Reimaging History: Gaming in Higher Education

Picture this. You are in the NSW colony/Eora country. The time is 1821. And lying in your hands is the power to pass legislative changes that will shape the future of what will be the nation of Australia. Sounds surreal? It’s not a dream. It’s not augmented reality. It’s not a time machine. It’s gaming.

What do history and gaming have in common, you ask? More than you’d think, as ANU alum Nick Jensen reveals. He’s a practicing advocate of a fascinating learning pedagogy known as reacting education—role-playing games designed for higher education, where students engage with history by walking in the footsteps of people in the past. They learn firsthand from history by stepping back in time, playing with big ideas and innovations from different eras, and developing new intellectual and academic perspectives.

Reacting to the Past

Reacting to the Past (RTTP)—the blueprint of the reacting education pedagogy—was pioneered in the late 1990s by Mark C. Carnes, Professor of History at Barnard College. Since then, faculty at hundreds of colleges and universities globally have implemented the RTTP curriculum since its dissemination began in 2001. Nick elaborates, “Class sessions are run by students and instructors advise students and grade their oral and written work. Reacting roles and games do not have a fixed script or outcome and so students must pursue a course of action to try to win the game. Over 30 games have already been published at Reacting.barnard.edu/games, and over 350 universities and colleges in the United States and abroad are utilising this new expression of learning.”

A Transformative Pedagogy

The ANU alum recalls his transformative journey studying Religion and Politics in South-East Asia’, taught by Associate Professor McComas Taylor.

“The highlight of my degree was the course by Associate Professor McComas Taylor on ‘Religion and Politics in South-East Asia’ where ‘Reacting Education’ was first utilised in Australia. Instead of the traditional lectures, tutorials, essays, exams routine, we instead were given characters from the Indian Independence Movement. Our final grades were to be based on how well we achieved those characters objectives mainly through debate, legislation and strategic votes each week in a mock Parliamentary session. I have never read so much, worked so hard, or had so much fun in a course in my life.”

The power and impact of teaching history this way really struck a deep chord with Nick, so much so that when he was invited to develop a leadership training program for postgraduates wanting to enter public life with the Lachlan Macquarie Institute in 2010, he committed to bring his experience in Reacting Education to bear.

Between 2011 and 2017, Nick ran more than 10 adapted versions (in four-day intensives) of the Henry VIII and the Reformation Parliament, a seminal moment to understanding the Westminster system of Government, the history of Church and State relations, and a key moment in shaping modern democracy in Australia.

Through this program, Nick and his organisation has had a number of students go on to run think tanks, develop policy, work with NGOs, and even take roles as elected representatives in State and Federal Parliaments. And Nick can vouch for all these students remembering the powerful lessons they learnt through being immersed in history and confronting Henry VIII! Speaking from the experiences of the students who have participated, Nick believes that reacting education improves a wide range of learning objectives. It not only embeds the knowledge of history in a deeply personal way, but it also allows the development of skills such as public speaking, debating, strategic thinking, leadership, negotiation, politics—all in an incredibly fun and powerful way.

Each student’s experience is different (as is often the resulting historical outcome), and sometimes difficult, but ultimately unforgettable.

Judging the Macquaries

On 30 April 2022, a reacting education initiative titled Judging the Macquaries was held at the NSW Parliament, where higher education students from across Sydney came to experience and perform reacting education around the period 1810-1821 in the NSW colony/Eora country. It was connected to the bicentennial celebrations of 200 years since the departure of the final autocratic governor of NSW, also known as the Father of Australia, Lachlan Macquarie, and the establishment of the NSW Parliament.

The event was based on a book published in early 2021 also called Judging the Macquaries: Injustice and Mercy in Colonial Australia by historian and translator, Dr John Harris. Governor Macquarie had a crucial influence on the transition of NSW from a penal colony to a free settlement—particularly in the colony’s social, religious, economic and infrastructure development. His leadership, and that of his wife, Elizabeth, is marked by considerable success, as well as significant failures.

These events continue to echo today in Australia through the unfinished conversations of colonisation and Indigenous relations, Church/State authority, judiciary/executive tensions, and what is required for right relationships in a flourishing democratic nation.

The event was run with 30 students over two days, mainly from Alphacrucis University College, the Lachlan Macquarie Institute (LMI), and the Indigenous Burrundi Theatre. Over those days, the students took on British and Australian characters (including figures such as King George III, Bidgee Bidgee, Bungaree, William Wilberforce and Samuel Marsden) who then communicated, collaborated, and competed to pass legislative changes that would shape the future of what would be the nation of Australia.

It was a wonderful dive into history, and culminated with a dinner with a range of distinguished guests and the President of the NSW Upper House, where talks were given on history, leadership and Indigenous relations.

Twists and Turns

Nick recalls it was difficult to explore, or even talk about, this period of Australian history largely due to some of the injustices against Aboriginal people over the period as well as the general issue of colonisation. In bringing such particularly traumatic events ‘to life’ through this form of education, it was critical to ensure there was strong cultural understanding and sensitivity.

“This was particularly difficult due to the fact that some of the students were playing historically racist characters. We therefore spent most of the day before the event building a strong team understanding, hearing from and conversing with Aboriginal elders (one even being a descendent of the key character of Maria Yarramundi/Lock), and wrestling with how to do justice and honour to the history.

The most significant moment was when the report of the Appin massacre was given to the Parliament, and the response from the Indigenous faction. Although quite difficult, it was also incredibly powerful as students who had previously not been aware of the history experienced it face-to-face.”

There was also the challenge around the final vote on Macquaries’ legacy. Many participants were torn considering that Governor Macquarie was clearly a tremendous leader and of his time (and the most progressive on Aboriginal relations of all his contemporaries) and created a flourishing colony, but also carried the sins of the empire.

Some observers thought he was too harshly treated, others thought he got off too lightly. This range of perspectives that can be brought in such an event is perhaps its most wonderful feature.

More about Nick…

In 2009, Nick completed his Bachelor of Arts at ANU, with majors in Philosophy, Religious Studies and a minor in Political Science. Currently, he works in Government Relations with Alphacrucis University College, a faith-based higher education institution. Nick’s role is to help facilitate conversation between higher education and politics, helping translate the needs and solutions from the industry, including areas such as teacher training, entrepreneurship, and the Pacific.

For anyone who would like support to develop or run Reacting Education games, or is interested in being involved in establishing the ‘Judging the Macquaries’ game across other universities in Australia, Nick would love to hear from you: nick.jensen@ac.edu.au.