Originally published on September 12, 2018 (Episode 77)
Introduction
How do students learn history when they play it? “Reacting to the Past” is a classroom pedagogy that immerses students in role-playing games based on historical debates and events. In this conversation, Nick Proctor of Simpson College explains how “Reacting” works, why it engages students deeply, and what teachers can learn from watching students wrestle with big ideas through structured play.
About the Guest
Nick Proctor is Professor of History at Simpson College. He has written or co-written four “Reacting to the Past” games and serves on the pedagogy’s editorial board.
For Further Investigation
Nick Proctor, Bathed in Blood: Hunting and Mastery in the Old South (Virginia, 2002)
—, Forest Diplomacy: Cultures in Conflict on the Pennsylvania Frontier, 1757 (Published by the UNC Press, 2022)
Reacting to the Past imprint at the University of North Carolina Press
Listen & Discuss
Why does role-playing bring history alive for students?
Can “Reacting to the Past” teach lessons that lectures can’t?
Know a teacher—or a gamer—who needs to hear this? Pass it along.
