Chi Yong Loh | Lecturer
Republic Polytechnic

Chi Yong is currently a Senior Lecturer at Republic Polytechnic in Singapore, with specialisation in games, gamification, and game-based learning. As an educator and school speaker, he has led outreach programs and workshops on post-secondary education for secondary school students, showcasing his commitment to building connections within the education sector. Chi Yong’s design skills are evident in projects like Diplomats in Space, a board game that explores international diplomacy. Other game design projects include “My Grandmother's Tales” project, a bilingual storytelling card game supported by the Lee Kway Yew Fund for Bilingualism; and “Accounting Equation”, a card game designed for Singapore Polytechnic’s Business School to learn basic accounting principles. He has initiated and led a team in conducting action research on using gamification in the classroom, presenting their findings at Republic Polytechnic's Learning Retreat in 2020.

Appearances:

Pre-conference Workshops @ 10:00

[M7] 7 Nov (AM) - Employing game-based learning to engage students for effective learning

If you’ve ever found yourself struggling to convince students to engage in learning about difficult subjects or inculcating environmental values to enrich an existing programme, this workshop is for you.

Youth are bombarded with holistic education messages and current affairs topics throughout their schooling. Because of this constant exposure, some have formed the impression that such topics are dull and of little relevance. What can teachers to do support teaching topics students have already formed preconditioned notions about, such as National Education issues and values?

This workshop presents a solution that is working for us. “Diplomats… in Space!” is an innovative card game that is designed to change this impression by immersing students in a strategic and thought-provoking Game-Based Learning experience. This learning resource supports students interacting with game elements and gaining insights into how their decisions affect outcomes. These outcomes mirror scenarios and events in the real world, as well as illustrate national and international initiatives and frameworks. First conceived and designed for Institute of Higher Learning students, this versatile experience, which can accommodate up to 40 players, is also suitable for Secondary and Post-Secondary students.

Over the course of 2-hours, participants will get to experience how Game-Based Learning helps students understand complex issues e.g., gains vs. trade-offs, exercise strategic decision-making, e.g., pursuing short-term gains at the expense of long-term interests, as well as experience global citizenship. The designers will share their experience in designing the game from concept to delivery such as key considerations and challenges faced in making National Education and current affairs fun and relatable for students.

Attendees should bring their laptop for this workshop session.

Shufen Poh, Lecturer, Republic Polytechnic