It's been an interesting semester! If you would have told me in January that I'd spend as much time as I have playing an online game, I wouldn't have believed it! I think I've come a long way in both my game playing ability and my understanding of the way that gaming could potentially impact our educational environment in the future. To look ahead to 2030, which really isn't that far off when I think about all that has happened in the last 15+ years in education, gives me a chance to really see an educational environment where games are a main focus.
Teachers strive to reach their learners and keep them engaged. McGonigal cites Czikszentmikalyi when she talks about engagement in gaming, saying, "we regularly achieve the greatest form of happiness available to human beings: intense, optimistic engagement with the world around us. We feel fully alive, full of potential and purpose"(Kindle Locations 616-617). That's how a student should feel when they leave a classroom! Full of potential and purpose. If games can offer students that level of engagement, then the classroom of the future could be centered around students' game playing.
Another potential impact of game playing is that students would be challenged, as I was during my Settler's experience, with setting goals and working both alone and with a group to achieve those goals. Willis (2011) states, "When learners have opportunities to participate in learning challenges
at their individualized achievable challenge level, their brains invest
more effort to the task and are more responsive to feedback".
I talked earlier in the semester about schools and the educational system needing to "level up" in their efforts to really meet the needs of the learners. As we've learned more about the way that the brain works and the effects of game playing on the brain, we should be able to develop methods and pedagogies that cater to these game playing students.
I teach in an elementary setting and also work with teachers at the graduate level. It's certainly clear that the "one size fits all" mentality won't work when it comes to game playing. Elementary students have different needs from their high school counterparts and the dichotomy becomes even greater when you continue to shift from high school to college. Students' brains are wired differently and they develop according to that wiring. Researchers from The University of Rochester studied reaction time in answering questions. College students who "played the
action-packed fast-paced games like the popular “Call of Duty” answered a
series of questions about 25 percent faster than their counterparts" (Carter, 2012).
It's time to take a closer look at the impact of video gaming in the classroom. Gaming has important benefits like motivation, reward, feedback, engagement, collaboration, etc. All skills and experiences that as educators we strive to provide for our students. It's important to realize that these components can make for powerful experiences in the classroom. Positive experiences that can propel students forward in their learning and achievement.
This semester has given me a reason to really look at and think of the ways that games could play a role in the classroom of today and tomorrow. It will continue to be an interesting picture, framed by the games we bring into our classrooms.
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Simulations
The first simulation that I explored is actually one that we are using with our 5th graders this week in Science. It's called "Energy Skate Park" and the link to use the simulation is: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/energy-skate-park-basics. This simulation explores different types of energy including kinetic and potential energy. It also includes different additional concepts that students can add to their skate park including friction. The mass of the skateboarder can be changed so that students can see the effects of different masses on the energy track. Students can customize the track and change the configuration to compare the differences in the amounts of energy created and consumed by different tracks. The students who have had the chance to use this already are loving the fact that it relates to skateboarding. We have several students who skateboard regularly and this has really captured their attention. This is also providing them a little bit of competition to see who can create the best track. The students can also create different graphs to compare the different amounts of potential energy, kinetic energy, and friction created by each track. This simulation could best be used with upper elementary students.
The second simulation that I explored is called "Eating and Exercise". The link is: https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/eating-and-exercise. I was trying to find a simulation that could be used with younger students as they study nutrition each year, but in further exploring this simulation, it may be too complicated to use with younger students. It could easily be used by middle school students. The object of the simulation is to see what happens when calorie intake and exercise and activity are factored together each day. Students can select the criteria for their own body (age, height, weight, etc.) and then track their food intake along with activity completed. Once they run the simulation, they can see the effects of their diet and exercise on their constructed body. I would suggest using this simulation in the context of a health/science unit on nutrition and be mindful of the body image issues that might be present with middle schoolers.
Both of the simulations that I spent time using this week are from the University of Colorado Boulder. They have a multitude of different simulations geared for different age groups. What is also nice is that many of the simulations seem to also have lesson plans and suggestions for teacher uses available. It's a great resource that I'll be sharing with all of my teachers this week!
The second simulation that I explored is called "Eating and Exercise". The link is: https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/eating-and-exercise. I was trying to find a simulation that could be used with younger students as they study nutrition each year, but in further exploring this simulation, it may be too complicated to use with younger students. It could easily be used by middle school students. The object of the simulation is to see what happens when calorie intake and exercise and activity are factored together each day. Students can select the criteria for their own body (age, height, weight, etc.) and then track their food intake along with activity completed. Once they run the simulation, they can see the effects of their diet and exercise on their constructed body. I would suggest using this simulation in the context of a health/science unit on nutrition and be mindful of the body image issues that might be present with middle schoolers.
Both of the simulations that I spent time using this week are from the University of Colorado Boulder. They have a multitude of different simulations geared for different age groups. What is also nice is that many of the simulations seem to also have lesson plans and suggestions for teacher uses available. It's a great resource that I'll be sharing with all of my teachers this week!
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Virtual Worlds
This was an interesting week! I've used Second Life before and quite frankly, gave up because I didn't have the time or see how it was relevant to my "real life". Before in my experience in SL, I even became affiliated when ISTE had a virtual conference using SL.
Maybe my thinking was flawed...after all shouldn't a virtual experience take me away from my "real life" and expose me to others in a more anonymous way? The premise of the virtual world is that it is a space where people can potentially collaborate, play games, and experience a different life.
I was interested when reading "Envisioning the Educational Possibilities of User-Created Virtual Worlds", to begin thinking about these virtual spaces as a place to "construct learning". I know from my experience in Settler's this semester that every time I played the game I was able to build on my own learning. Antonacci and Modress (2008) mention that, "students engaged in educational games and simulations are interpreting, analyzing, discovering, evaluating, acting, and problem solving". I can readily see those happening when reflecting on my experience in Settlers, but less so this week in SL.
I still felt the same uneasiness going into Second Life that I did when I started Settler's. I had several people come up to me in SL and try to interact. Unfortunately, I spent much of my time this week wrestling with a video card issue that made my whole virtual world, purple. While I was able to get into SL and set up my avatar and do some exploring, not much progress was made. These technical issues are the ones that concern me the most as a tech person, because in using something like this with students, we have to be prepared to encounter and overcome these issues.
In thinking about the potential uses for a virtual presence like Second Life in education, I came across an article that researched how Second Life has been used in the medical profession to help doctors and other professionals learn how to interact with patients and give them a virtual "practice" area to help learn. Wiecha et al (2010) mentions that, "the virtual world offers opportunities for student interaction, intense engagement, scripted immersive experiences, simulations, role-playing, and constructivist learning. The anonymity afforded by the avatar appears to lead to less inhibition and greater interaction." The anonymity can be a good thing/bad thing in education. Students need to be taught the proper way to interact and need support when they come across someone who makes them uncomfortable. I can see clearly how this type of learning could have a place in the educational experience as students get older and are using a virtual world to explore career options, learn hand's-on techniques, and to collaborate on building new knowledge.
References:
Antonacci, D.M. & Modress, N. (2008). Envisioning the Educational Possibilities of User-Created Virtual Worlds. AACE Journal, 16(2), 115-126.
Wiecha, J., Heyden, R., Sternthal, E., & Merialdi, M. (2010). Learning in a virtual world: experience with using second life for medical education. Journal Of Medical Internet Research, 12(1), e1. doi:10.2196/jmir.1337
Maybe my thinking was flawed...after all shouldn't a virtual experience take me away from my "real life" and expose me to others in a more anonymous way? The premise of the virtual world is that it is a space where people can potentially collaborate, play games, and experience a different life.
I was interested when reading "Envisioning the Educational Possibilities of User-Created Virtual Worlds", to begin thinking about these virtual spaces as a place to "construct learning". I know from my experience in Settler's this semester that every time I played the game I was able to build on my own learning. Antonacci and Modress (2008) mention that, "students engaged in educational games and simulations are interpreting, analyzing, discovering, evaluating, acting, and problem solving". I can readily see those happening when reflecting on my experience in Settlers, but less so this week in SL.
I still felt the same uneasiness going into Second Life that I did when I started Settler's. I had several people come up to me in SL and try to interact. Unfortunately, I spent much of my time this week wrestling with a video card issue that made my whole virtual world, purple. While I was able to get into SL and set up my avatar and do some exploring, not much progress was made. These technical issues are the ones that concern me the most as a tech person, because in using something like this with students, we have to be prepared to encounter and overcome these issues.
In thinking about the potential uses for a virtual presence like Second Life in education, I came across an article that researched how Second Life has been used in the medical profession to help doctors and other professionals learn how to interact with patients and give them a virtual "practice" area to help learn. Wiecha et al (2010) mentions that, "the virtual world offers opportunities for student interaction, intense engagement, scripted immersive experiences, simulations, role-playing, and constructivist learning. The anonymity afforded by the avatar appears to lead to less inhibition and greater interaction." The anonymity can be a good thing/bad thing in education. Students need to be taught the proper way to interact and need support when they come across someone who makes them uncomfortable. I can see clearly how this type of learning could have a place in the educational experience as students get older and are using a virtual world to explore career options, learn hand's-on techniques, and to collaborate on building new knowledge.
References:
Antonacci, D.M. & Modress, N. (2008). Envisioning the Educational Possibilities of User-Created Virtual Worlds. AACE Journal, 16(2), 115-126.
Wiecha, J., Heyden, R., Sternthal, E., & Merialdi, M. (2010). Learning in a virtual world: experience with using second life for medical education. Journal Of Medical Internet Research, 12(1), e1. doi:10.2196/jmir.1337
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Fix 14
McGonigal focuses on three aspects as she begins chapter 14. The first, "taking a long view means working at scales far larger than we would ordinarily encounter in our day-to-day lives" (Kindle Location 4830), can help players of video games understand their potential to affect change in the long term. Next, "ecosystems thinking is a way of looking at the world as a complex web of interconnected, interdependent parts" (Kindle Location, 4830), makes the gamer think about how their actions can affect other parts of their "world". Lastly, "pilot experimentation is the process of designing and running many small tests of different strategies and solutions to...discover the best course of action to take" (Kindle Location, 4847), means that once a gamer knows how their actions impact, they can focus on taking their actions to a greater scale.
When I consider these three aspects relative to the Settler's game, I think I can most see how I have used the "ecosystem thinking" in my game playing experience. As I think about what I've taken away from the game and how I've changed my thinking from the beginning of the game to now, I can see that I'm playing much more strategically than before. When I'm placing anything in my settlement, I'm focusing on what effect placement will have on the rest of the settlement. I can also see how I've used "pilot experimentation" in some of the adventures that I've participated in. I started out with smaller, simpler adventures, gained knowledge and confidence, and slowly have started to work on more difficult adventures. I would say that the aspect of "taking the long view" is probably the one aspect that I can't really say I've seen much in my game playing.
In terms of educational context, these aspects can encourage students to use the "creative capability" McGonigal talks about. Giving students real world problems to solve, and using the "creative capability" to "inspire them to adopt the long-term, planetary outlook" (Kindle Location, 4863), students could work together (in small or large scale) to seek out problems and enact real solutions developed by the collaboration of the game playing environment. Students are great problem solvers and giving them the experience of game playing may encourage them to develop their own video games that can mirror real-world problems and, hopefully, solutions.
In reflecting back over the past few months of game playing in Settler's Online, I think the three most memorable concepts for me were: "blissful productivity, the sense of being deeply immersed in work that produces immediate and obvious results"(Kindle Location, 905). I remember especially this concept from early in the game playing experience as I was seeing the direct result of completing quests. The next concept that I feel was especially important to me is that of "competitive engagement--the kind of engagement that increases our personal and collective participation by motivating us to do more" (Kindle Location, 3974). I saw this concept more after I joined a guild and found that there were so many people willing to help me and in turn, I felt compelled to try a little harder to achieve the goals of the game. The last of the three important concepts has to do with the "extraordinary collaborators" McGonigal talks about. I found this concept important as I worked with the members of the guild. I knew that there were people who were helpful in specific situations and I called on them for assistance. In turn, I gave resources to thank them for helping me out.
I hope that, going forward, I continue to have time to play Settler's. I've worked so many hours to build this settlement and I'm so used to visiting it and working to maintain what I've built. I can't see just letting it slip away. I am also looking at trying to use this game next year as an elective for some of our students. I can see them working on their settlements and finding the same fun that I did in the game this semester!
When I consider these three aspects relative to the Settler's game, I think I can most see how I have used the "ecosystem thinking" in my game playing experience. As I think about what I've taken away from the game and how I've changed my thinking from the beginning of the game to now, I can see that I'm playing much more strategically than before. When I'm placing anything in my settlement, I'm focusing on what effect placement will have on the rest of the settlement. I can also see how I've used "pilot experimentation" in some of the adventures that I've participated in. I started out with smaller, simpler adventures, gained knowledge and confidence, and slowly have started to work on more difficult adventures. I would say that the aspect of "taking the long view" is probably the one aspect that I can't really say I've seen much in my game playing.
In terms of educational context, these aspects can encourage students to use the "creative capability" McGonigal talks about. Giving students real world problems to solve, and using the "creative capability" to "inspire them to adopt the long-term, planetary outlook" (Kindle Location, 4863), students could work together (in small or large scale) to seek out problems and enact real solutions developed by the collaboration of the game playing environment. Students are great problem solvers and giving them the experience of game playing may encourage them to develop their own video games that can mirror real-world problems and, hopefully, solutions.
In reflecting back over the past few months of game playing in Settler's Online, I think the three most memorable concepts for me were: "blissful productivity, the sense of being deeply immersed in work that produces immediate and obvious results"(Kindle Location, 905). I remember especially this concept from early in the game playing experience as I was seeing the direct result of completing quests. The next concept that I feel was especially important to me is that of "competitive engagement--the kind of engagement that increases our personal and collective participation by motivating us to do more" (Kindle Location, 3974). I saw this concept more after I joined a guild and found that there were so many people willing to help me and in turn, I felt compelled to try a little harder to achieve the goals of the game. The last of the three important concepts has to do with the "extraordinary collaborators" McGonigal talks about. I found this concept important as I worked with the members of the guild. I knew that there were people who were helpful in specific situations and I called on them for assistance. In turn, I gave resources to thank them for helping me out.
I hope that, going forward, I continue to have time to play Settler's. I've worked so many hours to build this settlement and I'm so used to visiting it and working to maintain what I've built. I can't see just letting it slip away. I am also looking at trying to use this game next year as an elective for some of our students. I can see them working on their settlements and finding the same fun that I did in the game this semester!
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Fix 13
I've been fascinated before by thinking about Gladwell's theory of the 10,000 hours of practice to mastery. I hadn't really considered the gaming or gamer aspect of applying his theory to playing video games. Although, if his theory is to be applied to academics, sports, music, etc., it makes sense that it should apply to the gaming world as well. The statistics about how many hours students spent playing video games was astonishing to me. It makes sense that educators should find a way to capture that interest and make it work for teaching concepts as well. McGonigal states, "unlike their formal education, which diffuses their attention across myriad different subjects and skills, every single gaming hour is concentrated on improving at just one thing: becoming a better gamer" (Kindle Locations 4343-4345). If we can find ways to "harness" that concentrated effort on increasing skill level through playing video games, as educators, we should.
With regard to the Settler's game, I don't know that I've seen that much of the collaboration effort. Admittedly, the amount of time I've played in the past couple of weeks has been reduced from what I'm guessing was 5 plus hours to 2. I've continued to receive help from other players and in return, helped them, but I don't know if it is fair to say that it's been a use of "collaboration superpowers" that McGonigal mentions in the text. (Kindle Locations 4521-4522). I can see that those who are very active in the guild definitely use the "collaboration radar" in that they always know who to go to to get the help they need or they are always there when I need help (Kindle Locations 4530-4531).
I've spent some time in the past week listening to my son while he's playing an online game with a few friends. I hear some of the same language used in their game (different than ours) that I hear when I read the chats or my mail in Settler's. They are offering each other help all the time. The game he is playing is more "battle and win" type, but I heard him mention today that he had received "buffs" from another friend, so he was helping another friend with a "buff". Hearing him use the same words we use in our game stopped me and really made me think about what was going on.
Collaboration is a big word in the educational community now. Many of the skills we want our students to use involve collaborating with others. Not any different than a gamer, but a student seeking out help on a school project will use their "collaboration radar" to choose a partner. Students who are known to be good, helpful workers are sought after in working on a class project. I can clearly see and understand how these collaboration skills could be so useful as educators look for ways to integrate more video gaming into their classes.
With regard to the Settler's game, I don't know that I've seen that much of the collaboration effort. Admittedly, the amount of time I've played in the past couple of weeks has been reduced from what I'm guessing was 5 plus hours to 2. I've continued to receive help from other players and in return, helped them, but I don't know if it is fair to say that it's been a use of "collaboration superpowers" that McGonigal mentions in the text. (Kindle Locations 4521-4522). I can see that those who are very active in the guild definitely use the "collaboration radar" in that they always know who to go to to get the help they need or they are always there when I need help (Kindle Locations 4530-4531).
I've spent some time in the past week listening to my son while he's playing an online game with a few friends. I hear some of the same language used in their game (different than ours) that I hear when I read the chats or my mail in Settler's. They are offering each other help all the time. The game he is playing is more "battle and win" type, but I heard him mention today that he had received "buffs" from another friend, so he was helping another friend with a "buff". Hearing him use the same words we use in our game stopped me and really made me think about what was going on.
Collaboration is a big word in the educational community now. Many of the skills we want our students to use involve collaborating with others. Not any different than a gamer, but a student seeking out help on a school project will use their "collaboration radar" to choose a partner. Students who are known to be good, helpful workers are sought after in working on a class project. I can clearly see and understand how these collaboration skills could be so useful as educators look for ways to integrate more video gaming into their classes.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Fix 11-12
Sustainable Engagement Economy:
As I continue to play Settler's, I'm more convinced that this is a game that I could use with my students. Admittedly, I was nervous about even thinking about introducing them to a game like this, because, quite frankly, I didn't know or understand the whole scope of the game. In reflecting about the readings this week, I can say that Settler's encourages the "good" in people! As I've mentioned before, I've had people sharing with me, offering advice, suggestions, and materials to help make my settlement better. I can see on the smaller scale of Settler's how the aspect of sustainable engagement economy, as McGonigal mentions is a "competitive engagement—the kind of engagement that increases our personal and collective participation bandwidth by motivating us to do more, for longer, toward collective ends." (Kindle Locations 3974-3975). As I've continued to play the game, the search for the XP to move up levels are harder to come by, but, I'm getting more and more interaction with other players. The community aspect of this game is probably what has kept my interest (aside from the requirement) and will keep my interest after the class is over.
More Epic Wins:
The word "epic" has become common in the language of tweens and teens. I hear my own kids using it to describe a variety of situations. I know that from their experience with video gaming that it's a term they've assimilated into their vocabulary. They would tell you it "sounds weird" when I use it to describe something happening to me in Settler's. I guess there is an age game that no video game is going to bridge!!!
In playing the game, I do wonder what other games are out there and if I would like them more or less than Settler's. I wish I had more time to spend trying to get those "epic" moments in the game, though I think I've had a few! I know when I spent a great deal of time getting from level 30 to 31, I never thought I would get to 32! When I did achieve that level, I was very excited! It was my "epic" moment for sure!
Crowdsourcing:
This was an interesting concept for me to learn more about. I've heard the term before, but never really thought much about it's implications. My students, a long time ago, played Free Rice as a Lenten project in school. They would come to the computer lab and for the first ten minutes of every computer class they would play and earn rice for the game. They were highly engaged. They researched where the rice was going. As McGonigal states, they experienced, "a clear sense that you’re a part of something bigger."(Kindle Location 3836) We had difficulty with the site and we stopped playing! I'll have to check and see if the site is still up and running.
The crowdsourcing project that I've read about is "Donor's Choose". It was started by a school teacher in the Bronx, New York, who wanted a way to provide the crucial supplies that teachers and students needed for their classrooms, but didn't have the funding for. Teachers can create an account and write a proposal for something that they need and then the visitors to the site can decide to fund specific projects. Initially, Charles Best, the teacher and founder, contacted some high impact potential donors and funded some of the projects himself to get started. Since that time, he's put together a board of directors with some famous people who have helped keep the funding coming.
I've seen this personally in action as a relative has a child attending school in Chicago. His teacher wanted to buy some additional math manipulatives for her classroom at a cost of $480 dollars. The family took to Facebook and shared the status of the teacher and within a couple of hours several family members donated and the project was funded.
Donor's Choose is more of a "crowdfunding" program, but it still takes many people working together to achieve the goals of the teachers participating in the program!
As I continue to play Settler's, I'm more convinced that this is a game that I could use with my students. Admittedly, I was nervous about even thinking about introducing them to a game like this, because, quite frankly, I didn't know or understand the whole scope of the game. In reflecting about the readings this week, I can say that Settler's encourages the "good" in people! As I've mentioned before, I've had people sharing with me, offering advice, suggestions, and materials to help make my settlement better. I can see on the smaller scale of Settler's how the aspect of sustainable engagement economy, as McGonigal mentions is a "competitive engagement—the kind of engagement that increases our personal and collective participation bandwidth by motivating us to do more, for longer, toward collective ends." (Kindle Locations 3974-3975). As I've continued to play the game, the search for the XP to move up levels are harder to come by, but, I'm getting more and more interaction with other players. The community aspect of this game is probably what has kept my interest (aside from the requirement) and will keep my interest after the class is over.
More Epic Wins:
The word "epic" has become common in the language of tweens and teens. I hear my own kids using it to describe a variety of situations. I know that from their experience with video gaming that it's a term they've assimilated into their vocabulary. They would tell you it "sounds weird" when I use it to describe something happening to me in Settler's. I guess there is an age game that no video game is going to bridge!!!
In playing the game, I do wonder what other games are out there and if I would like them more or less than Settler's. I wish I had more time to spend trying to get those "epic" moments in the game, though I think I've had a few! I know when I spent a great deal of time getting from level 30 to 31, I never thought I would get to 32! When I did achieve that level, I was very excited! It was my "epic" moment for sure!
Crowdsourcing:
This was an interesting concept for me to learn more about. I've heard the term before, but never really thought much about it's implications. My students, a long time ago, played Free Rice as a Lenten project in school. They would come to the computer lab and for the first ten minutes of every computer class they would play and earn rice for the game. They were highly engaged. They researched where the rice was going. As McGonigal states, they experienced, "a clear sense that you’re a part of something bigger."(Kindle Location 3836) We had difficulty with the site and we stopped playing! I'll have to check and see if the site is still up and running.
The crowdsourcing project that I've read about is "Donor's Choose". It was started by a school teacher in the Bronx, New York, who wanted a way to provide the crucial supplies that teachers and students needed for their classrooms, but didn't have the funding for. Teachers can create an account and write a proposal for something that they need and then the visitors to the site can decide to fund specific projects. Initially, Charles Best, the teacher and founder, contacted some high impact potential donors and funded some of the projects himself to get started. Since that time, he's put together a board of directors with some famous people who have helped keep the funding coming.
I've seen this personally in action as a relative has a child attending school in Chicago. His teacher wanted to buy some additional math manipulatives for her classroom at a cost of $480 dollars. The family took to Facebook and shared the status of the teacher and within a couple of hours several family members donated and the project was funded.
Donor's Choose is more of a "crowdfunding" program, but it still takes many people working together to achieve the goals of the teachers participating in the program!
Saturday, March 1, 2014
Fix 9-10
I think it's interesting as I reflected on this week's reading assignment and the topic of the "fix" for this week, "it's more fun with strangers". As I've played Settlers for all these weeks, I can't really think of a time when someone in the game hasn't been extremely helpful! The nature of the game provides for opportunities to help other players. The guilds themselves offer the opportunity for a player to engage and become "friends" with other players. The advantage of the guild seems to be that you've got a wealth of information in the communication with the other players. Additionally, the buffs that you can give to other players also offer the opportunities for players to have "positive participation". In fact, there have been several quests that require you to "buff" other players settlements in order to earn the quest reward. McGonigal states that "in order to turn a group of strangers into a community, you have to follow two basic steps: first, cultivate a shared interest among strangers, and, second, give them the opportunity and means to interact with each other around that interest" (Kindle Loc 2854-2856). The shared interests for all of us is to earn XP to level up throughout the game. Helping each other out in the game can give you a benefit and I think that as a player, if someone helps me out, I'm more likely to help others. I've also learned from other players, mostly those from the guild that I joined and they've been so helpful and have offered advice on what I need to do to improve my settlement. McGonigal states, "Experiencing a short burst of community in a space that previously felt uninviting or simply uninteresting can also permanently change our relationship to that space" (Kindle Locations 2865-2867). I would not have probably considered playing a game like this as I would have been concerned about the kind of people who would try to interact with me, but after playing the game and seeing how helpful everyone is, I am not hesitant to play at all.
The word "hack", to me, indicates tampering with something in order to gain something. I'm struggling to see this fix as frequently as I can relate to many others. I don't know if it's because I've spent less time playing everyday in the past couple of weeks, but it was interesting to me that McGonigal states that "recent research has shown that we don’t even have to know someone to experience the benefits of thanking and being nice to them. Even fleeting acts of gratitude and kindness toward strangers can have a profound impact on our happiness"(Kindle Locations 3126-3127). I can see how participation in the guilds or having many "friends" in your game environment can help create the gratitude and kindness spoken about. I've had a few members of my guild contact me with suggestions and I've seen them regularly visit my settlement to check how I'm doing. I've tried to follow their advice and when I can accomplish something based on the advice they've given, I am generally happier while playing.
The word "hack", to me, indicates tampering with something in order to gain something. I'm struggling to see this fix as frequently as I can relate to many others. I don't know if it's because I've spent less time playing everyday in the past couple of weeks, but it was interesting to me that McGonigal states that "recent research has shown that we don’t even have to know someone to experience the benefits of thanking and being nice to them. Even fleeting acts of gratitude and kindness toward strangers can have a profound impact on our happiness"(Kindle Locations 3126-3127). I can see how participation in the guilds or having many "friends" in your game environment can help create the gratitude and kindness spoken about. I've had a few members of my guild contact me with suggestions and I've seen them regularly visit my settlement to check how I'm doing. I've tried to follow their advice and when I can accomplish something based on the advice they've given, I am generally happier while playing.
Saturday, February 22, 2014
Fix 7-8
What I've found again this week is that planning and thinking ahead saves me time in the long run when playing Settler's Online. It's become part of my routine day, to login and see how my settlement looks and to see what I need to do to complete quests, check out new quests, and look at my mail. I would say that by logging in everyday (sometimes multiple times in a day) that I've engaged in wholehearted participation in the game. While I don't think that a game like Settler's can provide the same real-world connections like the games mentioned in the text do.(Chore Wars...who would've thought that the task of household chores could be made into a video game??) McGonigal states that the future of gaming is "helping to promote the idea that game technologies can be used to organize real-world activity. Most importantly, it’s provoking innovative ideas about how to blend together what we love most about games and what we want most from our real lives."(Kindle Locations 2072-2073). Making the everyday tasks of completing household chores an interactive video games with rewards, makes the engagement with the task more meaningful. This can translate to how video gaming can be used in the classroom as well. Taking those learning tasks and putting them into the setting of the video game makes them enormously more engaging to students who have grown up with the "digital native" mentality mentioned by Marc Prensky. When we're already asking students to work collaboratively with each other, doesn't the MOOC format of many games seem like a great solution to keeping students engaged in their learning?
A balance needs to be maintained so that the alternate reality games that are developing quickly don't take over a student's life. I spent time using Second Life a couple of years ago and quickly found that I was spending too much time trying to live in both worlds that I wasn't accomplishing what I should have been. The time commitment can become overwhelming. It was interesting to me that even the creators of the alternate reality game believe that "we need to be both open-minded and critical about what actually raises our quality of life, what helps us participate more fully in our real lives, and what simply serves as yet another distraction."(Kindle Locations 2407-2408).
It does always seem to me that when I need a push or help accomplishing something in Settler's that I've got a huge resource bank or a helping hand given to me by a member of my guild. I know that the games can be designed to offer rewards when players are on the verge of a breakthrough and that is often enough to encourage the player to keep progressing and playing. I can see how the link between our everyday activities, like flying, can be made more interesting by linking it to a video game. I've known about FourSquare before, but didn't realize that it was a game environment. I don't believe that right now in my life, I'm prepared to add more games like these into my life, but maybe when I finish school, I'll have the time and energy to try more games like these out! They look like fun, but it raises a question in my mind, does every movement that we make become tracked and do we start making moves to improve our standing in the game environment at the expense of our real lives? I don't know how gaming will continue to impact our society and that of our children growing up, but as games become more sophisticated and more connected to our real lives, it will be interesting to watch!
A balance needs to be maintained so that the alternate reality games that are developing quickly don't take over a student's life. I spent time using Second Life a couple of years ago and quickly found that I was spending too much time trying to live in both worlds that I wasn't accomplishing what I should have been. The time commitment can become overwhelming. It was interesting to me that even the creators of the alternate reality game believe that "we need to be both open-minded and critical about what actually raises our quality of life, what helps us participate more fully in our real lives, and what simply serves as yet another distraction."(Kindle Locations 2407-2408).
It does always seem to me that when I need a push or help accomplishing something in Settler's that I've got a huge resource bank or a helping hand given to me by a member of my guild. I know that the games can be designed to offer rewards when players are on the verge of a breakthrough and that is often enough to encourage the player to keep progressing and playing. I can see how the link between our everyday activities, like flying, can be made more interesting by linking it to a video game. I've known about FourSquare before, but didn't realize that it was a game environment. I don't believe that right now in my life, I'm prepared to add more games like these into my life, but maybe when I finish school, I'll have the time and energy to try more games like these out! They look like fun, but it raises a question in my mind, does every movement that we make become tracked and do we start making moves to improve our standing in the game environment at the expense of our real lives? I don't know how gaming will continue to impact our society and that of our children growing up, but as games become more sophisticated and more connected to our real lives, it will be interesting to watch!
Friday, February 14, 2014
Fix 5-6
I was excited to join a guild this week and connect with many different players. I asked several players in my guild a few questions and was happy to get several responses. I chose the player with the user name of Psycle! (Loved the name!) She's a few levels ahead of me and I was curious as to how long she has been playing. She reported that she had been playing the game for almost 3 years. She told me that she plays about 3-4 hours during the week and sometimes up to 6 hours on the weekends. I wasn't surprised by the number of hours she plays (I can see myself doing the same thing), but was surprised that after 3 years she's still at level 39. She mentioned that she enjoys meeting people from around the world and that the setting of this game is enjoyable. When we talked about her online gaming experiences, she mentioned that she really doesn't or hasn't played other games. This game is free and that's a great selling point. One last thing that she mentioned was that she really likes the guilds and that it involves cooperative work to accomplish things. She does wish that there were more social activities within the game. I would tend to agree with what she talked about. I like the fact that the game is free, although you can purchase things if you want. I feel like her responses were reflective of what I see in the game when I log in to play!!
I believe that socially connective games, like Settler's Online can be important to our changing culture. We frequently talk about the addictive nature of these types of online games, but in framing in as McGonigal says in the text, "the addictiveness of the game pushes us to initiate social interaction with members of our extended social network whom we might ordinarily leave out of our daily life online" (Kindle Loc 1354). It made me think about the people that I connect with daily through the use of online games. I've connected with family members who normally I wouldn't see or talk to for weeks. I play a couple of games on my iPad and use my Facebook friends as my "opponents" although we don't really compete for anything other than the high score! The communication that takes place as a result of this game playing wouldn't happen if I wasn't playing! I do agree with McGonigal when she talks about the level of "socialness" we are seeing as a society. I can see that my own children have much different interactions with their friends than I did at their age (Kindle Loc 1370)
In joining the guild, "It's 5 o'clock Somewhere" this week, I've found that a whole new set of connections is opening up to me. They (the members of the guild) were there immediately to help out and look over my settlement and offer me suggestions on what I could improve upon. I had an initial conversation with 1 person from my guild who suggested that I needed even more storehouses in my settlement and suggested that I move my residences away from the storehouses. I did what he suggested and realized (don't know why I didn't see this sooner!!), that with the area around my storehouses open, the time of production decreased when I moved other "businesses" into those now open areas. I appreciated his thoughts and rewarded him with a "gift" to his settlement.
I think I was initially hesitant to start this type of conversation. I'm not sure if that was because I was still new to the game or if I was unsure of how this interaction would take place. I didn't want to seem "dumb" or not know what they were talking about or what the acronyms used, meant. I felt more comfortable speaking with those in our class rather than "outsiders". Slowly, I've started to look for more help from others and in doing so, I think I've become more and more at ease talking to people in the game. I do think that the communication that I've used/participated in with those playing the game has helped me to be a happier player. I feel more comfortable and I look forward to working on my settlement, and it doesn't seem to me anymore that this is a series of tasks to be completed. These social connections are important to our existence as a culture. McGonigal mentions that research on happiness has shown, that "Happiness is not a noun or verb. It's a conjunction" (Kindle Loc 1368). I like this analogy as it shows us that the connections we make in the game are important.
With regard to "epic scale", I'm not sure that I've yet experienced that, although I think I've come close! When I figured out that I can use the Adventures in the game to earn XP that will help move me up levels, I was so excited! I think that to date, this has been my happiest moment!!
I believe that socially connective games, like Settler's Online can be important to our changing culture. We frequently talk about the addictive nature of these types of online games, but in framing in as McGonigal says in the text, "the addictiveness of the game pushes us to initiate social interaction with members of our extended social network whom we might ordinarily leave out of our daily life online" (Kindle Loc 1354). It made me think about the people that I connect with daily through the use of online games. I've connected with family members who normally I wouldn't see or talk to for weeks. I play a couple of games on my iPad and use my Facebook friends as my "opponents" although we don't really compete for anything other than the high score! The communication that takes place as a result of this game playing wouldn't happen if I wasn't playing! I do agree with McGonigal when she talks about the level of "socialness" we are seeing as a society. I can see that my own children have much different interactions with their friends than I did at their age (Kindle Loc 1370)
In joining the guild, "It's 5 o'clock Somewhere" this week, I've found that a whole new set of connections is opening up to me. They (the members of the guild) were there immediately to help out and look over my settlement and offer me suggestions on what I could improve upon. I had an initial conversation with 1 person from my guild who suggested that I needed even more storehouses in my settlement and suggested that I move my residences away from the storehouses. I did what he suggested and realized (don't know why I didn't see this sooner!!), that with the area around my storehouses open, the time of production decreased when I moved other "businesses" into those now open areas. I appreciated his thoughts and rewarded him with a "gift" to his settlement.
I think I was initially hesitant to start this type of conversation. I'm not sure if that was because I was still new to the game or if I was unsure of how this interaction would take place. I didn't want to seem "dumb" or not know what they were talking about or what the acronyms used, meant. I felt more comfortable speaking with those in our class rather than "outsiders". Slowly, I've started to look for more help from others and in doing so, I think I've become more and more at ease talking to people in the game. I do think that the communication that I've used/participated in with those playing the game has helped me to be a happier player. I feel more comfortable and I look forward to working on my settlement, and it doesn't seem to me anymore that this is a series of tasks to be completed. These social connections are important to our existence as a culture. McGonigal mentions that research on happiness has shown, that "Happiness is not a noun or verb. It's a conjunction" (Kindle Loc 1368). I like this analogy as it shows us that the connections we make in the game are important.
With regard to "epic scale", I'm not sure that I've yet experienced that, although I think I've come close! When I figured out that I can use the Adventures in the game to earn XP that will help move me up levels, I was so excited! I think that to date, this has been my happiest moment!!
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Fix 3-4
More Satisfying Work:
I have really enjoyed the thrill of getting enough XP to "level up"! I keep a close eye on my progress and know that if I need just a few more XP to get to the next level that I search for the quests that will give me the best chance to move up! As I accept the new quests and begin to complete, I know now as McGonigal states, it's not "if you can complete it (the quest); you just need to figure out when you can fit it into your jam-packed hero schedule" (Kindle Loc 983). For me, it's definitely been a much slower process since level 22 or so, but I think I've finally learned to be patient and really see what is going on and how it all works together. At first, I will admit, I was slightly competitive with my classmates because I wanted to be in the lead. If I was spending all day in front of the computer, it might have been possible. But, alas, I have to work! So, for now I'll just keep focused on the goals and quests to help me get to the next level!!
It took me a while to figure out that keeping a well-stocked reserve of units ready for battle was so important. There are certain things that I do each time I login. I check the wells, fields, and supply chains to see what is missing or low. I also create "buffs" daily so that I have enough to get me through the next couple of online visits. I usually take a stroll around the island to see what I can collect! This also helps me to see where the next bandit camps are that I need to defeat. I haven't yet reached out to many other players, but am learning about the guilds and I can see how using these games in the classroom can really create the collaboration that 21st Century Skills deem so important. As an added bonus, I now really understand that when my son says, "just another minute, Mom", that he might be close to a goal or to another level and to cut him at least a few extra minutes of slack in whatever game he is working on!!
Better Hope of Success:
The feedback I've received while playing the game has been very helpful in knowing what to do next. In the early levels, it was given in the form of step-by-step guided help during the quests. Now, I'm able to figure out what I need to do to successfully complete each quest. I'm also much more patient in getting the larger quests complete. In the early stages of the game, I expected to move very quickly through the levels, but now, I know that sometimes they will move slowly.
With regard to mastery, I feel like I have much better handle on what needs to be done. For example, getting recruits/soldiers ready for the battles. Little by little, I'm working my way through both the quests and the bandit camps. I've also started to try the adventures and feel like if I can be successful with those, I can handle anything! Having a good grasp of the production chains and supplies has helped me. Knowing and using the Trade Office frequently has helped keep my supplies running and my settler's moving in! McGonigal makes a statement in the text that I believe is important: "Any gamer who puts in the effort can’t help but get better. And yet the better we are at a game, the less of a challenge it presents." (Kindle Location 1172). I'm not sure that I'm at the point where the game presents less of a challenge for me, but, I can see how that thought process could be true for gamers more experienced than myself. I think that if I asked my 8th graders to play this game, that I could be a support, like others have been for me. I don't think I would have said that a couple of weeks ago, when I was still needing support from my son to get through!
I have really enjoyed the thrill of getting enough XP to "level up"! I keep a close eye on my progress and know that if I need just a few more XP to get to the next level that I search for the quests that will give me the best chance to move up! As I accept the new quests and begin to complete, I know now as McGonigal states, it's not "if you can complete it (the quest); you just need to figure out when you can fit it into your jam-packed hero schedule" (Kindle Loc 983). For me, it's definitely been a much slower process since level 22 or so, but I think I've finally learned to be patient and really see what is going on and how it all works together. At first, I will admit, I was slightly competitive with my classmates because I wanted to be in the lead. If I was spending all day in front of the computer, it might have been possible. But, alas, I have to work! So, for now I'll just keep focused on the goals and quests to help me get to the next level!!
It took me a while to figure out that keeping a well-stocked reserve of units ready for battle was so important. There are certain things that I do each time I login. I check the wells, fields, and supply chains to see what is missing or low. I also create "buffs" daily so that I have enough to get me through the next couple of online visits. I usually take a stroll around the island to see what I can collect! This also helps me to see where the next bandit camps are that I need to defeat. I haven't yet reached out to many other players, but am learning about the guilds and I can see how using these games in the classroom can really create the collaboration that 21st Century Skills deem so important. As an added bonus, I now really understand that when my son says, "just another minute, Mom", that he might be close to a goal or to another level and to cut him at least a few extra minutes of slack in whatever game he is working on!!
Better Hope of Success:
The feedback I've received while playing the game has been very helpful in knowing what to do next. In the early levels, it was given in the form of step-by-step guided help during the quests. Now, I'm able to figure out what I need to do to successfully complete each quest. I'm also much more patient in getting the larger quests complete. In the early stages of the game, I expected to move very quickly through the levels, but now, I know that sometimes they will move slowly.
With regard to mastery, I feel like I have much better handle on what needs to be done. For example, getting recruits/soldiers ready for the battles. Little by little, I'm working my way through both the quests and the bandit camps. I've also started to try the adventures and feel like if I can be successful with those, I can handle anything! Having a good grasp of the production chains and supplies has helped me. Knowing and using the Trade Office frequently has helped keep my supplies running and my settler's moving in! McGonigal makes a statement in the text that I believe is important: "Any gamer who puts in the effort can’t help but get better. And yet the better we are at a game, the less of a challenge it presents." (Kindle Location 1172). I'm not sure that I'm at the point where the game presents less of a challenge for me, but, I can see how that thought process could be true for gamers more experienced than myself. I think that if I asked my 8th graders to play this game, that I could be a support, like others have been for me. I don't think I would have said that a couple of weeks ago, when I was still needing support from my son to get through!
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Fix 1-2
Traits of the Game:
The goal of the Settler's Online game is to create and sustain an economy with settlers, "armed unit forces", workers, and bandits (the bad guys who want to stop your progress). With regard to the rules of the game, I'm finding that I have to work to achieve each level and determine which of the quests given will move me ahead the fastest. I was stuck on level 22 for quite a while and it became frustrating to me. I found that I needed to be patient and keep plugging along in order to move up the next level. I would agree with McGonigal (Kindle version) that I'm forcing myself to "foster strategic thinking" as I try to decide what will help me the most. As I work through the game each day, I continually check my "progress bar" to see how close I am to gaining a new level. I've learned since the earlier levels that I need to be patient and really pay attention to the resources and which building is using which resource. Having that understanding has made it easier to wait to get to the next level. However, if I'm close to finishing the level, I will try to spend a little more time just to see if I can accomplish before shutting down for the night.
Flow is best described as a state of mind/emotion in which there "is virtually nothing as engaging as this state of working at the very limits of your ability" (Kindle Locations 438-439). I think that the Settler's game has the capability of bringing a player to engage in a state of "flow" as much of the outcome of the game is dependent upon what the player puts into it. I don't know if I've personally felt it at this point. I do think that the game provides the continuous feedback, although when I get stuck, I often have to venture out to other websites to get information that will help. I am selecting my own goals as I decide on which of the quests to focus.
For the second fix, I think I'm finding the challenging aspects of the game to be rewarding. Having to problem solve is keeping me alert to decisions I'm making in the game. I do feel a bit of pressure to keep up with the others in the class and find myself logging in often. I secretly wish I could play on my iPad!! I think that there are consequences of playing this game (and probably all others). When I'm logging in often to keep track of what's going on, there is probably something else that I should be doing. I've started to give myself a time limit when I have other things that need to be done. Engaging in this game for a long period of time could present itself with physical difficulties as are well researched with regard to various computer games. I can see how games can become addictive and in watching the video about the guys playing World of Warcraft, I can see how younger children become enchanted with the game and have a hard time breaking away to take care of other tasks/activities.
Overall, playing the game has been rewarding and educational.
The goal of the Settler's Online game is to create and sustain an economy with settlers, "armed unit forces", workers, and bandits (the bad guys who want to stop your progress). With regard to the rules of the game, I'm finding that I have to work to achieve each level and determine which of the quests given will move me ahead the fastest. I was stuck on level 22 for quite a while and it became frustrating to me. I found that I needed to be patient and keep plugging along in order to move up the next level. I would agree with McGonigal (Kindle version) that I'm forcing myself to "foster strategic thinking" as I try to decide what will help me the most. As I work through the game each day, I continually check my "progress bar" to see how close I am to gaining a new level. I've learned since the earlier levels that I need to be patient and really pay attention to the resources and which building is using which resource. Having that understanding has made it easier to wait to get to the next level. However, if I'm close to finishing the level, I will try to spend a little more time just to see if I can accomplish before shutting down for the night.
Flow is best described as a state of mind/emotion in which there "is virtually nothing as engaging as this state of working at the very limits of your ability" (Kindle Locations 438-439). I think that the Settler's game has the capability of bringing a player to engage in a state of "flow" as much of the outcome of the game is dependent upon what the player puts into it. I don't know if I've personally felt it at this point. I do think that the game provides the continuous feedback, although when I get stuck, I often have to venture out to other websites to get information that will help. I am selecting my own goals as I decide on which of the quests to focus.
For the second fix, I think I'm finding the challenging aspects of the game to be rewarding. Having to problem solve is keeping me alert to decisions I'm making in the game. I do feel a bit of pressure to keep up with the others in the class and find myself logging in often. I secretly wish I could play on my iPad!! I think that there are consequences of playing this game (and probably all others). When I'm logging in often to keep track of what's going on, there is probably something else that I should be doing. I've started to give myself a time limit when I have other things that need to be done. Engaging in this game for a long period of time could present itself with physical difficulties as are well researched with regard to various computer games. I can see how games can become addictive and in watching the video about the guys playing World of Warcraft, I can see how younger children become enchanted with the game and have a hard time breaking away to take care of other tasks/activities.
Overall, playing the game has been rewarding and educational.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Gaming Benefits
After watching and reading the materials this week, along with playing the Settler's game, I can certainly see some common language appearing in my notes! One of the first words that I wrote down was MOTIVATION. In the TED talk given by Tom Chatfield, he mentions that when gamers "want" and "like" that they are increasing their motivation to continue.
Along with motivation, comes REWARD. Rewards are calculated in games so that player engagement (and motivation) can continue. The mathematics involved in providing players the correct percentage of winning ensures that players are constantly rewarded when needed, but allowing them to push to the edge of new discoveries, activities, etc. Gaming also offers players IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK. This is something that more traditional educational settings cannot always offer. This immediate feedback is important to effective learning, so much so that the National Educational Technology Plan encourages the use of gaming for the purposes of student assessment, just because of the immediate feedback!
Player ENGAGEMENT is one of the words that I kept writing over and over as I watched the videos and read through the materials. Games are highly engaging for students (and adults alike). That's not to say that students are mindlessly sitting in front of a computer playing games for hours on end. The engagement that I'm sensing is from students using higher order thinking skills to interact and react to both the games and the other players they encounter. I know that as a teacher I am always searching for ideas and activities that will keep my students engaged in their learning. Jane McGonigal reminds us that "gaming pushes the threshold of imagination". This is key to keeping students engaged in learning.
Another word that is such an important word in the educational community today is COLLABORATION. Collaboration with other players allows students to problem solve and from that problem solving, students who are good collaborators often find it easy and important to establish trust with other players. It offers them the chance to cooperate in different settings.
I think that when I reflect on my initial experiences playing Settler's Online, I can see how all of these factors come into play. I am excited to check in and see how my settlement is doing daily, spending some times too much time checking in. I'm most excited to play when I know that I'm approaching the chance to move up a level and see what that new level brings me. I'm offered immediate feedback when my geologist or explorer head out to see what they can find. In using the combat preview, I can also see what will happen if my troops attack the bandit camp. Obviously, if I'm still working and playing daily, I'm seeing the engagement that the game offers. I have found myself starting to think and plan ahead for my settlement. I wasn't doing that in the beginning, but now I see how important that is. I think having everyone else playing the same game offers the collaboration that gaming brings to the table. I haven't yet "friended" anyone outside of our class, but I anticipate doing so as I feel more comfortable with the gaming environment.
I think if I look back at the main words above, these are words that I would want someone to use when they were visiting my classroom. So, if gaming can offer students the chance for these, maybe we should be taking a closer look at the benefits of gaming in education.
Along with motivation, comes REWARD. Rewards are calculated in games so that player engagement (and motivation) can continue. The mathematics involved in providing players the correct percentage of winning ensures that players are constantly rewarded when needed, but allowing them to push to the edge of new discoveries, activities, etc. Gaming also offers players IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK. This is something that more traditional educational settings cannot always offer. This immediate feedback is important to effective learning, so much so that the National Educational Technology Plan encourages the use of gaming for the purposes of student assessment, just because of the immediate feedback!
Player ENGAGEMENT is one of the words that I kept writing over and over as I watched the videos and read through the materials. Games are highly engaging for students (and adults alike). That's not to say that students are mindlessly sitting in front of a computer playing games for hours on end. The engagement that I'm sensing is from students using higher order thinking skills to interact and react to both the games and the other players they encounter. I know that as a teacher I am always searching for ideas and activities that will keep my students engaged in their learning. Jane McGonigal reminds us that "gaming pushes the threshold of imagination". This is key to keeping students engaged in learning.
Another word that is such an important word in the educational community today is COLLABORATION. Collaboration with other players allows students to problem solve and from that problem solving, students who are good collaborators often find it easy and important to establish trust with other players. It offers them the chance to cooperate in different settings.
I think that when I reflect on my initial experiences playing Settler's Online, I can see how all of these factors come into play. I am excited to check in and see how my settlement is doing daily, spending some times too much time checking in. I'm most excited to play when I know that I'm approaching the chance to move up a level and see what that new level brings me. I'm offered immediate feedback when my geologist or explorer head out to see what they can find. In using the combat preview, I can also see what will happen if my troops attack the bandit camp. Obviously, if I'm still working and playing daily, I'm seeing the engagement that the game offers. I have found myself starting to think and plan ahead for my settlement. I wasn't doing that in the beginning, but now I see how important that is. I think having everyone else playing the same game offers the collaboration that gaming brings to the table. I haven't yet "friended" anyone outside of our class, but I anticipate doing so as I feel more comfortable with the gaming environment.
I think if I look back at the main words above, these are words that I would want someone to use when they were visiting my classroom. So, if gaming can offer students the chance for these, maybe we should be taking a closer look at the benefits of gaming in education.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Gaming as a New Paradigm
With the amount of money and time invested in video gaming (of all
different kinds), it bears looking into with regard to the effect that
video gaming could have on an educational environment. Over the years,
the educational community has struggled to find the best way to teach
students so that they could learn. The various strategies and methods
have become a lucrative business for those who are creating materials,
training, and support for these varied teaching strategies and methods.
Video gaming has become a billion dollar business. With over $7.4 billion dollars spent annually by gamers (http://labyrinth.thinkport.org/www/library/culture.php), it appears that this industry is not going away any time soon and it may be time for the educational community to take a closer look.
We must reach students where they are at and work from there if we are to even attempt to improve the learning environment. If students are engaged in gaming, we must figure out educationally appropriate ways to include these technologies into the curriculum. Video games allow students to collaborate, be creative, think "out of the box" and solve problems. If we can impart these skills on students, they can probably be successful in almost any career choice.
Jonathan Schenker makes a compelling case in his TED talk for gaming in education. He believes that online video games will "entice students to learn" in more effective ways (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auP-eq17U1g). One of the strongest arguments that he makes is that video games can be customized to meet a variety of different learning styles (aka Multiple Intelligence) when teachers are often so stretched for time and resources that they can only attempt to include a few in their regular teaching strategies.
I would agree that gaming could be a powerful paradigm that is worth exploration! With the students already engaged in this type of activity, half the battle is already won! It's time for the educational community to "level up!!"
Video gaming has become a billion dollar business. With over $7.4 billion dollars spent annually by gamers (http://labyrinth.thinkport.org/www/library/culture.php), it appears that this industry is not going away any time soon and it may be time for the educational community to take a closer look.
We must reach students where they are at and work from there if we are to even attempt to improve the learning environment. If students are engaged in gaming, we must figure out educationally appropriate ways to include these technologies into the curriculum. Video games allow students to collaborate, be creative, think "out of the box" and solve problems. If we can impart these skills on students, they can probably be successful in almost any career choice.
Jonathan Schenker makes a compelling case in his TED talk for gaming in education. He believes that online video games will "entice students to learn" in more effective ways (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auP-eq17U1g). One of the strongest arguments that he makes is that video games can be customized to meet a variety of different learning styles (aka Multiple Intelligence) when teachers are often so stretched for time and resources that they can only attempt to include a few in their regular teaching strategies.
I would agree that gaming could be a powerful paradigm that is worth exploration! With the students already engaged in this type of activity, half the battle is already won! It's time for the educational community to "level up!!"
Monday, January 6, 2014
My Gaming Experience
Describe your personal/classroom experience:
I don't think I would classify myself as a "gamer"! While I love to play games on my iPad or phone (mostly Candy Crush, Bejeweled Blitz, and Solitaire ;o)), I don't really have any experience with the gaming world! My kids are becoming experts in gaming and I'm amazed that they are able to do things so naturally, without fear or hesitation. I know that many of my students love to play games and several have asked about playing Minecraft in school. I've watched my sons play the game at home and I guess I'm just not clear on the point of playing.
I do think that games and simulations can and should have a place in the classroom. Our science and social studies teachers use simulations with different units of study, but they aren't exclusively using technology in their simulations. The experiences that I'm thinking of involve our junior high students becoming members of the Continental Congress and participating in the creation of the Constitution. They each assumed the role of a key member of the Congress and they continued to portray that person in their online environment. I do think that they enjoyed the experience! Our science teacher and I created a similar experience with a science topic. Students were creating a museum exhibit for a new species and they assumed the role of the scientist (along with other roles) and worked on creating a virtual museum exhibit of their new species complete with video, maps, and other artifacts.
In what ways do you think games could be beneficial/detrimental in the learning process?
As with any technology, if the outcome of the activity supports the learning goals, then it can be beneficial. I seems to me that gaming and/or simulation activities allow students to use other areas of expertise (or different intelligences they may have) and they can bring different things to the classroom situation. For those students who have a hard time in class, participating in these simulations offers them a more level playing field with other students.
Technology, not used in the correct way, can always be a detriment. If teachers don't have well established reasoning for using the games/simulations, then problems may occur. As with any device or program, the teacher should be well aware of how it works and be ready to troubleshoot when necessary. I've had teachers before who have come to me with apps they want to use, and then want me to explain it to them. If I've not used the app before, I still have to get to know it. I always tell them to download it first and then use it for a while before asking students to jump in.
Not all students are going to be interested in using games and/or simulations, so they need to be integrated into the curriculum carefully!
I don't think I would classify myself as a "gamer"! While I love to play games on my iPad or phone (mostly Candy Crush, Bejeweled Blitz, and Solitaire ;o)), I don't really have any experience with the gaming world! My kids are becoming experts in gaming and I'm amazed that they are able to do things so naturally, without fear or hesitation. I know that many of my students love to play games and several have asked about playing Minecraft in school. I've watched my sons play the game at home and I guess I'm just not clear on the point of playing.
I do think that games and simulations can and should have a place in the classroom. Our science and social studies teachers use simulations with different units of study, but they aren't exclusively using technology in their simulations. The experiences that I'm thinking of involve our junior high students becoming members of the Continental Congress and participating in the creation of the Constitution. They each assumed the role of a key member of the Congress and they continued to portray that person in their online environment. I do think that they enjoyed the experience! Our science teacher and I created a similar experience with a science topic. Students were creating a museum exhibit for a new species and they assumed the role of the scientist (along with other roles) and worked on creating a virtual museum exhibit of their new species complete with video, maps, and other artifacts.
In what ways do you think games could be beneficial/detrimental in the learning process?
As with any technology, if the outcome of the activity supports the learning goals, then it can be beneficial. I seems to me that gaming and/or simulation activities allow students to use other areas of expertise (or different intelligences they may have) and they can bring different things to the classroom situation. For those students who have a hard time in class, participating in these simulations offers them a more level playing field with other students.
Technology, not used in the correct way, can always be a detriment. If teachers don't have well established reasoning for using the games/simulations, then problems may occur. As with any device or program, the teacher should be well aware of how it works and be ready to troubleshoot when necessary. I've had teachers before who have come to me with apps they want to use, and then want me to explain it to them. If I've not used the app before, I still have to get to know it. I always tell them to download it first and then use it for a while before asking students to jump in.
Not all students are going to be interested in using games and/or simulations, so they need to be integrated into the curriculum carefully!
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