Gaming in Education

     When initially considering my thoughts on gaming in education I could not see how playing a Wii or Xbox in class could be beneficial. When I think of "gaming" I envision someone with headphones, a case of Mt. Dew, and Doritos playing for hours on end with fellow gamers online. I see students playing video games in Libraries on a college campus and consider it a waste of space and resources. Libraries are to read and study, not play Pokémon! When Jennifer LaGarde came to guest speak in one of my classes I got a new perspective on how gaming could be successfully implemented into education. She explained how they used a Nintendo Wii to help students understand math lessons such as mean, median, and mode by using a three point basketball shooting game. Students loved it, they got to play a game and directly relate it to education! Such a simple concept yet most people would have never thought to incorporate a gaming system into schools.
     I do not think I would personally use video games in my classroom as a Business and Marketing teacher but I do see how, if employed correctly, games could develop an atmosphere of fun in learning. It also gives students something to recall when thinking of how to apply things such as mean, median, and mode. I think the basketball game is a great example and can see how many other sports games could be incorporated as well. Using a game like Roller Coaster Tycoon could also be used to reinforce business and marketing classes. There continues to be emerging data that suggests that using games in education could be beneficial such as this website. Joel Levin is also using gaming in education by incorporating Minecraft into his 2nd grade classroom. I believe as more and more teachers develop ways to use games in their classrooms this will be a growing and positive trend.

Video Credit: DMLResearchhub via YouTube

Video Credit: iu via YouTube

Digital Assessment

Teachers enter the classroom daily ready to continue guiding, encouraging, and educating students as they grow and learn through the years. Students are given new content and concepts daily but it the teachers job is not just to teach but to assess learning and ensure that students are understanding and retaining the knowledge they are being taught. One way to do this is by using web 2.0 tools to teach and to asses learning. Niace.org says that digital Assessment looks at all the ways that learners, teachers and institutions use digital technology to understand how progress is being made in learning. It is made up of both initial and formative assessment, which informs the learning process, and summative assessment, which describes learners' achievements at the end of a period of study. Methods of assessment vary among content areas and thus one method can not be employed across the board. Project based learning (PBL) gives students a hands on approach to demonstrating their level of understanding and gives students a degree of freedom in developing their work. I like the use of PBL as a student but also feel that students need to be assessed in varying ways to ensure that we are developing students to be well rounded. Requiring students to write, think critically, even doing standard true false or multiple choice assessments all have their place and assess students at different levels. For technology based assessments it seems as if PBL assessments are best. It allows students to use the technology to learn, interact with, and present their project based on what they have learned. Rubric's have become a very helpful resource for students and teachers alike. For teachers it allows them to have a guide in assessing and grading assignments fairly and ensuring each students work is graded according to the same guidelines. It helps students by giving them a document to reference while completing their assignment to ensure they are covering all required aspects of the assignment. Students learn in many different ways and that also means as teachers we should find various ways to assess their learning.

photo credit: edutopia

 

                                                                                          Video Credit: Buck Institute for Education via youtube

 

 

 

Digital Storytelling

Digital storytelling allows everyday people to put their thoughts or experiences into motion by putting them into a short clip or digital presentation to share with others. It can range from a collaboration of still images presented in a slideshow put to music to a full motion video presentation. A lot of people are doing this everyday but do not realize they are. Youtube has become a way for people to put their stories and experiences out there for the world to see. While digital storytelling is being done to document many aspects of peoples lives we can also use it in education to allow students to experience the lessons and to show what they have learned in a new way. Doing so allows students to become more involved in the lessons and helps teachers to incorporate technology into the class in new ways. Students can map out their ideas ahead of time and review peers ideas before putting their ideas to work. Giving students new ways to experience and display their work allows teachers ways to evaluate student comprehension, lesson effectiveness, and gives students a sense of accomplishment when they have created their digital story for their teacher to see. There are resources available to help with development and places to see examples. Digital storytelling can help in opening and finishing lessons and can also be used within lessons to help increase students comprehension. This blog has links to multiple digital storytelling resources.

photo credit: dkapuler

 

 video credit: kvnblndng via youtube