Publish at February 02 2020 Updated March 26 2025
It's probably one of the most popular ways of combining fun and learning at the moment: the escape game. For the few who don't know the principle, let's briefly review it. It's a situation in which individuals have to solve enigmas to escape from a room or get to the next part of the story. If the time limit is exceeded, the game is over. A pastime that adults appreciate for stimulating their neurons, the same applies to students, who can greatly benefit from such experiences , as we've already mentioned.
Except we know that some are reluctant to use new approaches of this kind without concrete examples. They ask to see different approaches that have been taken in the classroom. The good news for them is that more and more teachers have tried this type of game and are sharing their scenarios and, in a few cases, their feedback.
The idea behind an escape game scenario is to offer a situation that will stimulate students to give their all in teams to decipher enigmas over a period of 60 minutes, generally. For example, in this math escape game scenario, the idea is that schoolchildren should be able to go on vacation soon. However, the plane they were supposed to take is locked in a hangar with a combination to find. They have to get there if they want to travel.
This article provides some external links to experiences shared by teachers. Some have used the disappearance of the class mascot as an excuse to save it with language puzzles. Or they made the teacher believe he was a spy with an antidote to prevent failure at school.
The key is to create a hook that speaks to the students, with a touch of humor and, above all, a sense of time. You have to adjust the problems to the level of the learners , as this teacher does. The aim is to be complicated enough to last, but also to ensure that they are able to complete the task in the time allotted. Encouraging a sense of accomplishment is also important.
The great thing about escape games is that they can be adapted to any subject. Whether math, science, history, geography or even documentary information. Modern languages can also benefit from games of this kind, which can ask students to investigate a crime or plunge them into a fantasy world they know, such as Harry Potter, to put into practice the knowledge they have already acquired.
There's no shortage of examples and feedback showing how enthusiastic learners are about this type of activity, which blends play with academic concepts. However, some may wonder whether this kind of activity really helps them to learn and retain elements. As the Académie de Versailles reminds us in this article, post-game debriefing is extremely important. Whether it's after a serious game or an escape game, once the excitement has died down, it's essential to look back at what was achieved during the game. The advantage of an escape game is that it usually takes place in teams, which usually solve different puzzles. As a result, it can be a good way of sharing what you've learned.
If new notions have been introduced during the game, it's also important to write them down so that students can retain them. This can also be a mind map created collectively, summarizing everything that was needed to succeed in the game. The aim is for them to come away with more knowledge than the fact of having won.
Illustration: Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
References
Coulpier, Céline, and Nathalie Guey. "Trois Escape Games Mathématiques Numériques En Ligne, Pour Les Cycles 1, 2 Et 3." #ClasseTICE. Accessed January 31, 2020.
https://classetice.fr/spip.php?article344
"Escape Game En Classe : Pédagogie Par L'énigme (infographie)." Fenetresur. Last updated: June 19, 2019.
https://fenetresur.wordpress.com/2019/06/19/escape-game-en-classe-pedagogie-par-lenigme-infographie/
Fenaert, Mélanie. "Escape Games Et SVT." Sciences De La Vie Et De La Terre - Site SVT - Académie De Versailles. Last updated: January 30, 2019.
https://svt.ac-versailles.fr/spip.php?article989
Lamontagne, Denys. "Jeu D'évasion - Escape Game: Un Potentiel Culturel Et Pédagogique à Explorer." Thot Cursus. Last updated: January 29, 2020.
https://cursus.edu/21258/jeu-devasion-escape-game-un-potentiel-culturel-et-pedagogique-a-explorer
"Making Escape Games in the Classroom." Stylo Plume Blog. Last updated: December 18, 2019.
https://www.styloplumeblog.fr/escape-game-classe/
"Une Ressource : Découvrir Les Escape Games - Langues Vivantes." Éduscol. Last updated: January 31, 2019.
https://eduscol.education.fr/langues-vivantes/actualites/actualites/article/une-ressource-decouvrir-les-iescape-gamesi.html
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