Includes bibliographical references and index.

Dicing with curricula: the creation of a board game to speed up the course creation process / Alex Moseley -- The "Mutation Game": a versatile educational tool / Cas Kramer, Nicola Suter-Giorgini, Karen Moss, Eoin Gill and Sheila Donegan -- Three boys and a chess set / Fiona Trapani and Liz Hinds -- Game-based learning as a vehicle to teach and assess first aid competencies / Nathalie Charlier -- A game of phones design, development & delivery case study / Kris Rockwell and Alicia Sanchez -- From idea to product: a board game for preschoolers / P�aivi Marjanen and Ilkka M�onkk�onen -- Adventure initiative games: playing towards social competence / Jule Hildmann -- An artist's approach to board games / Sam Ingleson -- Simulation game: taking the horses to water / Ivar M�annamaa -- Larps in high schools / J. Tuomas Harviainen and Ritva Savonsaari -- War of Worlds: an interactive board game about life beyond Earth / Barbara Ottolini and Cas Kramer -- Contexts and concepts: crafty ways to consider challenging topics / Claire Hamshire and Rachel Forsyth -- Building Soma: the development, release and postmortem of Healing Blade, a novel infectious disease card battle game / Arun Mathews -- Designing card and board games / Alan Paull.

A growing interest in the use of games-based approaches for learning has been tempered in many sectors by budget or time constraints associated with the design and development of detailed digital simulations and other high-end approaches. However, a number of practitioners and small creative groups have used low-cost, traditional approaches to games in learning effectively, involving simple card, board or indoor/outdoor activity games. This work brings together examples of this approach, which span continents (U.K., western and eastern Europe, the U.S., and Australia), sectors (education, training, and business) and learner styles or ages (primary through to adult and work-based learning or training). Together, the chapters provide a wealth of evidence-based ideas for the teacher, tutor, or trainer interested in using games for learning, but turned off by visible high-end examples. An editors' introduction pulls the collection together, identifying shared themes and drawing on the editors' own research in the use of games for learning. The book concludes with a chapter by a professional board game designer, incorporating themes prevalent in the preceding chapters and reflecting on game design, development and marketing in the commercial sector, providing valuable practical advice for those who want to take their own creations further. -- From publisher's website.