Decisions, Decisions

While Tom Snyder originally created games that would suit the "one-computer classroom" model, this series was part of a new gaming focus of "choice-driven discussion generators".{{Cite news|url=https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/1993/03/24/26soft.h12.html|title=Reaction to Software on Slavery Raises Issues Surrounding New Types of Media|last=West|first=Peter|date=March 24, 1993|website=Education Week|access-date=2018-03-18}} The software was designed specifically to foster academic discussions within the classroom.[http://www.schoolnet.org.za/conference/sessions/nh/WB_Research.pdf Harness the Power of Projectors and Interactive Whiteboards] {{webarchive|date=July 13, 2017

|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170713000540/http://www.schoolnet.org.za/conference/sessions/nh/WB_Research.pdf}} An online learning extension named Decisions, Decisions Online was also created.{{Cite web|url=http://www.educationworld.com/awards/past/r1199-16.shtml|title=Best of '99: Decisions, Decisions Online|date=1999|website=Education World|access-date=2018-03-18}} David Dockterman, VP and Chief Academic Officer of Tom Snyder Productions, commented "the series grew out of my frustration teaching high school history during the Iranian hostage crisis. I thought it would be valuable for my students to discuss what was happening in the world."{{Cite web |date=August 12, 2008 |title=An Interview with David "Dock" Dockterman: The Changing Nature of Educational Software |url=http://ednews.org/articles/27971/1/An-Interview-with-David-quotDockquot-Dockterman--The-Changing-Nature-of-Educational-Software/Page1.html |access-date=2022-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080812093602/http://ednews.org/articles/27971/1/An-Interview-with-David-quotDockquot-Dockterman--The-Changing-Nature-of-Educational-Software/Page1.html |archive-date=2008-08-12 }}

In 1999 a free service Decisions Decisions Online was released, which allowed students to discuss events taken from current headlines, with a new topic featured every month.{{cite web | url=https://thejournal.com/articles/1999/11/01/fyi--tom-snyder-productions.aspx | title=F.Y.I. – Tom Snyder Productions – }}{{Cite web |date=July 21, 2001 |title=Welcome To Decisions, Decisions Online |url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com/ |access-date=2022-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010721131455/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com/ |archive-date=2001-07-21 }} Hedrick Ellis, executive producer of Decisions, Decisions Online, was reluctant to introduce advertising, and instead noted that Tom Snyder Productions would eventually charge for the products.{{cite web | url=https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=wikipedia&id=GALE|last58062567=2.1&it=r&sid=ebsco | title=Gale – Product Login }}

In 2002 Tom Snyder Productions was bought by Scholastic, and this series fell under Scholastic's Interactive Educational Software division.{{Cite web|date=February 1, 2002 |title=Scholastic purchases software maker Tom Snyder Productions |url=https://www.eschoolnews.com/2002/02/01/scholastic-purchases-software-maker-tom-snyder-productions/ |access-date=2022-03-28 |website=eSchool News}}

Realwordedtech suggested the series died out because it "was expensive to create and even more difficult for teachers to integrate an increasingly prescribed data-driven curriculum".{{Cite web |title=Why Ed Tech had it right at the very start but lost its way |url=http://www.realworldedtech.com/2015/10/why-ed-tech-had-it-right-at-very-start.html |access-date=2022-03-28}}

Each game puts the players (recommended to be a classroom) into a scenario based on actual facts and encourages them to come up with solutions.

An example is in the title Decisions, Decisions: Prejudice, in which the players take the role of the mayor of a tourist town, in which a newspaper has editorialised against a business trading racial memorabilia. Students discuss the problem in teams, then enter their strategies into the computer, which advances the story, leading to 300 alternate paths. Members of the team receive booklets from the perspective of an adviser to the decision maker, for instance in Decisions,{{Cite book|last=Kenebrew|first=Keith Tyson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yfMJf6biX2QC&pg=PA8|title=Decisions, Decisions, Decisions: Seeking God's Will|date=March 2005|publisher=iUniverse|isbn=978-0-595-34223-5}} Decisions: The Environment, they could be a campaign manager, and environmentalist, a scientist, and an economist; players then debate this conflicting information to reach a justifiable compromise.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4wb3IHdIjzIC&pg=PA52|title=Easy Ways to Make Technology Work for You: From Grade Books to Graphic Organizers|last=Dockterman|first=David A.|date=2002|publisher=Scholastic Inc.|isbn=9780439437615}}

The games encourage a five step critical thinking process:{{Cite web |url=http://ww2.usj.edu/faculty_pages/jarzt/Decisions.htm |title=Archived copy |access-date=2018-03-18 |archive-date=2013-07-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728131433/http://ww2.usj.edu/faculty_pages/jarzt/Decisions.htm |url-status=dead }}

1. Analyze the situation{{Cite web|url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/analyze.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040501201720/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/analyze.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-01|title=Analyze the Situation|access-date=2018-03-18}}
2. Determine and prioritise goals{{Cite web|url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/goals.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040506021150/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/goals.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-06|title=Determine Your Goals|access-date=2018-03-18}}
3. Consider their options{{Cite web|url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/options.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040509094256/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/options.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-09|title=Consider the Options|access-date=2018-03-18}}
4. Make a decision{{Cite web|url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/decision.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040516014531/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/decision.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-16|title=Make a Decision|access-date=2018-03-18}}
5. Examine the consequences{{Cite web|url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/consequence.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040521021309/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/consequence.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-21|title=Consider the Consequences|access-date=2018-03-18}}

Follow-up activities include: taking quizzes, drawing political cartoons, writing to state and federal legislators, seeing how others parts of the country voted on the issue, and research Web links.{{Cite web|url=http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/followup.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040522001538/http://ddonline.tomsnyder.com:80/ddotour/followup.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-22|title=Follow-Up Activities|access-date=2018-03-18}}

• Decisions, Decisions: Current Issues
• Decisions, Decisions: AIDS
• Decisions, Decisions: Colonization
• Decisions, Decisions: Immigration
• Decisions, Decisions: On the Campaign Trail{{Cite news |last=Goldberg |first=Debbie |date=November 1, 1992 |title=From Blackboard to Keyboard |language=en-US |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/entertainment/books/1992/11/01/from-blackboard-to-keyboard/0fa7980a-f68e-4c30-b02f-8e6357ac65cc/ |access-date=2022-03-28 |issn=0190-8286}}
• Decisions, Decisions: Prejudice
• Decisions, Decisions: Revolutionary Wars
• Decisions, Decisions: Substance Abuse (also known as S.M.A.R.T. Choices)
• Decisions, Decisions: The Budget Process
• Decisions, Decisions: The Constitution
• Decisions, Decisions: The Environment
• Decisions, Decisions: Urbanization
• Decisions, Decisions: Violence in the Media
• Decisions, Decisions: Ancient Empires
• Decisions, Decisions: Drinking and Driving{{cite web | url=https://thejournal.com/articles/1996/12/01/teach-students-to-avoid-drinking--driving.aspx | title=Teach Students to Avoid Drinking & Driving – }}

Education World gave Decisions, Decisions Online an A+, describing it as an effective online resource to stimulate the critical thinking skills of young people.

Laura Cirillo-Boilard of USJ gave Decisions, Decisions – The Constitution 10/10, praising its ability to develop skills in cooperative learning, reading comprehension, oral communication, problem-solving, and decision-making. Teaching TV Production in a Digital World: Integrating Media Literacy recommended the use of Decisions, Decisions: Violence in the Media within the school curriculum. Character Education in America's Blue Ribbon Schools felt the series effectively allowed students to work together in solving real world problems and analysing the results of their decisions.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eXXGAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA189|title=Character Education in America's Blue Ribbon Schools: Best Practices for Meeting the Challenge|last=Murphy|first=Madonna|date=July 9, 2002|publisher=R&L Education|isbn=9781461666912|language=en}} Multimedia Schools said Decisions, Decisions Online is an "interesting, informative, and affordable" product.{{cite web | url=https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=wikipedia&id=GALE|last110025082=2.1&it=r&sid=ebsco | title=Gale – Product Login }}

The website was The New York Times' featured site on January 5, 2000.{{Cite web|url=https://events.nytimes.com/learning/parents/siteofday/20000105.html|title=Site of the Day: Decisions, Decisions Online|website=events.nytimes.com|access-date=2018-03-18|archive-date=2013-12-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131205085350/http://events.nytimes.com/learning/parents/siteofday/20000105.html|url-status=dead}} The Washington Post reported that the series could be ground-breaking in the move from learning distinct subjects to a synergistic approach, using all these skills to complete practical and realistic projects. Macworld noted that Decisions, Decisions 5.0: The Constitution was not a replacement for a U.S. history textbook.{{Cite web|url=https://www.macworld.com/article/1016226/EducationSoftware.html|title=Education Software|website=Macworld|language=en|access-date=2018-03-18}} Teacher Librarian praised it as one of the best ethics-based simulations on the market.{{cite journal |last1=Troutner |first1=Joanne |title=BEST NEW SOFTWARE |journal=Teacher Librarian |volume=32 |issue=4 |date=April 2005 |pages=40, 67 |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/a348cee390ab655aa23e5fa0c63c2b3f/1 }} Shirley Neill, co-editor of Only the Best, noted “Snyder tries to get kids to see the issue from a lot of different points of view".{{Cite news |last=West |first=Peter |date=June 19, 2019 |title=The Mouse That Roared|work=Education Week |url=https://www.edweek.org/education/the-mouse-that-roared/2019/06 |access-date=2022-03-28 |issn=0277-4232}} From Now On deemed it the leading producer of historical simulations.{{Cite web |title=Focus on History, Literacies and ICT |url=http://fno.org/may2010/history.html |access-date=2022-03-28 |website=fno.org}} While Kliatt praised the series for addressing current issues, it noted the games were not "culturally balanced".{{Cite web |last1=Hammer |first1=Brad |date=2002 |title=Energy and the Environment |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Energy+and+the+Environment-a0107217452 }} Tech & Learning wrote "These thought-provoking programs enriched learning in countless ways."{{Cite web |author1=Gwen Solomon |date=April 28, 2015 |title=Software Grows Up: Interactive Multimedia And More |url=https://www.techlearning.com/resources/software-grows-up-interactive-multimedia-and-more |access-date=2022-03-28 |website=TechLearningMagazine}} MacWorld suggests the series challenges the student view that historical events are "far-removed from their own lives and have little relevance to the present".{{Cite web |title=Education Software |url=https://www.macworld.com/article/160082/educationsoftware.html |access-date=2022-03-28 |website=Macworld}}

• 1988 SIIA CODiE Award for Best Middle or Secondary School Program – Decisions, Decisions Series{{Cite web|url=https://www.siia.net/codie/About-the-Awards/Past-Winners/1988-Winners|title=1988 Winners|website=www.siia.net|language=en-US|access-date=2018-03-18|archive-date=2019-04-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419201219/http://www.siia.net/codie/About-the-Awards/Past-Winners/1988-Winners|url-status=dead}}
• 1997 Codie award for excellence in technology{{Cite web |url=http://publishers.org/2004-tom-snyder |title=2004: Tom Snyder |website=publishers.org |language=en-US |access-date=2018-03-22 |archive-date=2018-03-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323031305/http://publishers.org/2004-tom-snyder |url-status=dead }}
• 1998 Excellence in Software Award for Best Curriculum Software for Middle School – Decisions, Decisions: Ancient Empires{{Cite web|url=http://boards.fool.com/drop-in-sales-due-to-lack-of-award-winning-title-10292878.aspx|title=TMF: drop in sales due to lack of award winning title / Learning Company, Inc., The|website=boards.fool.com|language=en|access-date=2018-03-18}}
• 1998 Excellence in Software Award for Best Education Software Upgrade – Decisions, Decisions: The Environment
• 1999 Education World – Best of 1999 – Decisions, Decisions Online{{Cite web |date=June 17, 2001 |title=Education World® : Best Of Series : 1999 : Review : Decisions, Decisions Online |url=http://www.education-world.com/best_of/1999/reviews/rev_1999_04.shtml |access-date=2022-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010617103217/http://www.education-world.com/best_of/1999/reviews/rev_1999_04.shtml |archive-date=2001-06-17 }}
• 2001 Codie Award Finalist: Best School Based Secondary Education Software – Decisions, Decisions Online{{Cite web |date=June 17, 2001 |title=Runaware – Decisions, Decisions Online |url=http://www.runaware.com/action=show_app_pav?c_app_id=1141 |access-date=2022-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010617150122/http://www.runaware.com/action=show_app_pav?c_app_id=1141 |archive-date=2001-06-17 }}

{{Reflist}}

Category:1988 video games

Category:1980s video games

Category:Educational video games

Category:Simulation video games

Category:Role-playing video games

Category:Video games developed in the United States

Category:Tom Snyder Productions games