What are educational escape rooms?

• high impact practice
• project based learning
• collaborative learning

Elements of a Escape Room

1. design
2. context
3. narrative
4. puzzles
5. social justice, critical reflection, changemaking

Social Justice Escape Room

Escape rooms are “a type of live-action social game that require groups of four to ten individuals to work together to solve a series of puzzles in order to escape from a locked room” (Rouse 554).

The Privilege of Escape

One example of how social change can be incorporated into escape room methodology is the escape artist Risa Puno’s most recent project: The Privilege of Escape. Her newly designed escape room “addresses privilege and social inequality” (Spira). For Puno, “a game that requires collective problem-solving to get through uncomfortable situations seems like an ideal format for tackling difficult social issues” (qtd. in Spira).

Competencies Achieved

Students are able to:

• understand how the literature is relevant to contemporary life.
• relate broader philosophical statements to particular life situations
• analyze the way authors address social issues in literature