Games in education
I am convinced there is a place for games in education. Games that don't stink, and thoughtfully address meaningful learning standards. However, because they are games, I'm applying a very rigorous standard to them; there needs to be be direct (not casual) connection between the game and learning objective, and strong assessment evidence measuring the efficacy.
Thank you Baruch
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Computer games during the summer
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Interested reader Trent asked:
The only question that I have is how would this be used outside of the classroom? I know of several way that it can be used in the classroom, I am trying to focus on Visual Data Analysis outside.
For example, how can kids learn using gaming during the summer.
I answer here:
Your question deserves a lengthy response, and I am short of time at the moment. However, I hope to point you in the right direction.
Games are educational in different ways. I think the best way to use computer games to learn is through guided instruction. For example, a teacher would present an idea, students would spend some time in the game world exploring a specific idea or concept, and then the teacher and students would construct meaning from the experience through some sort of discussion or project.
There are other people (who are much smarter than I), who argue merely playing games is educational - Google James Gee for some thinking on this topic. To be honest, there are different types of games, different types of learning, and many different ways we define "educational". It get's a little tricky, but you get the idea.
So to specifically answer your question, games could be used during the summer with a mentor or guide to help guide the student as they play. This is a key point in my opinion - if kids "just play" then any measurable academic achievement will be hard to come by. However (and this is important) there is a hell of a lot more to learning than what we can measure on some test.
In your question you specifically ask about visual data analysis. All games represent their "worlds" visually and graphically. In Eve Online, there is a little green sphere that represents my shield power, and another the represents my hull strength. I've sadly watched many times as these little green graphs have turned yellow, and then red, and then I learn about floating through space.
So here's an idea: pick ANY commercial off the shelf game, and pick apart it's
UI. I would ask my students:
1. what is this graphic representing?
2. how is this graphic convey meaning?
3. why is this graphic in the specific space it is in?
4. how does this graphic change?
And then, once your students have begun to see behind the curtain of the game UI,
ask them to redesign the game UI using some
free tool and explain how their choices represent meaning graphically.
oh, and by the way, if you're serious about visual data, you need to grok Edward Tufte. Really. I'm not kidding. go to one of his conferences. It will be the best $300.00 you have ever spent on professional development.
Posted by Bill on 04/15 at 08:24 AM in
Games in education,
Practical Advice
Comments (0) •
Permalink
Why you tube, indeed.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Do you need more money? We need to win this thing!
Friday, February 05, 2010
We are embarking on our first year in the FIRST (more) robotics program at our school. Because we are a “rookie” team, we have been showered with help from people, organizations, and our alumni. FIRST is an expensive proposition for our school, and we have been truly, truly blessed with gifts from corporate organizations (yes, Credit Suise, we love you).
The activity is a case-study in experiential learning. The students are fantastically excited about this, and seeing their drive, passion, and energy is truly inspiring. This project has, in many ways, “woken up” our students. When a group of 17 year old kids get energized and focused, it is truly an amazing thing to behold.
Funny thing about alumni, though. When there is a competition, and school pride gets in the mix, they get excited. The quote above is real, and reminds me why I love being in education.
Posted by Bill on 02/05 at 10:15 AM in
Games in education
Comments (0) •
Permalink
Frontline’s digital nation documentary
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/
I sent this email to my faculty - in the high school and elementary school:
Last night PBS aired a remarkable documentary about digital life in 2010. I found the documentary truly, truly, exceptional. I would really appreciate if you could take the time to watch this - perhaps this evening or this weekend.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/
Last week I sent you a link to a study that stated the average child spends 10.4 hours a day using some type of media. I think we could all benefit from a discussion about how technology is changing the way our children learn, think, and see the world.
I hope to lead a more thoughtful discussion about computers, media, and learning this year. Until then, I would really appreciate if you could watch this documentary.
Here is a reply I received from a teacher:
I did watch the Frontline documentary, “Digital Nation,” last evening, and I must say that it was, as is customary of Frontline, very incisive and comprehensive. Many parts of the program, particularly those addressing the effects of technology on young people, were very unnerving. The situation in Korea should be seen as cautionary to the western world, particularly to us here in America with our almost idolatrous love for all things technological. That poor Korean mother has already “lost” her son to computer games, as far as I’m concerned because the son as lost his soul to the machines. I felt both sad and angry when I saw that part.
For my part, as an educator and specifically as a language educator, I have very mixed feelings about the use of technology in the classroom. On one hand, it has made it possible to access, literally, the world with the click of a mouse. But I am equally concerned about the “losses”: the loss of true attentiveness; the loss of the printed word; the loss of community and relationships and the increase of anonymity and the impersonal. “Digital Nation” posed many, hard questions about this but offered no easy answers. That’s where we come in. But it is very important that those questions get asked.
Posted by Bill on 02/03 at 12:37 PM in
Games in education,
Practical Advice,
Educational Tech,
Design,
Leadership,
Teaching Diary
Permalink
Designing video games helps kids learn?
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Courtesy of Science Daily (pdf here) comes a study that suggests rapid video game development can boost student learning. From the article:
“Now, computer scientists in the US think that creating computer games, rather than just playing them could boost students’ critical and creative thinking skills as well as broaden their participation in computing.”
This is actually quite interesting. First of all, I agree with the premise, designing video games has tremendous educational potential. Especially modding a game. Why? Students can easily see the relationship between major dynamics. If the kids build a civil war simulator, they can see how transportation, economy, technology, public opinion, foreign relations, etc… are related. However, I have never been successful designing video games with my students because it takes a long time. Even a reasonably simple mod can take several months. When students do design a game, I find the quality is often quite poor. This is why I often think it is better to mod a commercial, off the shelf game than to create something from scratch.
This particular article discusses an idea about rapid game creation - I think holds promise. I would like to see the model or an example, to get an idea of what the final product is like, and how it was designed.
Posted by Bill on 01/27 at 07:50 AM in
Games in education
Comments (0) •
Permalink
Poland goes PEGI
Friday, January 08, 2010
Game Research - updated December 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Balanced Gaming
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Hello there!
I’ve started a consulting business called Balanced Gaming. Balanced Gaming is targeted towards three groups:
1. Gamers - I’d like to talk to you about how to enjoy computer games in the context of a balanced life. Click here to learn more.
2. Parents - I can help you understand how to guide, support, and evaluate computer games and media use for your kids. Click here to learn more.
3. Schools - Computer and video games are powerful learning tools - when used correctly. I can help you understand how games work in education. Click here to learn more.
If you’d like to connect with me, and learn a little more, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I would appreciate your help is spreading the word about this.
Posted by Bill on 09/01 at 08:06 AM in
Games in education,
Educational Tech,
News,
Personal
Comments (0) •
Permalink
Why do people play computer games?
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
People play games for different reasons at different times.
Richard Bartle was one of the first to present a coherent theory about this - the bartle test. Another researcher, Nick Yee questioned Bartles findings in his daedalus project.
Bartle initially started with 4 player types below:
Achievers
Explorers
Socializers
Killers
Bartle increased his graph to 8 types. He discusses these types at length in this article on his website :
source for above content.
Nick Yee had a different perspective than Bartle, and presented the following reasons play mmorpg’s source) :
I think people probably are generally one specific player type, but drift into other types as they play.
Posted by Bill on 07/07 at 07:56 AM in
Games in education
Comments (0) •
Permalink
a good idea, a great idea
Friday, June 26, 2009
Learning games network has this really cool contest - from the horses mouth:
(I) My “Aha” Moment
What’s an “aha” moment, you ask? Have you ever played a game and unexpectedly made a connection with something you learned someplace else? Something that made you think, “Aha!” If you’ve experienced that spark of realization, that moment of epiphany between an idea from a game and something you learned - at school, at home, or anywhere else - tell us about it in your video.
What game were you playing? How did you connect it to something else you had learned? When and where were you when you made the connection — re-playing the game, studying for a test, reading a textbook, doing your homework, crossing the street? We want to know!
(II) My Dream Assignment
Imagine you’re a teacher or coach assigning homework or a class activity that requires students to play a game in a favorite class, in one they’re having trouble with, or in a subject area where they just want to do better. Do you have an idea for a great game for learning?
I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have connected in-game experiences with real-world stuff. And I see this happening with my students all the time. The neat thing is, as kids get very excited about games, they also connect that excitement with classroom content. I have told this story many times, one of my 8th grade students (a low achieving student) had been playing Age of Empires and during social studies class excitedly starting talking about his experience in the game with his class (this from a kid who normally “laid low” in class).
Actually, this is how games work in education. The kids play the game, and then refelct on the experience to create tangible (measurable) learning outcomes). I know many (many) gamers who said civilization got them through world history.
I can’t wait to see the results of this competition, and send major kudos to the folks at learning games network for this idea. If you haven’t joined this contest, please do - and pass the word!
Posted by Bill on 06/26 at 09:17 AM in
Games in education
Comments (1) •
Permalink
Best way to learn programming for a 16 year old? Build a game….
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
I work at a school for gifted kids. One of my great joys is having long, highly detailed technical talks with the kids. When I first started working at this school, I was shocked when I engaged in a 45 minute debate about cross-side scripting with a 7th grader (13 years old). I mean, this kid REALLY understood his stuff.
Yesterday I had another such conversation. One of our students is just eons ahead of his peers as a programmer and geek. He generally likes to frolic with low-level code, device drivers, and small servers. He has a well-reasoned philosophy that light-weight, locally compiled code connected to the cloud is better than scripting languages and monolithic programs. Really neat stuff. We don’t see eye-to-eye about everything, but from a geek point of view, he is a delight. He is, in every sense, an implementor.
So, part of discussion yesterday was around “what to do” with a program. Like, what direction to take. After a few seconds thought, I told him to write a game! As I reflect, almost all of my programming knowledge and experience came from designing games, hacking games, and rolling my own game. Even now, I occasionally hack at a multiplayer text-based game and continue to learn. Time and complexity be damned! I’m sure he will write something really fun, and I can’t wait to play with it.
This is the magic I see in computer games - observe the time, enthusiasm, and energy they spend with computers. It really is intriguing.
Now. A Practical Note (tm) - Making / modding a game takes a long long time in my opinion, not for in-class work. However, as long as there are good guidelines for outcomes (so the kid doesn’t spend 10 hours making a flaming sword with an accurate heat ratio) hacking at a game is a delightful way to learn.
Posted by Bill on 04/28 at 08:00 AM in
Games in education,
Practical Advice,
Teaching Diary
Comments (0) •
Permalink
Exceptional article on video game addiction
Thursday, April 16, 2009
This is the best article I have ever read about video game addiction. PERIOD. Fair, balanced, and even-keeled. I highly commend everyone to read this. 
I think, in time, scientists will connect that “dopamine-pattern-fun” thing that Raph Koster talks about with gamers. I think most people can enjoy games without any trouble, but I think the unique thing about computer games is how they “tickle” our brains. And I think, for a small percentage of people, that turns out to be problematic.
Please click here for a pdf in case the link goes dead (as of this post, the page is being slashdotted).
Posted by Bill on 04/16 at 07:43 AM in
Blogging,
Games in education
Comments (0) •
Permalink
The fourth type of game - kagfs
Monday, April 13, 2009
When I talk about educational games, I usually talk about three types of games (see original blog post here).
Without belaboring it:
COTS -commercial, off the shelf
Edutainment
Serious games
There has been an emergence of a fourth category of game, I’m calling it kick-ass-game-for-schools (kagfs). The qualities of a kagfs include:
1. Very high production value
2. Content-accurate information (like, accurate representation of history, medical information, government structure, etc…)
3. Really good tools for reporting individual student progress to teachers
4. All the stuff that make COTS games good like:
4.1 ...dynamic, adjustable difficulty
4.2 ...easy early goals
4.3 ...play experience invites entrance into Csikszentmihalyi’s idea of “flow”
4.4 ...allows different player types to enjoy the game
4.5 ...is a game a kid would want to play at home (this is kind of my ultimate litmus test for games in education)
I have only seen one instance of a kagfs, at muzzy lane but a recent feed popped up on my rss reader: t.h.e. journal had a piece titled: Researchers Study Effects of Educational Games on Math Achievement by Scott Aronowitz. I think this might be another example of a kagfs link here for dimensionM. But I need to play this game to see.
It looks like there is some snazzy instruction stuff on the front end, and then the kids explore a pretty cool-looking interactive world, applying the math skills they are studying.
The only thing I don’t enjoy: stopping the game while the kid solves a math problem. Update: after playing their demo, I kind of nudge this particular game into the edutainment arena. Gorgeous production values, great tutorial, but zapping all the transmitters that have an even number? That doesn’t quite fit into my kagfs category.
Anyone else see any kagfs?
Posted by Bill on 04/13 at 08:21 AM in
Games in education
Comments (0) •
Permalink
Informal Learning and Video Games
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Great article entitled: Public Pedagogy through Video Games by James Paul Gee and Elizabeth Hayes (pdf here)
I think about computer and games learning in basically two ways. Informal learning and formal learning. These aren’t exclusive viewpoints, nor are they necessarily contradictory.
Formal learning using video games happens in a classroom, with highly structured lesson design, and clear assessment of learning objectives. I advocate this type of use of video games because it fits with my occupation; an instructional designer and computer teacher. I’ve always been focused on proving that video games are effective instructional tools. if you are interested in a quick guide for games in education, click here (you can also click here to see everything I’ve written about games in education).
Informal learning refers to the inherent, automatic, and natural learning that happens when people play video games. It is this area that scholars like Gee and Schaeffer write so eloquently. My summary of their thinking is that games are inherently educational and computer games are excellent and complex learning systems. Just playing a complex computer game is educational.
I happen to agree with the informal learning ideas, but I spend more time thinking about formal uses.
In comes the above article, which is really good for understanding why computer games are inherently educational. The article discusses design, resources, and what the authors call call “affinity spaces”.
Posted by Bill on 01/28 at 11:16 AM in
Games in education
Comments (5) •
Permalink
Board games in the classroom?
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Another beautiful question:
Hello, I am a fifth grade teacher and would like to use games to help the students learn. My school, though, does not have the resources for computer
based games. I was wondering if their were any simulation board games that I could use. I was thinking something similar to Avalon Hills Blitzkrieg. I
have heard of some that teach the pioneer life. I have been scouring the internet for help but have come up with nothing. I thank you for any help.
Craig
My answer:
Hey Craig!
Nice to meet you. Actually, board games have more educational value than computer games, in that players often see the mechanics behind game outcomes, whereas computer games people only see outcomes.
Any teacher can make anything education (almost.) The key thing is to ask the kids to think about what they are doing. So you can play great games, but if you don’t ask the kids to reflect on the experience, then while minimally educational, they won’t get as much out of it. I hope this makes sense - it’s the basic “how games in education work” message I’ve been pushing for years now.
Create essential questions about XYZ. Teach the kids about XYZ, play a board game, reflect on the experience, build assessment tools. This is bread and butter teacher stuff. The game will get your kids very excited and involved. Make sure they know all the rules, and ask them how this game is (and isn’t) like your topic of study. Ask them to simulate certain scenarios.
I love that you are looking at war games - fun and exciting. Here’s a list I think you can use with 5th graders:
1. Diplomacy
2. Axis and Allies (there are different theaters - all work)
3. Risk
There are more, of course - but as long as you use strong instructional design, you’ll be fine.
Good luck, and please keep me in the loop.
Posted by Bill on 12/30 at 03:22 PM in
Games in education,
Practical Advice
Comments (4) •
Permalink
Blog feed
