Over the summer of 2011 I worked on a fascinating project over at UC Davis with their STEMware team. A team of professors, teachers, engineers, artists, and students came together to help work towards a project dedicated in finding opportunities for education in different mediums. While I worked there, the main focus was on the world of Biology and Video Games. I knew I loved video games, and I have always been fascinated by biology, particularly because of everything that my brother tells me. I got interested in educational learning my freshman year, when I used software designed in a video game format to help me memorize the functions of particular organelles in the cell. It helped a lot with my studying and felt that something like this with more funding could make big strides in the world of education. Near the end of my sophomore year, my sister sent me a link to the STEMware program after hearing about my fascination with the role of video games in learning.
When I saw there was an application process for this I was a bit discouraged, but I was surprised to find that my knowledge in video games was actually desired. They valued my input and used my strengths and weaknesses in biology for their own benefit. On the first day we were lectured by professors about their work and what they do in their perspective fields.
In the game, students have to identify a pathogenic microorganism which causes a deadly outbreak leading to a zombie infestation. The students have to discover a cure and implement it. The program deals with the process of diagnosis, treatment strategies, career connections, and lab instruction. These can be applicable to other viruses, bacteria or fungi. You are introduced to the real world and are taught about modern applications in biology. You are able to specialize your character as well and learn about the many different pathways one can take with modern biology. You also learn about the recent diagnostic technologies taht are found in the real world. There is also an ability for a teacher to track student progress within the game. There are a total of 7 levels available for the completion of Zombie Plague.
The product we worked on designing is titled: STEMware: Zombie Plague You can find a video of the project at: Stemware: Zombie Plague
In STEMware: Zombie Plague, "students investigate a 3D world where they are responsible for identifying the pathogenic microorganism causing a deadly outbreak and implementing a cure. Although we have chosen to have the symptoms of our fictional disease be zombieism, the science content embedded in the software deals with diagnosis, treatment strategies, and career connections that are applicable to any disease caused by viruses, bacteria or fungi. Interactions with characters in-game, introduce students to the variety of career pathways in modern biology along with diagnostic technologies used in the real world. Embedded assessments are included in the game."
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