Validation of game scenarios for the assessment of professional competence: Development of a serious game for system managers in training

Serious games hold potential for fostering the acquisition of more complex problem solving skills in professional practice. However, until now the empirical evidence on these workplace learning effects of serious games has remained rather scarce. Therefore such games have hardly been adopted for assessment purposes. This article argues why a validation method is needed that points out and controls what and where learners are learning from games. The core of the method entails mapping the learning activities on the performance indicators and outputs, as derived from the formal attainment levels in vocational education. In this study we have elaborated and applied a validation method for the development of a scenario-based assessment game for system managers in (secondary vocational) education. The method provides a general procedure, practical guidelines, and assessment forms, that can be used beyond this educational context and domain by those interested in more dynamic and motivating ways to assess the acquisition of complex skills in workplace learning.