With a five-year grant from the National Science Foundation, we have designed and developed Geniverse, a game-based environment for high school genetics. Genetics, a core topic of biology in both middle and high school, is difficult to teach and learn (e.g., Duncan & Rieser 2007). The causes of difficulty in genetics include the invisibility of many of the structures (chromosomes and genes); the many different levels involved (genes, proteins, cells, traits); and the difficulty of reasoning across different organizational levels (Horwitz, 1996; Stewart, 1990). Moreover, genetics experiments are difficult to do in schools due to limits on time, facilities, and budget. Multi-generational experiments, the hallmark of genetic science, are nearly impossible in this context. These difficulties can be addressed with computer simulations that bridge the gaps between macro- and micro-worlds, and condense timescales from weeks or years to moments.
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