Imagined Worlds, Real Learning: Worldbuilding as Pedagogical Design

Abstract

Game-based learning (GBL) research has largely focused on gameplay mechanics and learning outcomes, often overlooking the fictional worlds within which gameplay occurs. Yet these worlds shape how learners interpret problems, explore alternatives, and construct meaning. This paper proposes collaborative worldbuilding as a pedagogical design approach, arguing that fictional systems can function as environments for inquiry, experimentation, and collective sensemaking. The paper introduces fictional systems pedagogy, a framework in which learners co-construct imagined systems encompassing cultures, institutions, and environments. Through this process, learners engage in systems thinking, critical reflection, and creative problem-solving within a context that balances structural complexity with imaginative flexibility. Central to this approach is the concept of productive fictional distance, whereby imagined settings provide separation from real-world constraints while retaining meaningful parallels. Drawing on illustrative examples, the paper demonstrates how fictional systems can scaffold engagement with complex issues such as sustainability and governance. It concludes by positioning worldbuilding as a flexible and accessible approach to educational design that expands GBL beyond interaction with predefined systems toward the collaborative construction of learning environments themselves.