Learning by trial and error: why training should be inspired by games!

Learning by trial and error with games, a real pillar of learning

[For the sake of readability of the article, we will use the term “player (s)” to refer to players, regardless of gender.]

Your avatar has just been eliminated by the same opponent for the 7th time, but this time, you have understood how to beat him and you are not giving up, the 8th time will be the right one! Without necessarily being aware of it, we all know it: the game is the perfect example of the application oflearning by trial and error virtuous. But if we live our mistakes so well in these fun contexts, why is this still so little the case in a good number of training courses - or other professional situations? You guessed it, when it comes to learning, the game has a lot to teach us. Studying and understanding the mechanisms and tricks behind them means being effectively inspired for your training.

First of all, what is a game?

Let's start with a simple definition of the game: A game is an activity with a specific goal and a framework (rules) that must be respected in order to reach it. Playing a game therefore requires players to learn how to use the rules of the game optimally to reach the goal set. A game rarely indicates the procedure to follow to reach it and on the contrary lets the player test the various possibilities offered by it himself, until he has 1) understood how to make good use of the constraints imposed by it, via feedback on clearly identified errors, and 2) learned to master them until he overcame the obstacles that the game has put in his way, through varied situations allowing a wide range of situations to practice the required skills.

In the early years of life, a human being uses play a lot as a learning medium. If this is lost as you grow up (teaching gradually becomes more and more theoretical), the game then becomes a simple source of entertainment, often forgetting its formative virtues.

If error and punishment are appropriate in the game, Why then does playing not convey the same feeling of failure as an evaluation during training or in a school environment? This is what we are going to analyze by dissecting some good game practices to apply them to our training courses.

Mistakes as the first source of progress

Games have always incorporated the possibility of error into their mechanics (1), but also the need to understand your mistake, and to confront it again. Concretely, this can be presented in different ways. In video games, the vast majority of them, especially the so-called “arcade” games (2) which had made it their business model, give players a limited number of lives or life points that are lost for each mistake (falling into a hole, being hit by an enemy, etc...).

In the case of the loss of a life, the game sends us back before the obstacle, asking us to learn from our previous mistake in order to overcome the obstacle. In the case of lost life points, the game will confront us several times in a row with the same obstacle, forcing us to master it so as not to lose all of our life points.

A well “designed” game (3) - designed ensures that The cause of the error is clearly identifiable by the player, so that he can figure out on his own how to avoid it next time (for example, staying a certain distance from an enemy before attacking, being closer to the edge before jumping). If the game does not offer Feedback(4) relevant, so the mistakes are not understood by the player and the player does not know how to do better the next time (the famous “cheating computer” syndrome). He must therefore make sure that the player progresses, even a little, with each new attempt. The quality of the returns is therefore essential.

Inspiration for training
Encourage the practice itself. Give feedback on each error and don't wait until the end of a chapter to do it. It's the best way to learn and assess yourself. That's how players - Learners will find themselves in a virtuous loop of practice, progress and constant evaluation.

From progress to mastery

The game therefore offers a repeated confrontation with the obstacle until, at last, you are able to overcome it. But once the first obstacle of this new type has been passed, the game then tests our mastery of this new acquired skill: for this it presents us with this same obstacle in a different context. It is only in this way that the brain learns to adapt this new skill to all the contexts that can be offered to it. Players must feel that they are fully involved in their own success, that is, they must be able to take full credit for overcoming an obstacle by mastering the associated skill.

‍Inspiration for training
Vary the situations and practical cases in your modules! The learners must understand how to use their new knowledge (-do), not just know one of its specific applications (see our article on learning transfer).

A story of context: practice without fear

Apart from some multiplayer games with a strong competitive component, the game is generally played in a free and unconstrained context (which is part of the definition of a game according to Larousse). Players do not feel judged by the game in any way as they might be judged by other human beings (evaluators, supervisors, or colleagues) in a formation. This disinhibition allows the search for original solutions to a problem posed by a game, which are often the best way to discover or at least define the solutions that are actually viable. Learning completely new skills requires an open-mindedness that self-censorship would strongly constrain.

This is why solo practice, alone in front of your screen, and/or mechanical evaluation, without judging the value of the performance at a given moment, should be preferred. Whether the games are solitary or multiplayer, communities of players promote solidarity, mutual aid, sharing and caring overall (except, therefore, contexts of high competitive, financial or time challenges). Witness the myriad of sites or videos created by players for other players to help them play their favorite games. This context is not neutral, and should not be taken lightly, as it is extremely beneficial for all learners.‍

Inspiration for training
Evaluation through play, in the context of individual practice, greatly reduces, or even eliminates, the fear of error. Once the game is off, the error is forgotten, and is only experienced as a necessary step in learning. On the other hand, evaluation alongside other human beings, in even non-competitive contexts, is often a barrier to risk taking, linked to the fear of doing bad things and of being misjudged by one's peers. The creation of a climate of mutual support and kindness, in this case, is therefore a key to the success of a training course.

Breaking the link between error and failure

All of this naturally brings us to the last point of this article: the border between (potentially repeated) errors and failures is fine. And it is this border that it is essential to never cross. In a game, the error being commonplace, and fully integrated by the players, This one is never experienced as a failure. Failure then only occurs when a player permanently abandons the game.

Indeed, games have the quality that they never (or very rarely) definitively punish mistakes. A player can repeat the same tests over and over again, and if the game is designed well enough, each new attempt will either result in different actions or in better accomplishing them. There is no game that gives a deadline for a player to pass this or that obstacle, after which he would never have the opportunity to face it again.

To avoid discouragement, games should make the player feel like they are constantly progressing, and always seeing the end of the tunnel. Many games are presented as a succession of worlds, themselves divided into levels, themselves dotted with “checkpoints” (crossing points) from which the player can start again, not to mention the backup systems allowing players to resume where and when they want. This is an aspect that has advanced a lot in the field of Game Design in recent years; which does not prevent very difficult games from being released, but with an approach that makes them much more accessible than in the past.

Some games even adapt their content to players' practices in order to ensure an adapted difficulty curve, not too frustrating (too difficult), not too boring (too easy). This is what Jenova Chen theorized under the concept of”Flow”.

‍Inspiration for training
Mistakes should not be presented as a blunder. Kindness and patience must therefore be required to let learners learn (possibly from each other) at their own pace and according to the approach that suits them best. Dividing into small learning units offers great flexibility, as well as Adaptive learning offers tailor-made apprenticeships.

‍To conclude

The game can be a great source of inspiration for establishing a caring relationship with The trial and error, and thus enable its learners to progress calmly.
If you had to remember only 3 points for your courses:

• Always be careful that a mistake is never experienced by the learner as a failure - Mistakes are opportunities to make progress, The learner must have the opportunity to test what they have learned from their mistakes.
• Ensure that the practice linked to training is an opportunity, not only to verify your achievements, but also toget relevant feedback on your mistakes in order to progress in learning a skill.
• Avoid confronting learners with the judgment of their peers, in order to free him·her from the fear of doing bad things.
  

References

1) Mechanics [of the game]: This is a rule or a constraint imposed by the game that a player will have to deal with. These are mechanics that they will have to learn to master in order to progress in the game.

2) An arcade game is a machine that allows passers-by (in the arcades or galleries of shopping centers) to play a game for cash. Here, the arcade game is mentioned because arcade video games had to offer players a challenge high enough for them to fail regularly and put coins back into the machine. However, the games should also encourage players' progress so that players would not get tired of it and wanted to come back and go further with each new attempt.

3) Feedback: Anglicism meaning “feedback on experience”, indicating information received as a result of an action, making it possible to understand the effect of the action carried out.

4) Game design — in French game design — is the process of creating and developing rules and other components of a game. The expression, which applies to any type of game, including board games And the card games, has experienced renewed interest following the appearance and popularization of Video games. (Wikipedia)