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Overview

What if we could give young people a practice run at being an adult while they’re still in school - something that feels like the real world they’ll soon be part of?

Bill Barry

 

The Real Game was originally developed in 1994 by Bill Barry, a Canadian teacher whose 12-year-old daughter felt the subjects she was studying at school were not relevant to her future life. This inspired Bill to create a career and life skills education programme that would help students see the connection between school studies and life after school.

 

Over time, the Real Game became a series of six programmes for students aged 8 to 18 years and adults.

 

Individual programmes have since been successfully adapted in a number of countries including the Australia, United States, New Zealand, France, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The programmes are paper-based and designed for group work in the classroom. They have been very well received by teachers and students, who find them easy-to-use, engaging, informative and effective at increasing students' understanding of the world of work, and their future roles in it.

The Real Game series in Australia

The implementation of The Real Game series in Australia is an Australian Government initiative, managed by the Department of Education, Employment, and Workplace Relations. The Department has established a National Advisory Committee, with representatives from all major educational authorities, indigenous education, industry and the Canadian partners, to coordinate The Real Game series in Australia.

To date, five programmes have been piloted in Australia:

  • The Play Real Game – for students aged 8 to 10 (piloted in 2003);
  • The Make It Real Game – for students aged 10 to 12 (piloted in 2001);
  • The Real Game – for students aged 12 to 14 (piloted in 2000, revised and updated in 2006);
  • The Be Real Game – for students aged 14 to 16 (piloted in 2001);
  • The Get Real Game – for students aged 16 to 18 (piloted in 2003).

Click here to download a Word version of the Letter to Parents/Guardians. School and class details may be added to the Letter but the explanatory text must remain as it appears.

Download Word versions of the completion certificates for each of the Real Games below. School crests and class details may be added as required. The certificate may then be merged with the participants' names.

See Past Pilots for information on the pilots of these games.

See Current Products for information on the products.

See Newsletters for current and past editions of the Australian Real Game newsletter.

Click here for ordering details.

A survey of usage of The Real Game (12-14) was completed in 2004 with extremely positive results. Click here to download a full copy of the final report.

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Any comments or queries should be sent to: wwweditor@dest.gov.au

This page was last updated on Thursday, 13 December 2007
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