I'll start with a quote from Chapter 1 of Mind Shift's Guide to Digital Games & Learning, "We're always afraid that the new school will completely displace an old school that we're not quite ready to abandon." This quote really resonated with me in that I myself get a little defensive with the 'new and improved.' I am often just wanting more time with what we are already trying, that if we just had time to do this more often...You can see where I am going. Through my course work here I have definitely shifted from this thinking. All must be tried and applied. Be fearless, explore all possibilities, stop the initial nay saying, and get on board.
A recent 60 Minutes held a segment on the game of chess. A man who brought the game to various inner city schools saw great benefits. He was then asked to bring the game to an Appalachian region to teach the students there. He taught the chess game like it was a rich story with each player piece having it's own motives and abilities. The students not only became proficient in the game, won competitions, but went further to say that it had improved their overall classroom work. Scores went up in all learning areas for those that participated. The idea that this antiquated type of gamification was still relevant helped me to see that we have always been gamers, we always will be, that it is simply a set of tools to be used to hone skills and make learning more engaging. One can easily see the benefits of gaming and I am hoping to bring in more digital games into my classroom. I am not certain that what I see as a game can be considered gaming, as there are particular pieces that would define it one way or another. My students are engaged in anything that seems playful and fun, anything game-like . At my site we are using iREAD as a learning phonics game and the students have an avatar that they create to guide them through the activities. This may be the only gamification that I am using at this time. This has been highly motivating for some and really a waste of time for others. More engage with it than not, but still, for those uninterested it can be seen as time wasted and the data it collects can be useless. I have created QR codes for the online Bridges Math Program, but there were only 2 in the end. What I thought were more games were teacher tools. Game-like activities can be created using the digital tools that the program offers, but it is not the gamification that provides feedback and 'leveling up.' I will continue to search and find games that are kinder appropriate. This leads me to another quote (from where I am not certain), "The real question is not whether or not technology belongs in early childhood education, but rather, how can we leverage the efficiency of digital tools to best serve young learners?" This is my current quest. As far as what I am using on my own time, the answer is not much. Basic online card and word games are about the extent of it. So far, nothing interactive with friends. I use them to decompress and take my mind off of things. I have used some simple games to learn another language. I could see the real benefit of the gamification qualities there. As far as what my students are playing, all I hear about is Mario, 5 Nights at Freddy's, and Bandy. I have been concerned about the amount of time they seem to want to talk about the games and because they cannot get on them in my classroom, they are very sneaky about getting on videos that watch someone playing. I cannot even imagine what is enjoyable about that! HOWEVER, and yes this is a big however, through the interest of 5 Nights at Freddy's, my students are now begging to tell scary stories. They follow a narrative and seem quite creative. How did they themselves make this leap from the game to what would appear to be a kindergarten standard? ALSO, the students have taken this virtual/spacial Bandy game and at recess have created a real life game that involves the entire play structure and that seems to follow specific rules. If they are able to do this with games that seem to have such little learning value, imagine what can be applied if I was able to find the right gaming tools? My quest continues...
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