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PLAYCONOMICS

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PRESENCE LEARNING

Social, open-ended, and multidisciplinary university courses. You learn by inhabiting a shared and intimate virtual world.

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ONE GAME, MANY SUBJECTS

Economics, business, engineering, and medicine come together in a truly interdisciplinary effort, driven by a common transparent "game" language. The virtual world persists and outlives the duration of a course.

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LEARN BY CREATING NEW WORLDS AND SOCIETIES

A vast, persistent world that is full of potential. Your canvas to construct a society from the ground up.

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A MASSIVE MULTIPLAYER GAME (THAT EARNS YOU UNIVERSITY CREDITS)

A virtual world shared by thousands of students. Whether the virtual societies that arise stumbles on the same social and environmental issues we see in the real world is up to you. Your University credits depend on that!

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BUILDING KNOWLEDGE TOGETHER

An Ed-tech platform developed at UNSW with standard university material. Playconomics has been developed alongside Academia, a custom Learning Management System where students can test their knowledge and view their progress, with an emphasis on seamless integration and authoring collaboration.

Step Up

STEP UP Outreach
Education Program

The STEP UP Outreach Education Program aims to

Provide high school students the opportunity

to build their economic and financial literacy

Create genuine collaborative links with high

schools to support the transition to university

Support teachers in delivering advanced

content through Playconomics

STEP UP Academic
Research Program

Think of the STEP UP Academic Research Program as

a laboratory committed to identifying ‘what works’ in

education through an innovative, rigorous and

interdisciplinary approach.

Why should we care? Because education drives vital

life-long outcomes such as health, income, poverty,

parenting, social isolation, equity, and eliminating

educational gaps makes for a more just and thriving

society for all.

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Our Collaborators

Awards

UNSW Business School Bill Birkett Award for Sustained Teaching Excellence

2022

UNSW President Award for Building Collaborations

2019

Wharton School Reimagine Education Social Sciences Gold Award

2017

Australian Government Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning

2016

UNSW Business School John Prescott Outstanding Innovation Award 2016

UNSW Business School Student Choice Award 2013-2015

University of New South Wales Heinz Harant Award for Teaching Innovation 2013

UNSW Vice-Chancellor Award for Excellence in the Use of Learning & Teaching Technologies 2013

Australian School of Business Outstanding Technology-Enabled Teaching Innovation Award 2013

University of New South Wales Innovation Award (Finalist) 2013