This curated list of resources was created to help you decide if gaming in education is important to implement within your school or classroom. I included articles, research and resources to help someone get started with incorporating gamification and game based learning into their curriculum. Please feel free to recommend any resources you feel will be beneficial.
Thank you!
Game-Based Learning: What it is, Why it Works, and Where it's Going. Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire. –William Butler Yeats Introduction Deconstruct the fun in any good game, and it becomes clear that what makes it enjoyable is the built-in learning process. To progress in a game is to learn; when we are actively engaged with a game, our minds are experiencing the pleasure of grappling with (and coming to understand) a new system. This is true whether the game is considered “entertainment” (e.g., World of Warcraft) or “serious” (e.g., an FAA-approved flight simulator).
The implications of delivering game experiences for education and training are enormous. Because of good game design, more than 11 million subscribers spend an average of 23 hours per week immersed in World of Warcraft. What is Effective Game-based Learning, and Why Does it Work? When education or training feels dull, we are not being engaged and motivated. Game-based Learning vs. Fig. 1: Comparison of Traditional Training, Hands-on, and Game-based Learning. Gaming in Education: Gamification? – The Edublogger. My most popular posts for TheEdublogger (arguably THE most popular posts ;P ) have been centered on the use of games and gaming within the education system. Since I’ve covered a few of the big players in the video game industry, and how they have adapted to support educational methods, I thought I would have a look at ways you can integrate gaming into your classroom WITHOUT the aid of a video game. Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce today’s special guest, Gamification.
What is Gamification Gamification is, granted, a controversial topic. It focuses on using game thinking and game mechanics to turn an otherwise mundane task into something engaging and perhaps even competitive. Obviously, the classroom is primarily about learning, but engaging and motivating students can be a challenge. Methods of Gamification The are a huge variety of gamification methods, ranging from the simple to the complex. 1. In Education: Actually achievements have been used in schools for a long time already. Ctl4.4 p20 9 taking learning to the next level. Is "making a game out of learning" bad for learning? In MIT’s Education Arcade, classic game consoles line the office corridor, rafters are strung with holiday lights, and inflatable, stuffed and papier-maché creatures lurk around every corner. When I stopped by recently, the Arcade’s director, Eric Klopfer, and creative director, Scot Osterweil, talked enthusiastically about the surging interest in educational video games, now used by nearly three quarters of America’s grade-school teachers, according to one survey.
But these optimistic, play-loving game gurus have come to despise the biggest buzzword in their field: gamification. According to Osterweil and Klopfer, both MIT professors, gamification too often means “making a game out of learning,” in which players win points, magical powers or some other reward for practicing math, spelling or another school subject. Klopfer and Osterweil argue that the best educational games capture what’s already fun about learning and make that central to the game.
“I agree,” said Osterweil. Game Based Learning: Is It Effective Classroom Instruction? Game based learning is one method among many that will enhance the classroom learning environment by increasing motivation, increasing opportunities to develop a decision making process that forces analyzing and implementing solutions, and will allow these skills to transfer to other aspects of life. Game based teaching and learning can be quite effective if understood what it is and how it can be implemented to enhance instruction and learning.
Games are not the end-all be-all answer to the problems in education, but they can dramatically change the classroom if infused into the classroom culture properly. It can be a little unclear trying to pinpoint what is meant by game based teaching/ game based learning. There is confusion between game based learning, gamification, and games. Games are something that we all understand. Gamification is something else that is worth discussing. Game based learning is not gamification. The first key element to game based learning is hooking students. What Game Based Learning Can Do for Student Achievement. If I had written this article two years ago, it would have been very different. Back then, I would have made (or felt like I had to make) a compelling case for why we should even consider the idea of incorporating video games into classroom instruction.
Back then, I would have expected most readers to incredulously click to the next article. But today, Game-Based Learning (GBL) and Gamification are gaining some real traction in the teaching community. At the recent OETC conference, the organizers dedicated an entire wing of the convention center to the subject, and educators weren’t shy about their interest. When I presented on the subject at Common Ground 14, I had the dreaded “last-presentation-of-the-day” spot, but I was very pleased at the turnout and interest. Before we go any further, let’s get one thing straight: Gamification vs.
Game-Based Learning (GBL). Gamification vs. Gamification refers to the adoption of game-like principles when working outside of a gaming context. 6 Basic Benefits Of Game-Based Learning. There seems to be a perception that online gaming has a detrimental impact on children’s development. Nothing could be further from the truth, and there are countless–and complex–reasons for this, but it also makes sense at the basic benefits of game-based learning. Of course children should not spend every single second of the day staring at a computer screen. Nevertheless, education and online gaming certainly aren’t enemies either.
In fact, playing online games may be something which can enhance a child’s learning and development. How? 1. Games often revolve around the utilization of memorization This not only relates to games whereby children have to remember aspects in order to solve the game, memorize critical sequences, or track narrative elements. 2. This is something which is very important because we live in a world which is dominated by technology. 3. Most games require children to think quickly. 4. 5. 6. Are Video Games the Future of Education? Game developers all over the country are working to align some educational games to Common Core State Standards, while educators and video game makers are seeing benefits in using games in a classroom context, despite concerns from administrators. This could be the golden age of educational video games.
“You’re going to see teachers and students build games together,” said EdTech insider Garrett Fuller at New York’s 10th Annual Comic-Con. Fuller, a former teacher, is a journalist, and game developer within software configuration management, at TenTonHammer and MMORPG.com respectively. He lead off the panel Games and Education, a professional development session for educators, at this year’s New York Comic-Con. “It’s a passion that drives you to learn and play, and it keeps pinging your brain in different ways.
“I think that’s the environment you’re going to start to see more and more,” he said. “Getting the new technology into schools is critical. Education World® Gamification and Game Based Learning: The Future of Education. Shawn Young, a Canadian high school teacher and creator of “Classcraft,” argues that it is possible to transform a classroom with gameplay using basic technology. In the program he created for his own physics classroom (and has so far sold to 3,500 other teachers in 75 countries), students take on the roles of warriors, healers or mages. They work together as teams, and gain or lose powers through their classroom behaviors, reaping real-life benefits, such as permission to eat in class, and consequences like detention.
“Classcraft” requires only a single laptop and a projector; a basic version is available for free, and a premium version sells for $1 per student. Although the education market can be difficult to break into, Young says, “Classcraft” helps address “human problems” that concern educators, such as suspensions, fights and truancy. “In education, we have a distribution problem,” Cannon-Bowers says.
8 Principles Of Gamified Learning - 8 Principles Of Gamified Learning by Jonathan Cassie As our society continues to evolve in response to the rapid changes brought on by universally accessible mass technology, the act of teaching (and the experience of learning) has been under significant pressure to adapt. Since the turn of the century, a number of approaches have been offered by scholars and practitioners to answer this challenge.
One of them that I feel strongly is an essential part of the educator’s toolbox is gamified instruction. Simply put, Industrial-age instructional techniques leave many Information-age students in the dust. In my book, Level Up Your Classroom, I develop eight research-informed principles that support gamified instruction as an approach to teaching and learning. Gamified instruction is not game-based learning (GBL). One of the most popular board games of the past year is called Machi Koro. Imagine trying to teach the Salem Witchcraft Crisis to middle school students. The Why’s and How’s of Gamifying Your Classroom. Three years ago I flipped my high school math classes, but wasn’t satisfied. Having heard about mastery-based learning, I wanted to move my classes in that direction.
But I could not figure out how to make that step work for me; I wanted to make this move fun and exciting, get away from old and boring. Enter gamification. The “Why” of Gamification When I was in a session at ISTE 2014, three years of thinking clicked into place. Taking some of those elements that keep us playing Angry Birds, or Plants vs. Zombies, or Skyrim and adding them to my classroom made sense. As teachers we all know that our students are unique and bring different learning styles and personalities to the classroom. The “How” of Gamification Let’s start from the beginning. After deciding that I was going to take this step in the flipped class/mastery class process, I first created a “system” that would work for me and my students.
Setting up the gamified strategies Tracking student grades and progress Next up, grades. Gamify your classroom and empower students. 10 Specific Ideas To Gamify Your Classroom - 10 Specific Ideas To Gamify Your Classroom by Mike Acedo In today’s classroom, educators are constantly required to mold their teaching methods to give students the best opportunity to succeed. It is not only imperative for students to learn the required material, but also critical that students gain a sense of confidence toward their work, and find motivation to expand their learning.
However, this can be difficult for some students, who may struggle in traditional, lecture-based class styles. For some students, finding the motivation to complete homework or prepare for class can be a constant struggle, especially when every effort is met with a poor grade or frustration from teachers and parents. We’ve talked about designing your classroom like a video game before. How To Gamify Your Classroom: 10 Specific Ideas To Get It Done 1. Present the class syllabus as a form of Gamification. 2. Like in video games, students should be allowed second chances. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Conclusion. The Ultimate Guide to Gamifying Your Classroom. No one wants to been seen as the stuffy teacher stuck in the past who lectures from the front of the classroom and doesn’t seem to care about student engagement. Students today are tech savvy and have wandering minds. They are able to process information coming at them from several channels at a time—walking, talking, and texting.
Changing up how you deliver classroom content can keep kids’ attention, draw on their strengths, engage them as lifelong learners, and be amazingly fun. What is this magical method? It’s gamification, a word that, according to Merriam Webster’s online dictionary, wasn’t even in use until 2010. Image via Pixabay and StartUpStockPhotos What is Gamification in the Classroom? Gamification is the process by which teachers use video game design principals in learning environments.
When gamifying a classroom there are several things you’ll need to consider. History of Gaming in the Classroom Ready for a little throwback? Components of Gamifying the Classroom In Short. NJEA REVIEW June 2015: GAMIFY YOUR CLASSROOM. Games in Education: Teacher Takeaways. This August I attended the Games in Education Symposium, a free, two-day event held in upstate New York.
Co-presented by 1st Playable Productions, it focused on practical implementations of game-based learning for K-12 teaching. Much of what I learned there has made its way into my lesson planning for this current school year. Game design professor and Multiplayer Classroom author Lee Sheldon gave the first day's keynote address. He spoke about what teachers should look for in learning games. Paul Darvasi gave the second day's keynote about alternate reality games (ARGs). Students as Designers There were several workshops about teaching game design. I learned more about the basics of paper prototyping, the paper-and-pencil testing of game mechanics prior to being digitally rendered. Have a low barrier to adoption (no technology needed!) The argument can be made that most commercial board games (off-the-shelf, from Scattegories to Settlers of Catan) meet Common Core State Standards. Project-Based Learning and Gamification: Two Great Tastes That Go Great Together.
Times of flux should signal the A-OK for some experimentation in schools. My own school, for instance, is encouraging more PBL. In my room, we've got my advocacy unit on superheroes. Meanwhile, a fundraiser is launching in a sixth-grade room, a seventh-grade science class is doing a national parks tie-in to the upcoming Rose Bowl Parade theme, and a living museum is underway in some history teachers' rooms. The other big PBL experiment is one that will hopefully create a universal academic experience for many students. Based on curriculum I developed for my new STEM-focused PBL book, I'm guiding students toward an Invention Convention, and I invited any interested teacher to participate. As a result, I now have approximately 500 students from every subject area ready to begin moving through this unit. Individualized Pacing through a PBL Unit How do I individualize each student's learning process and pacing?
As I learned the program, I began speaking with Lisa Dawley, the CEO of Rezzly. 1. Making Games: The Ultimate Project-Based Learning | The MindShift Guide to Digital Games and Learning | MindShift | KQED News. Part 6 of MindShift’s Guide to Games and Learning. As game-based learning increases in popularity, it’s easy to get pigeon-holed into one particular way of thinking about it or one way of employing it. This is true regardless of how teachers feel about gaming in the classroom, whether they’re for or against it. One common objection to game-based learning is that students will sit in front of screens being taught at.
Sure, games are interactive, but on some level, don’t they still just replace the sage on the stage with the sage on the screen? Does a joystick really change the nature of pedagogy? In previous posts in this series, I’ve argued that because games involve systems thinking, they contextualize learning. “Games are just simulators with an internal incentive structure (often dopamine based). However, virtual simulations of hands-on experience are not the same as tangibly engaging with the world. Fortunately, few people are calling for games to replace school as we know it. Game Over: Gamification Mistakes To Avoid. Game-Based Learning: Resource Roundup. 8 Do’s and Don’ts for Using Games in the Classroom. Exploding Myths About Learning Through Gaming : NPR Ed. Gamification Of Learning: 3 Things We Learn From Pokémon GO - eLearning Industry.
Framework for Meaningful Gamifications. Lee Hammer AEQ 2011. Seaborn Gamification in theory and action 2014. GAME01. Eh203mg. Icp.