Sunday, October 9, 2011

Instead of meeting in class tomorrow, I would like you to read (and learn from) the following:

Chapter 7 pages 187-196 (Gaming);

5 blog entries about gaming from the blog When Tech Met Ed at http://when-tech-met-ed.blogspot.com/search/label/Gaming;

blog post "Gaming and learning - are they connected?" at http://pipedreams-education.ca/2011/09/17/gaming-and-learning-are-they-connected/

Please remember that learning involves exploring. When you read a blog post, you may find that there are many links to other articles, sites, lessons, and videos. Take a look at some of these. Does gaming have use in our educational settings?

Please also try out/preview/look at/read reviews of at least 3 of the games listed in the following places:

  • Chapter 7, especially page 195

  • or linked from one of the blogs you read

Post your thoughts about gaming and the games you tried on our blog and be ready to discuss and continue exploring this topic on Wednesday!

What did you learn about gaming in an educational setting? Did you find anything you want to share with others?

10 comments:

  1. Sean Morgan

    I think gaming and learning can go hand in hand but only certain games. a lot of games these days are not about learning and deal with all kinds of other things like shooting and killing. i also blame gaming for making the United States the fattest country in the world. instead of playing outside like the children should be, they are inside gaming or "learning" and that's why they are obese. I feel as though children use technology and gaming as an excuse not to do anything.

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  2. Sean Morgan

    Here’s what I hear practicing teachers saying:

    I agree with teachers. its too hard to search the internet for all the different resources you need. also technology does not always work. that can be extremely frustrating and very time consuming. teachers do not have time in their classroom for technology not to be working. I too think their should be one place to go for all types of gaming activities and what not if the teacher is wanting to use the internet to have a lesson dealing with technology.

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  3. Sean Morgan

    extremely hesitant to recommend or use online games that require passwords

    I understand if a teacher especially of a younger class would not want to use a password based website just to play a game. kids that age can easily forget their password and make it even more difficult for the teacher to keep track of all the passwords and can be time consuming for the students who forget their password. I also agree with older students not wanting to keep track of yet another password. I myself have to keep track of so many that it can be easy to forget.

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  4. Sean Morgan

    Equal opportunities:

    I do not think teachers should give out assignments based on using the internet because like the blog said not all of the students have technology at their homes. Since I live out in the country I did not get internet access at my house until my senior year in high school. the internet access was blocked by the trees and it took the internet company three years to tell us that. so when i had to look something up on the internet for class i had to go to my grandparents house and all they had was dial up, so it was very frustrating and time consuming.

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  5. Sean Morgan

    Games

    I will say that Oregan Trail is a great game for young and older students. I owned and played Oregan Trail. It was also a good history lesson. you started out by picking how many companions you were taking on your trip. you got to pick out your wagon and which animals you would take. you got to buy clothing, hunting and fishing supplies, food, and tools that would help you get to your destination. on the way you would have to hunt or fish for food, or you might have a wagon wheel break or maybe even have an animal get sick. all of those would be an obstacle to overcome. so oregan trail would be one game that i would have my students play. it was a great learning tool.

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  6. Great comments, Sean. I understand your frustration with kids not being outside playing and the lack of good internet connectivity! Did you get a chance to look at any of the PE links about Active Gaming? Seems like kids would enjoy the opportunity to do DDR or other active games. Wouldn't it be fun to be able to offer things like that as rainy-day-recess alternatives?

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  7. Lauren McIntire
    One thing I have realized both from reading these articles and observing at my first school is that it's really hard to incorporate technology into the classroom because there are often a lot of limitations. It is hard to assign online assignments because you don't know how many students have access to internet based applications from their home and is it fair to ask them to seek out a place where they can do the work outside of class? Personally, I don't think so. It is also very time consuming for teachers who have to actively search out the assignments since they are not included in the curriculum and be sure they are available on the schools web server and so on and so forth. There is also the fact that many parents are not comfortable with their kids having to input information in order to use certain websites, like a name and password, most online sites also require e-mail and other information. There is a reason one of the articles was called "pipedreams" because I think we are still far away from being able to incorporate technology into every classroom. Also, even when things are a "Free Download" on the internet I am very hesitant to download such things. The Edgar Allen Poe game from the gaming site was interesting but not all that educational so I am not sure if it is something I would use in my classroom.

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  8. I agree with Lauren about incorporating technology in the classroom sometimes because of certain restrictions. I've also learned from my observations and especially with physical education, technology is not used hardly at all. While I was observing, we did play DDR for 3 or 4 class periods so each student had the chance to go on the real DDR mat (other mats were used that were not connected to the game). The kids really seemed to enjoy that and it incorporated the concepts of rhythm, balance and following directions. As far as gaming online goes based on the articles and trying to play a few of the games myself, it's not effective when the students have to go through a download process first. It takes away the time they could be learning. I tried the Underground Railroad game and the Lewis and Clark game and they worked well and were educational but the others that I tried required installation. Just like Sean, I played and loved The Oregon Trail. I learned a lot from that game and it was fun at the same time, as well as it already being on our computers at school. The students shouldn't be required to use a password or create login names. Also, the online assignments shouldn't be given out because not everyone can access a computer or other resources needed to do so. If they do the online assignments, take the students to the lab as a whole class for computer time and have them do the assignment there. That way the teacher can assist and be there to make sure they are understanding what to do.

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  9. Challie Sweeney

    (forgot to put my name on the post after Lauren's ^^ sorry!)

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  10. Jessie Argraves

    I believe that using games in the classroom can be beneficial to the students. However in some classrooms access to technology and gaming is not always an option. The classroom that I have been visiting for my observation is a good example, the class is pretty lacking in technology. There are only 2 functioning pieces of technology in the class: the teacher's personal computer and a tv with a DVD player. But when technology is available in the classroom I think it's a good idea to find out what games and programs are out there that would be most helpful in your classroom. Of course the teacher should also set certain limits. There should be a specific period of time when games should be played in the classroom. The students might become addicted if they are left alone using the games too long without any guidance or any social interaction. Also the teachers should assess the impact the games are having on their student’s education. I think that the teachers should monitor carefully the games and see if they bring a positive or negative response to the child’s learning. A survey asking the kids whether they prefer game based learning or teacher learning might also be helpful. I checked out Flight to Freedom, Against All Odds, and Garbage Dreams. Flight to Freedom was a pretty good game in which the user would take on the character of a slave and attempt to escape from their master. It was pretty interesting and included a lot of historical information that might be useful when teaching a class about slavery. Although the other two games were interesting and interactive, I wasn’t really a fan of them because they seemed more about entertainment than educational.

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