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The twenty-first century places new demands on student learning. New times call for new literacies. We witness keen interest in "serious games" and the use of games to enhance student learning. Against this backdrop, this paper 1 examines issues related to bringing game-based learning into classrooms. It is argued that the construction of students' identity and sense of self are important but mostly overlooked educational goals. It is also noted that immersive games, by virtue of three associated learning characteristicsembodiment, embeddedness, and experience-are well-suited to supporting identity construction goals because they orient learning toward performance competencies that are intentional and possess a high degree of personal agency. We advocate a pedagogy that involves dialectic interplay between game-play experience and classroom-based discussion and reflection. These ideas are illustrated through a research project on National Education in Singapore. The game we have developed, Space Station Leonis, is a hybrid that comprises two modes of play: simulation mode and role playing scenario mode. We show how the game has been designed to help students develop a sense of who they are and what they stand for in a classroom learning environment that seeks to facilitate development of their identity in relation to being and becoming a Singapore citizen.

The technology of embodied conversational agents provides an attractive approach to achieving natural human-computer interaction if the interaction design is handled sensitively. In view of this, we designed and developed an embodied tour guide, Elva, 'who' is able to engage conversationally with users about gallery exhibits and also capable of behaving non-verbally using gesture and facial expression. The research focuses on the attributes of agent autonomy and believability. To achieve autonomy, we present a threelayer architectural design to ensure appropriate coupling between the agent's perception and action. With regard to believability, we utilize the notion of schema to support structured and coherent verbal behaviours. We also pay careful attention to the design of non-verbal interactions that establish social facts within the virtual world. A user study was performed to evaluate user satisfaction and agent believability.

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