Video Games- People's Pie

Educational games have evolved the way in which students learn. These games can range from practicing various concepts to introducing students to real-world experiences. For example, People’s Pie, from the virtual gaming website iCivics, allows students to step into the role of the federal government to set a tax policy and determine which programs to fund. The goal of the game is to manage the money of the federal government wisely, while keeping the citizens happy. From the start, the student is asked to set a corporate, payroll, and income tax rate and choose the retirement age. This will determine the amount of money the student will receive to fund various programs, such as, Homeland Security and Education. The student has to go through every program and decide whether he/she wants to cut or fund each proposal in the program category. Funding most programs will keep citizens satisfied, as their needs will be met. But it will also cost a lot of money, so the student will have to borrow money, increasing the interest rate and upsetting the citizens. The game continues with different rounds until there is no citizen satisfaction. In each new round, the student has the option of changing the tax rates and the retirement age. The higher the tax, the more funds the student will be entitled to, but citizen dissatisfaction will also be higher. Therefore, the student needs to find a balance between raising federal revenue and keeping the public satisfied. One recommendation to achieve this, is for the student to first go through every program before approving the funding for an agency. This way, the student will be aware of all the programs that can be funded and choose to fund the ones that are most important to him/her. 

           People’s Pie allows students to analyze how federal spending works and see how that affects the public. Therefore, I can use this game in a future high school economics classroom to meet the 12.3 California Content Standard that is found under the Principles of Economics. The standard states that students (will) analyze the influence of the federal government on the American economy. That is exactly what People’s Pie does. With every decision the student makes, he/she can not only see where the funds are going, but the citizen satisfaction level also changes. I remember making the claim that taxes should not exist or that the tax rate is too high, but this game made me understand why there is a need to taxation. Some people make that same claim, as they are not happy with having a part of their check taken away. But this game teaches students why taxing is necessary and let’s them explore the different kinds of programs funded by the federal government, some of which are very important and others that are not so much. That is why in playing People’s Pie students need to think critically because if they make rushed decisions, they will end up borrowing a lot of money and that will upset the citizens, bringing an end to the game. It also teaches students about the consequences of their actions. Every decision they make will affect the outcome of the game. But since the game has different rounds, students can decide to make different choices. Overall, this is a good game to teach students not only about federal government spending and its effect on citizens, but also about decision-making consequences and critical thinking.