Abstract:

Entrepreneurship has gained a lot of attention over the recent years. New innovative ideas, as well as research outputs, may now be implemented and result into actual products and/or services, having a positive impact on a both economic and social level. However, a lot of work needs to be done in educating the entrepreneurs of tomorrow toward enabling them to effectively apply their managerial and decision-making skills within the current and future competitive environment. To this end, this paper proposes a theoretical framework for entrepreneurship education in Higher Education Institutions, based on the motivational aspects of Game Based Learning (GBL) elements, combined with the engagement and interaction opportunities offered by mobile devices. GBL has been proven to be an effective mechanism when it comes to business skills development. The interactive interface included in all GBL applications provides learners with a chance to experiment with their entrepreneurial ideas and strategies in a simulated environment, where they can easily benefit and learn, drawing from hands-on experience rather than obtaining basic theoretical knowledge. Furthermore, mobile devices have evolved considerably and offer ubiquitous access to innovative broadband services and applications, engaging users in social interactions. As a result, Higher Education Institutions, who are considered as major enablers and adopters of new ideas and innovation, can benefit from mobile devices and use them as a complementary medium toward offering integrated and innovative learning material to their students, in the form of an exciting game based application.

This paper builds upon the theories of Experiential and Digital Game Based learning and presents a Roadmap for the effective implementation and integration of Ubiquitous Game Based Learning in Entrepreneurship Education at Higher Education Institutions.

Keywords:

Entrepreneurship education, game based learning, mobile learning, higher education institutions.