Bending Time: Using Simulation to Warp Perceptions of Time for Learning Purposes

Abstract

At first glance ‘time’ is ‘timeless’, immovable and preset. However, when examined more closely, human perceptions – and uses – of time are variable and malleable, and simulations and games are particularly well placed to play havoc with those standard perceptions of time passing. For twentieth-century designers of simulation-based activities (and those who precede them), time was always a crucial determinant of the final structure. In the twenty-first century, technology has increased the complexity of time as an element in the design palette. This paper explores aspects of how simulation enables designer and educators to bend time to their will. Aspects of the malleability of time are explored, drawing on case studies of a number of simulation activities. Some of these began as face-to-face activities and were transformed into online role play formats illustrating that time can be ‘adjusted’ to suit different contexts. Problems and opportunities, which emerge from ‘playing with time’, are identified and explored. A casual consideration of time may cause it to appear fixed and sequential. This exploration illustrates how simulation creates temporary experiences of stretched or telescoped time. Reasons for doing so vary with the game designer’s intentions, and how it is done is also variable. Educational users of simulation must understand the reasons why time has been ‘played with’ as well as the means by which the designer has done so. As technology continues to evolve, so will the human capacity to manipulate perceptions of time and all that goes with it. This chapter helps users of educational simulation to comprehend the importance of understanding how, and why, time is not fixed or immutable.