GaLA - Gaming and Learning Alliance
GaLA is a Network of Excellence on serious games that has been launched by the European Union in October 2010 in the context of technology-enhanced learning, in the 7th Framework Programme for research. Serious games are computer games infused with pedagogical aims. Drawing the inspiration from military training and business simulations, serious games technologies and applications have spread in school education and in corporate training. Currently, they are deemed as very promising due to their appeal towards new generations and their ability to provide multimedia knowledge acquisition tools that are compelling and personalisable.
However, there is still a lot of research work to do to single out both the best mechanisms through which games can support instruction, and the most appropriate modalities through which students and educators can use games to support balanced personal growth. It is thus now time to study in-depth how technologies respond to such requirements and to direct serious game development towards ever better tools and results
The technological, scientific and humanist fields interested by the research on serious games are wide and range from pedagogy to psychology, from health to engineering, from virtual reality to artificial intelligence, from networking to computer graphics. To this end, the EU has launched an international, multidisciplinary network of excellence on serious games. The network, coordinated by DIBE (Dep.t of Biophysical and Electronic Engineering - DIBE) of the University of Genoa covers all the scientific and application fields of serious games, and involves 31 partners including universities, research centres and leading industries at EU level. There are 13 countries represented, mostly from Western Europe.
The GaLA workplan is organized over 4 years, during which the main objective will be the constitution of a European virtual research center in order to integrate and coordinate research on serious games and promote dissemination of the related knowledge, best practices and tools. The project will promote also industrial innovation through business-academy dialogue, and the development of high-quality didactics on serious games, through the set-up of specialized MSc and PhD courses.
GaLA involves following partners:
- University of Genoa, Department of Biophysical and Electronic Engineering (IT)
- ATOS Origin, S.A.E. (E)
- Bremer Institut für Produktion und Logistik (D)
- Center for Industrial Production (DK)
- Centre Européene d'Education Permanente (F)
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IT)
- Coventry University, The Serious Games Institute (UK)
- Cyntelix Corporation BV (NL)
- Delft University of Technology (NL)
- ESADE Business School Ramon Llull University (UK)
- Heriot Watt University (UK)
- Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores Investigação e Desenvolvimento em Lisboa (PT)
- National Defence University, Advanced Distributed Learning Departement (RO)
- NATO Unsersea Research Center (Int)
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology (N)
- Open University of the Netherlands (NL)
- ORT France (F)
- PlayGen Ltd (UK)
- Politecnico di Milano (IT)
- Rheinisch-Westfaelische Technische Hochschule (D)
- Serious Games Interactive (DK)
- Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (CH)
- Tampereen Teknillinen Yliopisto (FIN)
- TKK - Aalto-yliopiston teknillinen korkeakoulu (FIN)
- The University of Nottingham (UK)
- Univerisite Paul Sabatier Toulouse III (F)
- Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES)
- Universiteit Utrecht (NL)
- University of the West of Scotland (UK)
- the Karl-Franzens-University Graz as well as the CSS @ the Knowledge Management Institute of Graz University of Technology.