ARTICLE: Benefits of Gamification

8 Research Findings Supporting the Benefits of Gamification in Education
Kelly Walsh @ emergingedtech.com

There are myriad ways in which "gamification" can play a positive role in the educational setting.

1. Game playing can develop a positive attitude towards mathematics for children.

2. Video games can lessen disruptive behaviors and enhance positive development in ADHD children.

3. Children who construct their own video games experience increased cognitive and social growth.

4. Mature make-believe play provides the most beneficial context for children’s development.

5. Play-based learning increases children’s attention span.

6. Playing scary and violent video games help children master their fears in real life.

7. Chess makes kids smart.

8. Music and movement augment children’s language capabilities during the preschool years. 

Woohoo! I love the idea of gamifying the classroom, but I found that my fifth graders didn't really get into it last year. I can incorporate gaming concepts but that doesn't necessarily engage the students. I need to develop something that works with fifth graders. And, of course, next year, I'll have to revise the entire plan.

ARTICLE: Games Have Impact

Research Shows Games Have Significant Impact on Student Performance
Lee Banville @ gamesandlearning.org

We have an early look at some of the interesting data coming out of a larger report on teacher attitudes around the use of games in the classroom. The numbers hint at wider use of games in the classroom and indicate teachers see the real benefit of games in helping low-performing students.

I agree with those teachers who believe that games benefit the low-performing students. Frankly, it's far too easy for those students to simply check out when the material challenges them. When incorporating games, though, everyone is on equal footing.

ARTICLE: Less-Structured Time

Study: Less-Structured Time Correlates to Kids’ Success
Hannah Goldberg @ time.com

Research found that young children who spend more time engaging in more open-ended, free-flowing activities display higher levels of executive functioning, and vice versa.

Assuming there's causation, what does that mean for the classroom? I don't think it means letting go. It takes a great deal of thought and planning to create a lesson and activity that appears open-ended and free-flowing but satisfies the objective. When a video game is linear, you know that you're in a video game. But when it's open-world, you might forget as you do whatever you want. I don't know what this looks like in the classroom, though.

ARTICLE: Using Digital Games

Teachers Surveyed on Using Digital Games in Class
gamesandlearning.org

We have an early look at some of the interesting data coming out of a larger report on teacher attitudes around the use of games in the classroom. The numbers hint at wider use of games in the classroom and indicate teachers see the real benefit of games in helping low-performing students.

I agree with those teachers who believe that games benefit the low-performing students. Frankly, it's far too easy for those students to simply check out when the material challenges them. When incorporating games, though, everyone is closer to equal footing. Plus, games inspire students to retry and retry and retry, facing challenge after challenge, and failure after failure.

SITE: MixBit

Make multimedia memories. Automatic editing of photos, videos combined with professional themes make your videos look better than ever. 

 

It was so easy to create a quick video with MixBit. There's an iPod app that the students could use to record their work.

SITE: Twoople

I have this idea of making myself available to my students when they're at home, working on homework. First of all, I don't really give homework. The students are expected to work on multiplication facts every night, and, once in a blue moon, they're asked to finish something from class. However, as I begin working on my proposal plans, I know that the students will have the option of working on their e-notebooks at home, so I want to make myself available to the students as they work. E-mail is too slow. I've considered using TodaysMeet, but I think Twoople offers something that I like: a permanent spot. I won't need to send out a new link from time to time. I can create a Twoople page and use it every day. Of course, the worry is that students will abuse the opportunity to communicate with me. That's not something to keep me from trying.

Craft a Well-Planned Lesson

Minecraft in the Classroom: Ideas for Teachers
Ilena Parker @ Institute of Play

In my grant proposal, I assured the judges that I'm not using Minecraft for the heck of it. I won't use it as a time-filler or reward. If I don't have a lesson planned, I won't use it. That leads me to this article and the book that it mentions. It's vital that a learning objective is stated and the lesson is well-planned; otherwise, it's too easy for the students to run wild. At the end of the lesson, the students must know what I wanted them to learn.

Each project includes learning objectives, project organization and tasks, and ideas for reflection and assessments. You’ll also find detailed instructions for setting up and running a Minecraft server in the classroom, both the regular and the popular MinecraftEdu versions.

I'm a Bit Late to the Party

MinecraftEDU: Minecraft for the Classroom

Audrey Watters @ Hack Education

As part of my grant proposal, I included 25 versions of Minecraft and the server license. This will allow me to control the world in which the students roam and complete assignments.

The mod comes with a lot of other options too, allowing you to maintain the open-endedness of the original Minecraft or alter it substantially. With the mod, students are able to name their characters, and they can change gender and costumes. There are special blocks for the game too: information blocks that students can click on to get, well, information or instructions; blocks that will teleport students to a particular spot in the world; blocks that can be set in the ground to allow or disallow building on top; and border blocks so that students can be kept in one particular area. It's easier to control the students' characters -- teleporting them en masse to the teacher, or teleporting the teacher quickly to a student, for example, or freezing everyone's characters in place. Inventory is more easily manageable, making it possible to put a particular item in everyone's inventory.

My Mega-Plan

I included the following in my grant proposal...

In order to learn and retain information, students must be engaged and motivated. For the students, there must be an obvious value to their work and learning. To accomplish this, three things need to happen.
 
First, I will gamify my classroom. When introducing new concepts, I will present them as challenges or quests. Working individually at times and often in groups, students will solve the problems using online resources and digital tools to present their findings. Collaboratively, they will use Google Apps to interact with one another, creating joint projects--this allows them to work at school as well as at home.

Second, my students will create digital notebooks. While there’s value in using notebooks to record math and science notes, most students are unwilling to refer to them for assistance. They’re simply uninteresting and many fifth graders can’t see their usefulness. Using a webpage creator, such as Wix or GoogleSites, groups of students can transform their notes into digital notes, which will include videos (ShowMe, Educreations, etc.) that they create, solving and explaining the skill. Or, they can use digital photos (using digital cameras or iPads, or KidPix) and voice recordings to create a slideshow that explains the skill. Or, they can create and edit digital movies (using iPads and a movie editor) that show them solving and explaining the skill. Plus, they can embed a variety of Web 2.0 tools (Voki, Blabberize, Prezi, Animoto, ClassTools, Wideo, Bubbl.us, etc.) that help explain the concept, define necessary vocabulary, or offer hints and reminders. 

Third, I want to incorporate Minecraft into my instruction.

Busy, Tired, and Disappointed

For some time, I've been unwilling to participate in this blog. For one reason or another, I'm ready to get started again. However, I want to stay positive, so I'm going to cut down on criticism and soap-boxing.

Recently, I won a technology grant from the district. I'd like to share my experiences and ideas through the blog. While I fully expect to fall on my face, it might be an interesting read.