Elearning! Magazine: Building Smarter Companies via Learning & Workplace Technologies.
Issue link: http://elmezine.epubxp.com/i/201066
'Te impressive results... indicate that game-based learning is an efective learning tool.' —Mark Walker working at the BOE. In the debriefng meeting, the vendor representative conducted a group exercise where each group was given one of the case studies and was asked to create solutions. Te participants were able to apply what they learned in the game and discuss it in an open environment with the other students and instructors. Tis exercise solidifed and grounded the training into real-life situations that the students may experience and allowed them to see a new way to approach each scenario." Te results were very encouraging, according to Walker: "Te impressive results, combined with the overwhelming support of the pilot group, clearly indicate that gamebased learning is an efective learning tool. I saw a diference in how the pilot group approached a scenario, applied techniques that were clearly learned from the course, and came up with win-win situations for both the agency and the public." One of the employees who completed the training said, "I felt once I completed the course, my skills to negotiate were improved by a large percentage. Te negotiations with the diferent characters in the game prepared us to use the skills learned in diferent situations at the BOE, which made it more efective. It changes the whole approach on how to learn." Another employee adds: "Te way this game delivers the content is better than almost any other class I have had. It also has a tell-showexplain methodology for skill development." From a learning transference perspective, Walker is impressed with the performance impact of the communication skills game. "Several weeks afer the pilot was completed, I received responses from pilot participants that applied the skills they had learned. Several staf said they selected cases other employees were unable to resolve, and using the techniques taught in the game, they approached the cases from an entirely new perspective. Tey worked with the taxpayer to negotiate a solution that allowed the taxpayer to resolve their issues, and the state to clear the account. In all cases, the taxpayer expressed satisfaction with the outcome." Based on these positive results, the Board of Equalization has moved forward in a wider implementation of the learning game as the core of a blended learning program. —Heldman wrote this article on behalf of Game On! Learning. Elearning! October / November 2013 45