Monthly Archives: September 2012
Four things games teach teachers
Anna Malczyk details four things that games teach teachers; how to make learning fun, how to motivate learners, how to foster teamwork and cooperation, and how to set meaningful challenges.
“Gaming and education are often seen as two extremes of a spectrum — the one is a frivolous pastime while the other is a serious, valuable activity. At the same time, we instinctively know that playing and learning are linked somehow — after all, children and young animals use play to acquire the vital skills they’ll need for survival in the grown-up world.”
Read the full article on Memeburn
http://memeburn.com/2012/09/4-things-gaming-can-teach-education/
Where Do Educational Games Come From?
The answer to the question where do educational games come from is; companies, non-profits, and educational institutions, according to Frank Catalano.
“The expectation-setting stats and statements, at least, are straightforward. Both the New Media Consortium’s 2012 Horizon Report on higher education and its 2011 Horizon Report for K-12 put game-based learning in the mainstream (defined as adopted by about 20% of institutions) in the next two-to-three years. “The greatest potential of games for learning lie in their ability to foster collaboration and engage students deeply in the process of learning,” noted the 2012 higher ed collaborative effort of NMC educators and research centers.
Then there’s the expectation of the “demand” side: students. An Educause survey last October found 37% of college students use educational games or simulations – and 15% wished their instructors used them more often. Project Tomorrow’s national Speak Up report released in April found that 52% of middle school students wanted their “ultimate” school to have games and simulations.”
Catalano details the current state of educational gaming in this excellent article.
Full text –
http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/09/where-do-educational-games-come-from/
Gaming and Education 