The Six C's

In many video games producers make it possible for the gamer to make many different choices while playing. The producer does this to increase the interest of the gamer which is also known as intrinsic motivation. This happens because they get to take different steps during the game.

A game producer can push a game player by increasing the level of difficulty as the games progresses. By challenging the players abilities it forces the player to work harder and improve their learning process because of the challenge at hand.

A good game must also give the player the ability to control his or her decisions. If the game totally controls everything the player does then the player will lose interest and not learn from the game. By involving the player in the decision making it increases their level of interest in the game.

A game the incorporates collaboration allows the players to share perspectives and ideas. Many times in games the players work as a group to achieve a common goal. This not only improves teamwork but also social interaction.

When game starts a player knows the task at hand. The player constructs meaning as they play the game in order to tackle the task at hand. The more meaningful this task is to the player, the more the player is motivated to win the game.

By reaching the goal in a game, the reward motives the player to do well. In many circumstances a player will try and try until the receive the greatest reword. This creates a positive feeling about success and motives the player to win.  

Can video games teach us something?

1. What do good games and highly motivating workplaces have in common?

2. What is the difference between learning in schools and learning in good games intrigued you the most?

3. Should learning in school be like learning in good games? Why or Why not?

1. Most people who play video games are highly motivated to beat a certain level or beat the game, this can relate to a positive workplace where the employees strive complete the job. People look for advancement in both video games and the workplace when given the opportunity.

2. I believe that one of the major differences between learning in school and learning in good games is that the person playing the game is learning and retaining information that they don't even realize. When someone is playing good games the game is having them reiterate the information so they start to memorize it without consciously knowing. For example when someone is playing a game sometimes they will have to beat a new enemy in which they will have to learn new tactics to win.

3. Learning in school should be like learning in good games to a certain point. For example, in the article we read the author talks about the games being challenging but do-able and this drives the gamer to put extra effort into completing the task at hand. The author also talks about games allowing player to be producers and pushing the gamer to create their own game world which not only keeps their attention but also allows them to have an active role.

Behaviorism

I remember in my second grade class my teacher had a card system. The system had a green card, a yellow card and a red card. If the teacher told me to pull my card that means I had to pull my green card and put it behind my red card so that my yellow card was showing. The yellow card was the teacher giving me a warning, meaning that if i had to pull my card again that day then i would have to sit out of recess. I always remember being so upset when my teacher told me to pull my card. Looking back at this now I realize that this is an example of negative punishment because my teacher is taking something away because of my bad behavior. I have also realized that this was a very successful strategy to keep the class in order, especially me.

Metacognition

    Metacognition is essential for good learning because it helps a student to take the best approach to help the student learn the material and retain the information. By using metacognitive strategies such as self-planning and self-monitoring a student can become aware of the different ways that help them succeed. If a teacher provides examples of metacognitive strategies to the students, the students could be more apt to using metacognitive thinking. As the students use metacognition they will not only improve their success in the classroom but also improve their learning capabilities. 

Here is a video of metacognition in mathematics Video.

Webquest

Over the past 3 weeks we have worked on our webquest. Webquest is a great tool in the fact a teacher can manipulate it to create projects, reviews, quizes, and test for thier students. It is very efficient for a teacher because once the teacher has created a webquest the students have the task, proccess, and how they are going to be evaluated all in one place so there is no confusion.
Here is a link to my Webquest

The webquest applies to teaching standard

3a. demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.

Having a teacher create a webquest allows them to test the students on what they know and create a project for the students to learn more about a certain subject. It also allows the students to advance their experience with new technologies and researching based on what the teacher incorporates into the webquest.

Voki

Today we created a Voki and then costomized an avatar. We used this avatar to speak some of our educational philosophy. Here is a my Voki video

Get a Voki now!

Todays assignment addresses teaching standard

2a.design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.

By using Voki in the classroom I could possibly attract the students attention by them hearing a different voice rather than mine but still presenting the information I want. This could also could be used as a tool to teach a lesson online without me having to explain it to them with me in the room.

New Survey

Today we learned how to create another survey the one major difference in using this survey is we created an answer key and once people take the survey it is self-grading. Here is a link to my survery