As motor vehicle crashes remain the leading cause of death for teens, effective driver training continues to be a major public health concern. Teen driver and peer passenger deaths account for almost 25% of total teen deaths from any cause, more than cancer, homicide and suicide. In fact, motor vehicle crashes are the LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH for U.S. teens, accounting for more than one in three deaths in this age group. Accordingly, educators are searching for novel ways to incorporate game-oriented technology to re-design motor vehicle education. As the M&S community is aware, simulation can provide a training framework that is safe, authentic, controllable, and repeatable. Particularly over the last decade, video gaming systems have increasingly been found in applications more diverse than just entertainment, including training, education, research, and simulation. Computerized simulations designed explicitly for educational purposes can serve as a powerful training resource. By implementing game-based simulation training tools that are geared towards young drivers, there is a potential to greatly improve standardized practices in young driver training by improving cognitive, mechanical, visual, and auditory driver skills at an early age. The focus of this paper is to present a case study that serves as a first step towards motor vehicle training curriculum re-design, incorporating game-based M&S as a core component. This case study emphasizes “Backward Design”, which first looks at desired outcomes to properly design effective instructional methods and performance assessments. This case study will: emphasize “distractions and inattention” (one of the Top 5 causes for teen driving accidents), offer recommendations for standardizing M&S technology in education and training, and emphasize examples of applying M&S technology in the stated context.
