Simulation Games 3

In this quest I am to play the Risk 2210 A. D. simulation game for 20 minutes and leave a Voice Thread indicating how I can use this simulation in education and compare it to the other simulation game types from the previous two quest.

Transcription of audio recording in Voice Thread:

Turn based Strategy games would be best used to teach social studies, specifically history evolving battles and civilizations conquering each other. These game types can be used for team building strategies as well.

As for how they differ the Sim based games are simulations based on a computer program. The way I see these is the programmer set your objective and you either succeed or fail. In the real time strategy games the player is building resources to earn something, most likely money. As for Turn based I reiterated that they are a conquering game were the player conquers other lands or areas.

As for other turn based strategy games I came across a blog post on make use of dot com titled 5 Popular Free Turn-Based Strategy Games written by Matt Smith and posted March 29, 2011 so here are his picks

Battalion: Nemesis

Fantasy Kommander

Freeciv

Freeorion

Megamek

So check out that site it looked pretty cool.

National Standard: ISTE NETs Teachers

Grade: Professional

Subject: Technology

Sub-Focus: None

Standard: ISTE 1: Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Details: Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers: a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. b. engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources. c. promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes. d. model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

Simulation Games 2

In this quest I am to play the Shopping Street simulation game for 20 minutes and leave a Voice Thread indicating how I can use this simulation in education.


Games:Play Strategy Games on AddictingGames
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Heres' a snap shot of my 5 day run in Shopping Street:

Transcription of audio recording in Voice Thread:

Every math teacher does a project that revolves around running a business, or buying stocks etc. Simulations like Shopping Street provide an actual environment for students to learn what can happen if you don’t operate the business correctly. These types of games can also be used to help show students both children and adults the value of money, because if you visit my blog you will see that I lost money so I don’t think I would be good at running business just yet.

One game that stood out for me was Oiligarchy which I think can be used to teach learners about environmental issues, political corruption, and disrupting the average person. So, basically a teacher can find a Real-time strategy game for just about any academic learning standard.

Here are some other games that can be used are:

Mushroom Farm Revolution

Corporation Inc

Lemonade World

Burger Tycoon

National Standard: ISTE NETs Teachers

Grade: Professional

Subject: Technology

Sub-Focus: None

Standard: ISTE 1: Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Details: Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers: a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. b. engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources. c. promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes. d. model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

Simulation Games 1

In this quest I am to play the Sim City simulations for 20 minutes and leave a Voice Thread indicating how I can use this simulation in education.

Sim City - RPG Adventure Game

Play free Games - a game from RPG | Strategy | Turn based Games

Transcription of audio recording in Voice Thread:
 

Using a Sims simulation would be a great way to create a thematic unit that can incorporate all subject matter and provide students with a clear understanding of how the real world works and why they need to learn about economics, specific math computations, even writing about their experience building a city. Since one of my jobs is a technology coach I would encourage the classroom teachers to use this simulator in the way I described prior.

National Standard: ISTE NETs Teachers

Grade: Professional

Subject: Technology

Sub-Focus: None

Standard: ISTE 1: Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Details: Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers: a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. b. engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources. c. promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes. d. model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

Gamification Infographic

In this quest I am to located in the graphic below were my life intersects gamification of education. I would have to say when I became a technology teacher in 2001. I already graduated from high school long before computers started making an impact in education. With that being said any teacher today knows that technology in education, especially in lower income areas, is very unequal. So, in 2001 the kids, were I teach, were still using Carmen San Deigo and Reader Rabbit; which, according to the graphic, were introduced in 1985, if memory serves the copyright when I used them was 1995 (yes in 2001). Needless to say, now I'm see my district using products like iXL Math and online curriculum from Pearson. This to me is not gaming in the way I'm learning to think about it in the course, but online curriculum pure and simply. I have already started to hear from the kids how bored they are with these products. This is telling me that this form of online material does NOT excite the kids, but if you add a front end program like 3D Game Lab I believe the kids would be more eager to continue to learn.


Created by Knewton and Column Five Media

How People Learn 3

(Recap of changes I made to mash up from How People Learn 1. I moved knowledge into the funnel because of the comments Kevin made and Bloom’s taxonomy. I also changed my write to include a more detailed understanding of constructivism which David clearly pointed out. Below is my new write up.)

This is how I see the three main learning theories interacting with each other. First, I see behaviorism is the theory that everybody encounters to begin to learn how to learn. We begin to shape our identity by learning how to respond to outside stimuli. The community dictated how we should respond to this stimulus. Secondly, “Cognitivism uses the metaphor of the mind as computer: information comes in, is being processed, and leads to certain outcomes.²” In cognitivism the information that comes in is dictated by the community and how it is processed leads to the identity of certain outcomes. Thirdly, constructivism is, “says that people construct their own understanding and knowledge of the world, through experiencing things and reflecting on those experience³.” Within a community we are always active and learning from our community members, but we are always developing a sense of identity. Regardless of the identity to the subject matter we are studying or were we belong in the community. These theories are intertwined just as research states we all learn differently these theories are applied as needed for an individual or community to learn. Finally, the ultimate goal of these three theories is to gain knowledge which we than synthesize into our individual knowledge.

¹Learning Theories Knowledgebase (2012, February). at Learning-Theories.com. Retrieved February 20th, 2012 from http://www.learning-theories.com/

²Learning Theories Knowledgebase (2012, February). Cognitivism at Learning-Theories.com. Retrieved February 20th, 2012 from http://www.learning-theories.com/cognitivism.html

³Constructivism as a paradigm for teaching and learning. (2004). Retrieved from http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/constructivism/index.html

National Standard: ISTE NETs Teachers

Grade: Professional

Subject: Technology

Sub-Focus: None

Standard: ISTE 5: Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

Details: Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources. Teachers: a. participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning. b. exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others. c. evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning. d. contribute to the effectiveness, vitality, and self-renewal of the teaching profession and of their school and community.

Story-(Toy)-Puzzle-Game

In this quest I needed to come up with two toys that pertain to the story I created in part one of this quest.

The first toy I thought of is a spinning top. The top potion will spin counter clockwise and the bottom will spin clockwise. When they stop it will reveal in which direction the player will move in the world of writing genres. The window on the top portion will reveal the genre (poetry, essay, letter, etc.) and the bottom window will reveal the genre type (ABC poem, Comparison/Contrast, business letter, etc.).

The second toy I would create would be a 3D card board model of the world of writing genres so the player can actual image themselves in this world.