Today's “digital natives” do not think and learn the same way as their parents and grandparents did: using games as education tools may be one way to reach them. That's why the University of North Dakota and EduTech, a leading organization for professional development for K-12 teachers, offered a two-day workshop to show teachers how to take advantage this new learning technology.

"We hear a lot about how games are a powerful learning medium," said Richard Van Eck, Graduate Director of the Instructional Design and Technology program at UND (idt.und.edu), "but there is very

little guidance on how to make use of them in a way that meets curriculum goals and works within the constraints of the real-world classroom."

The workshop was conducted by Van Eck and Margaret Meijers, both internationally recognized experts on the use of games in learning. Van Eck has several book chapters and scholarly articles, including the cover story for a national education magazine, on the use of games as learning tools and is a frequent keynote speaker and presenter in the United States and abroad.

Meijers, a classroom teacher and curriculum coordinator at New Town High School in Australia , was one of four teachers worldwide recognized for her innovative teaching at the Microsoft Worldwide Innovative Teachers Forum. She was also awarded the prestigious Teaching Australia Best National Achievement by a Teacher in 2006, and received the Australian Computer Society Outstanding Teacher award in 2007.

Teachers were able to earn professional development credit for attending both days of the workshop.