-Based Content Authoring Tool Set To Launch
Muzzy
Lane Software is developing a set of
digital tools that will allow educators to create their own game-based
content.
Course
builders, online educators and subject
matter experts will be able to use the new Muzzy Lane Author platform
to create
their own games designed to help them assess whether students can apply
what they
have learned. The tools will include an initial set of activity types:
Smart
Chat, Insights, Vote, Align and SlideShow. Other activity types are
planned in
the future.
"Muzzy
Lane's new authoring system is a
breakthrough for game-based learning in combining powerful design
features with
ease of use," said Harvard Graduate School of Education Professor Chris
Dede. "Expanding
the number of people who can build educational games will both increase
students' learning and advance research on game design."
Muzzy
Lane is a software developer that focuses
on game-based learning, having created products in the past in
conjunction with
McGraw-Hill Education, Cengage Learning, Pearson Education and National
Geographic. Earlier this year, it received a grant from the Bill
& Melinda
Gates Foundation to examine the ways game-based learning could be used
to help
nontraditional learners.
Muzzy
Lane CTO Dave McCool said that background
has given it the expertise it needed to move game-making tools into the
hands
of more people.
"We've
re-engineered our game service to deliver
a do-it-yourself solution that gives our partners greater control over
their
content at a significantly lower cost," McCool said.
The
best part, said Columbus State Community
College Assistant Professor Melissa Logue said, is that "you don't need
more
than simple word processing skills to create amazing learning
opportunities."
Company
representatives will be visiting schools
around the country in the coming months to demonstrate the game service
and
authoring platform. It will be released in beta form to selected
potential
partners. Any organization interested in participating can contact [email protected]
or 978-394-0319.
About the Author
Michael Hart is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer and the former executive editor of THE Journal.