June 25, 2025

Ferris State hosting international educators to explore how gaming can be used to help with teaching

Ferris State University is welcoming educators from around the world next month for a conference featuring top game design minds coming together with university faculty and staff to explore how to best use gaming to teach in traditional classroom environments.

The conference is set for July 10 to 12 on the Big Rapids campus and will feature 40 to 50 educators.

Reacting to the Past: Game Development Conference organizers anticipate welcoming faculty members from as far as the University of Vienna and Tel Aviv University. Colleges and universities from the United States, particularly the Midwest region, will have a strong presence.

All parties interested in attending are encouraged to come to playtest games, share ideas through workshops and pitch sessions, connect with other attendees and have fun.

“This is all the game development and playtest part of the ‘Reacting to the Past’ series,” said Andrew Peterson, Ferris State’s director of eLearning. “This is where a lot of faculty get together and playtest their games so that they are better prepared to play them in the classroom. It’s everything from raw concept to ‘almost’ ready to publish the games.”

Peterson said Ferris State faculty will be well represented at the Reacting to the Past: Game Development Conference with instructors coming from academic disciplines such as game design and political science.

“This interactive pedagogy is the definition of high impact practices and puts student engagement at the center of the learning,” he said.

Peterson said that conference participants will play multiple reacting-style games that are in development. They will also strive to expand and explore ideas for new games and engage in workshops geared toward game design principles and processes. The conference is intended for faculty and staff with a passing familiarity with Reacting to the Past or other educational games.

Registration for the conference closes on July 1, 2025. Conference details, registration pricing, travel and housing information and more are available on the 2025 Game Development Conference website.