Virtual models a hit with profs, students

Professors are turning to virtual simulations to give students new perspectives on course material -- and maybe even help them score higher on exams.

At Penn, the Wharton School's Alfred West Jr. Learning Lab has spearheaded an effort to incorporate technology into Wharton classes.

"People learn in different ways," said Deirdre Woods -- chief information officer for the labs.

Since Wharton alumnus Alfred West Jr. gave $10 million for the project four years ago, the Wharton Learning Lab has developed 20 computer programs that allow professors to present course content through games and simulations.

Legal Studies professor Eric Orts said he has been happy with a program he uses in his class, which the Wharton Learning Lab developed.

The program, called "Tragedy of the Tuna," simulates the current real-world problem of human overfishing of tuna.

"I think that this generation is oriented visually in a way that encourages using these kinds of simulations," Orts said, noting that the program has been successful. "Students seem to like it."

Still, Orts said he has some reservations about using the simulation.

"I see these simulations mostly as an interesting supplement to -- rather than replacement of -- the good, old-fashioned book," Orts noted.

Students have generally been receptive to the video games that the Wharton Learning Lab has developed.

Wharton senior Lucas Brown called one game, which simulated earthquakes for a risk-management class, "worthwhile."

The game assigned each student a virtual house and let them buy protection against earthquakes, which occurred randomly.

"The game fit well with the [class' focus on] probability for large events," Brown said.

Woods cited a Wharton Learning Lab survey in which 80 percent of the students said that they were either satisfied or very satisfied with the games.

Other professors who have developed computer simulations without the help of the Wharton Learning Lab are also happy with the success of the programs they use in their classes.

Economics professor Rebecca Stein said an online game she used last spring -- which simulated a market for goods -- helped her students.

"It's an effective tool for teaching abstract concepts," Stein said.

To participate in the game -- which was run through a program called Aplia -- students logged onto the Internet at a specified time.

The game worked by assigning students the role of either buying or selling a certain good. The program then told students how much or how little they could buy or sell the goods for.

The market simulation taught students the "power of the invisible hand," Stein said, referring to economic forces.

She noted that a Penn study last year showed that students learned more effectively by using the market simulation program.

According to the study, students who used the program "scored higher on exams, and in the other case they scored lower."

The study indicated that the difference was statistically significant.

College sophomore James Paci, who took the class last spring, said, "Aplia actually helped me understand the concepts. That thing was the shit."

Stein, who received a grant from the Learning and Technology Committee to pay for the game last spring, decided not to use the game this year because of financial constraints.

Instead, she ran a similar game in her class that did not use technology.

She noted that one disadvantage of using technology for classes is the cost.

In the future, Stein said she would like to run a market simulation in her class using buttons that would let students buy and sell goods.

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