EcoGames

Simulation Games and Sustainable Development

Planning games EcoGames and Sustainable Develoment Modeling and Design
Öko²  Literature Planspiele in HTML (d)
Draft paper  Copyright: Holzbaur, Aalen, E-Mail an Verfasser
The project “Planspiele” is supported by the Studienkommission für Hochschuldidaktik an Fachhochschulen in Baden-Württemberg in the framework of the LARS programme.

Summary

Games as a method of education and instruction have been in use in management and military training. With respect to sustainable development, planning games (simulation games) offer two advantages:
  • training can be performed with a complex scenario, hence a better understanding of complex systems and of the interactions between economical, ecological and social issues can be achieved.
  • training can be performed without risk for and without interference with environment and man, hence the economical, ecological and social impact is reduced.
  • These advantages can only be achieved when the basic model is adequate for the real world complexity as well as for the training purpose. A diligent modeling and specification of the game is necessary, considering real world knowledge as well as didactic experiences.

    1 Introduction

    The modern university and the modern enterprise are equally dependent on an efficient and effective education and training. Problem solving in a complex environment competence needs not only facts, methods and knowledge but also personal and social competence. Planning games are an effective method for acquiring these competences. Planning games combine the learning of problem solving techniques, facts and knowledge and of management techniques with the experience of interpersonal communication and conflicts and responsibility. Hence, they are an important method of knowledge transfer and integrate high-level education in theory and practice with aspects of social learning and personal development.
    In two areas planning games have been and are in use: business games in the management training and war games (maneuvers) in military training. This paper focuses on the use of planning games to support sustainable development and holistic education. We want to help potential users to apply planning games as a means of training and education and to develop and deploy there own planning games.
    A planning game is a training procedure that consists of a description of a system and a situation, in which the trainee (player, user) has to act and to perform decisions that influence the system. A substantial learning effect is given not by the trainers evaluation but by the dynamic evolution of the systems state.
    The implementation of planning games needs knowledge about the real world and the training situation as well as computer science an didactics knowledge.
    top

    Planning games

    Planning games are simulation games which involve situation analysis and decisions in one or several roles and which are aimed for education and training.

    There are four core aspects of a planning game:


    In the planning game the problem solving and the problem solution process stand in the foreground. The player (trainee) analyses, acts and sees the reaction of the system to his decisions.
    top

    EcoGames

    The following diagram summarizes the contribution of planning games to sustainable development:

    There is a twofold contribution to sustainability:

    top

    Modeling and design

    When the trainee learns how to decide in a situation, it is important, that the underlying model is correct. Moreover, it must be adequate for the learning purpose.
    For planning games where the system behavior is the only measure of success this is much more important than e.g. for classroom training, where a teacher evaluates the analysis and decisions of the trainee. We must keep in mind, that the simulation and the success or failing within the Game influences not only the behavior of the trainee but also his perception of the real world and his mental model.
    Fortunately, trainees have an a priori real world background to fit the virtual world presented by the game.

    Modeling has to consider the following areas:

    The design and generation of planning games needs a lot of competences shown in the diagram:.


    For a general discussion of modelling in environmental informatics see [7] and the POSTING contribution
    top

    Öko²

    Öko²  is a planning game dedicated to sustainable development. Fundamental mechanism is deciding in different roles. As decision makers each player must act in several roles. Conflicting aims are in particular given by the different evaluation of the roles. Communication and arrangements are permitted to enable cooperative problem solving.
    On the display the scales for all variables of the play (environmental impact, infrastructure, quality of life...) are represented. Also there are cash pots (enterprise, households...) which the players need for their action. The roles and evaluations of the players are also displayed. The games consists of a sequence of decisions: A role is selected by a random number generator. The player who has this role makes a decision from it the set of possible decisions announced by a message on the screen.

    Basic structure of Öko²


     The roles and actions have been developed in the design of Oeko2 and have been improved within the implementation of the Pascal version in the years 1992 to 1994 and within students projects in 1999 an 2000.
    top

    Literature

    1. Högsdal, Bernt: Planspiele Einsatz von Planspielen in der Aus- und Weiterbildung. Praxiserfahrungen und bewährte Methoden. ManagerSeminare Gerhard May, 1996
    2. Dauner, Marion: Öko² – Modellverbesserung und Implementierung eines ganzheitlichen Planspiels. Diplomarbeit, Aalen, 1994
    3. Dworak, Monika: Öko²– Simulaiton eines Systems mit einer Kombination aus Ökologischen und ökonomischen Komponenten als Planspiel. Diplomarbeit,  Aalen, 1993
    4. Holzbaur, Ulrich: Zur Problematik von Planspielen - am Beispiel des Ökologisch-ökonomischen Planspiels Öko. in: Holzbaur, U. Zwiesler, H.-J. (eds) Wechselwirkungen. Universitätsverlag, Ulm, 41 - 53, 1993.
    5. Holzbaur, Ulrich, Wolf, Sigrid: Fallstudien zur umweltorientierten Unternehmensführung. in: Arbeitsgruppe LARS (ed.) Neue Wege - didaktische Innovationen an Fachhochschulen in Baden-Württemberg. Karlsruhe, 1994. S. 282 - 287
    6. Holzbaur, Ulrich: Spielend lehren - Spielend lernen - Planspiele und ihr Einsatz in der Hochschule. in: Handbuch Hochschullehre, März 1995. S.A.3.4.1 - A.3.4.30
    7. Holzbaur, Ulrich: Modellbildung - die Verantwortung des Umweltinformatikers. in: Hilty et al (eds) Informatik für den Umweltschutz ´94. Metropolis, Marburg, 1994. S. 427 - 434.


    top
    v: UDH 16.01.2001
     
     

    Diese Datei ist Teil eines Frameset