Thirteenth International Conference on e-Learning & Innovative Pedagogies

Abstract

The Emergency Medical Technician training program for West Alabama sought to take its face to face training program online. However, one of the main concerns was that if the training sessions were posted online, how would the learners still get a “lifelike, real world experience, that motivates them to learn”? After a bit of research, the team decided that introducing “game theory” principles into the online EMT training would help bring some life-like situations back into the training and help engage the learners and increase learner outcomes. Although not an entirely new concept in the education profession, game theory principles can bring a freshness to many kinds of training and education. Therefore, understanding the core components of game theory and how it can be applied to learning methodology helps educators decide how, when, and where to incorporate gaming theory into the learning process. This session is designed to demystify gaming theory, help develop an application of it, and empower participants with the information needed make decisions in the future about gaming theory application in their environment. This session reviews the pilot project that The University of Alabama went through to implement gaming theory into EMT training for West Alabama. After the pilot study review, participants will experience first hand the gaming theory components of some of the EMT training, and then finally the participants will be provided a “Game Theory Prep Kit” to help them implement game theory at their organizations.