Defining a geogame genre using core concepts of games, play, and geographic information and thinking

Abstract

In 2008, the National Science Foundation (NSF) released the report “Fostering Learning in the Networked World: The Cyberlearning Opportunity and Challenge”. NSF argued in this report that the heavy investment and focus on Cyberinfrastructures must be complemented by a parallel investment in Cyberlearning, “…learning that is mediated by networked computing and communications technologies.” (Borgman et al. 2008). The rationale was that information and communication technologies had reached a critical tipping point where high-end computing, cyberinfrastructures and mobile technologies were readily available for billions of users, but it was still unclear what affordances they could bring to learning in structured classroom settings and more informal learning environments.