As lead content writer with Parliament’s Education Service I collaborated with a talented team to create a multi-award winning online game for teaching political literacy in the classroom.
Winner, secondary digital content, 2011 BETT Awards
Gold winner, best learning game, 2011 E-learning Awards
Grand Prix winner & Best public sector project, 2010 Big Chip Awards
Winner, secondary digital content, 2011 BETT Awards
Gold winner, best learning game, 2011 E-learning Awards
Grand Prix winner & Best public sector project, 2010 Big Chip Awards
BRIEF
Employ digital gaming to show 11-16 year olds what it’s like to be a Member of Parliament.
APPROACH
Working with our design agency RM Lightbox Education and senior producer Peter Stidwill, I was content lead for the project.
I researched, wrote and structured content for all of MP For A Week's mini-games. Each was differentiated for multiple modes (easy, medium, hard).
I also devised the story world in which the mini-games are wrapped, to give players a sense of familiarity and to reinforce learning.
Diverse content needs meant I drew on a range of approaches including story design, speechwriting, news writing and choose your own adventure dilemmas.
SAMPLE CONTENT
Players prioritise among meetings and must decide how to resolve issues.
As a backbench MP, players must decide how to vote on government bills.
Each decision and action affects how a player's party, constituents and the media view them. Players try to 'survive' the week without losing the support of any one group.
Players choose how to press ministers on particular issues.
As a backbench MP, you have more demands on your time than you can satisfy. You must choose.
PRAISE & PRESS
‘MP For A Week is brilliant and most definitely the best internet resource for Citizenship out there.’
Billy Crombie, education consultant
Praise from Lord David Puttnam.
BBC News, Computer game gives taste of life as MP
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