The Educational Research Integration Area (ERIA) studies how interactive digital tools -- like video games -- might transform learning. Our goal is to improve public understanding of science through games. These games are designed to be used in homes, schools, and after school settings, because we think the future of learning lies in connected learning across these contexts. Tomorrow's learners will access learning resources on their digital tablets, phones, and computers, and our learner profiles will cross these contexts. Learners, parents, teachers, and administrators have unprecedented opportunities for using data to improve learning.

To reach tomorrow's learners, educational materials have to be deeply engaging. We build games that can capture intrinsically interesting aspects of science and present it authentically to learners of all ages. We firmly believe that education should be energizing and life enhancing. Our games seek to put players in roles where they use science to do interesting things, setting up opportunities for learners to develop new identities -- and potentially even careers -- as people who affiliate with science.

Our team is a part of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, a unique interdisciplinary research facility. We are a part of a thriving research community that researches information exchange from cells to societies -- and then seeks to use these discoveries to improve society. By working closely with scientists in a collaborative environment, we believe that we can link learning from the biological level to the social level, and create new learning experiences that transform how we learn.