Games+Learning+Society 12 Conference

Committee of N is a collaborative, design-based card game where players create new kinds of schools based on design constraints implemented through random card draws. In the core game play, players are randomly assigned educational values (e.g. belief in multiple intelligences or achievement on high-stakes tests) from a deck along with a specific school element (bell schedule, graduation requirements, etc.), and they then creatively design the element to reflect their defined values. By using cards as context for discussion and research, undergraduate education students and practicing educators become animated about the possibilities of designing and imagining the school they would most like to teach in. In this workshop, we will present the game and pilot findings before exploring possibilities for expanding this game into professional development and beyond.