Heroes of Helping Projects

Gamification & Educational Video Games

Our meme “communication games” will be based on the gamification model, which I have explained via my research for my Masters in Educational Technology. (Additionally these games can be based on the match-three game play style too.) These games will teach three topics: 1. people and places (including geography), 2. knowledge (including languages and vocabulary terms), and 3. stories (including architecture, art history, and culture). The idea is that in the long term we will be able to create hundreds of games from these initial games. It is the scalability of our concept that will make it a viable startup.

I care very deeply about helping others, and it has been a joy to teach Capsim. Watching everyone improve has made a tremendous difference in my life. I really enjoy bringing out the best in others. All the Capsim teams that I have advised improved. And I have led teams that finished #3 in 2020 Spring Finals and that finished #2 in 2021 Spring Semi-Final and that finished #1 in 2021 Fall Semi-Final. With that in mind, I want to appeal to numerous student groups, from numerous majors. We should all have the confidence that together we can accomplish something truly wonderful! :)

Educational memes can teach about domestic industry products. For example, glass production can be featured because Toledo is the Glass City. Likewise Pittsburgh is the Steel City. Additionally Philadelphia has the Liberty Bell. There are literally dozens of possible games, involving education concerning American products.

Likewise educational memes can educate about several topics in international education and international business. For instance, we can teach about geography, languages, culture, etc. It may be a gamification model. Or its play construct could be based around the match-three game-playing style.

My websites include:

https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/match3-theory-jeremy-deering/

Match-three games involve matching three or more tiles. They are puzzle games. Some examples of popular match-three puzzle games include Candy Crush Saga, Bejeweled, and Puzzle & Dragons. I have researched this topic in detail, and I have created much scholarship, which I have designed to explain the industry. In fact I studied this industry for a semester in my Educational Technology scholarship.

https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/healthcare-gamification-jeremy-deering/

This shows my knowledge about healthcare gamification, which is one form of educational video games that interest me because I want to help others.

Gamification means applying aspects of games to non-game situations.

In the case of Healthcare Gamification, it can involve the gamification of physical therapy apps, exercise apps, and more. It can help stroke survivors, cancer patients, and others. Also it can remind the patients to take their medications. Finally it can even educate kids to stay safe and make healthy choices. In fact Healthcare Gamification is a potential billion dollar industry.

Moreover our educational video games may help our world. For example, in the Muslim world, there has been the invention of the mathematics of algebra, the writing of calligraphy, and the art of geometric design. Also, in India, there have been historical inventions such as reported at the Wikipedia article "List of Indian inventions and discoveries." These include Wootz steel from southern India, seamless celestial globes, tube drawn technology such as glass bead manufacturing, tumble polishing for polished stone beads, and diamond drills for bead manufacturing. So those items can also be match-three puzzle items. We can have different contributions from many countries. The goal is the appreciation of the diverse development of the world.

Additionally we can have language match-three games. For example, images of cats, dogs, etc. would be matched with their words in the languages such as Spanish, German, French, Arabic, Chinese, Korean, and more languages.

Finally we can have geographic places and match-three games.

I want to explain how this works. My idea is that we create educational video games. First, there would be jobs for the people who help to create these games. Second, there would also be jobs for the teachers who teach with these games. Additionally, there would also be jobs for the people who are educated and trained with these games. And, ultimately, these educated students would then be inspired to help others, over time, by creating new knowledge, new technology, and new jobs.

This creates both an economic accelerator and multiplier effect. For example, a student learns about the chemical elements in an educational video game. Then that student is inspired to use the chemistry education to create new products from the knowledge which is learned. Those new products would invent new industries and new jobs. This leads to growth in productivity and economic growth.

In contrast, if a social media app is only meant for entertainment purposes, then that app is limited in its economic effectiveness. So, my point is, in order to have an economic accelerator and multiplier effect, our video games must be educational and lead to the development of technology.

What makes this project special is its scalability, relating to return on investment. Scalability is what separates a small business from the next major startup. In other words, once we create the model for one type of game, then we can scale it up and create similar educational video games. The idea is that we want to stop cyberbullying, start up technology, and make money. Yet we also want to help create a world where we can love our neighbors and change the world to a better place. The reason why this relates to stop cyberbullying is that we want to create a positive place on the Internet where people can play educational video games.

Revenue Streams: Three profits = 1. UPSELLS: Usually online video games are free-to-play at first. Then games such as Candy Crush Saga make money via the upsells. 2. DATA VIA INFORMED CONSENT: The second way we will make money is via surveys and advertising. Since we are working towards building a safer Internet free from cyberbullying, we will ask permission for surveys. Users will only share their data with their permission. So we will be a trusted source of data. This is the "gamification for good" that I discuss. 3. ADVERTISING: Advertising partners, who support our goals, will want to support us financially.

Summary of the Gamification Project

We're doing this because we love to help others: to stop cyberbullying, to startup technology, and to help our community!

Additionally I have the theoretical background because I have greatly studied and written about gamification. For example, I have created websites about gamification, match-three game design (i.e. games such as Candy Crush Saga), tile-matching game design (i.e. games such as Tetris), and educational technology. Regarding educational gamification, I have researched the theoretical foundations, and this will help our project greatly. So, when you have someone who is becoming an expert within the field of educational gamification, then that will help us tremendously!

What exactly will be the Heroes of Helping Projects? To understand my concept of "communication games," please note this is not gamification alone. For the record, gamification means applying game elements such as gameplay tasks, scoring, competition, levels, badges, etc. to a non-game situation. Now my "communication games" concept combines gamification with multimedia. From a theoretical standpoint of Bloom's Taxonomy, let's see how this works: Classic Bloom's Taxonomy has knowledge and comprehension as the foundations at the lower levels. So there could be a gamification of knowledge with geography, language, culture, etc. For example, let's say there are games with foreign languages. These would involve the knowledge of classic Bloom's Taxonomy and the remembering level of modern Bloom's Taxonomy. Here educational gamification happens. Then the multimedia involves the higher levels of classic Bloom's Taxonomy such as application, synthesis, and evaluation. For instance, there can be projects with videos, involving the various nations around the world.

Here is a concrete example of how this project could help with current events: I want to use educational technology to help make peace. I believe that for people to understand how to make peace, we must first learn about the world's diverse cultures, their traditions, their hopes, their dreams, and their futures. So we could have the educational video games teach about geography, language, culture, etc.

To review our purpose, I repeat that these games will be about 1. people and places (including geography), 2. knowledge (including languages and vocabulary terms), and 3. stories (including architecture, art history, and culture).

These communication games will help make peace!