Games Based Learning MOOC

I mostly use Facebook for social media, and occasionally Twitter, Second Life and You Tube.
Today was a red letter day in that I had a meeting about an ILAG grant with our grant-writer and my chair, and I think I also got approval for mainstreaming students through some of my curricula starting next semester. Some of my grant proposal meeting was devoted to hearing the writer's perspectives on sharing the grant collaboratively with other faculty/institutions. Since part of the grant potentially involves Second Life, I had a "Whoa Nelly" moment when I said, "Hey, I can't build in Second Life." I am a contributor and knowledge seeker, perhaps a fan, but I realize I need and value other colleagues expertise. I am supposed to ask for a MOU -- this was an "Oh Nelly" moment for me. [Smile]
However, I did glean a lot from the Social Networking article by Dawson. Here you go -- enjoy! ~XQC
In regards to the retention of the 21st century college student, Dawley notes a study from the Gates Foundation. “Younger students are learning through technology itself that they have a role to play in the
development of knowledge…students
often sit in rows and listen to lectures, take notes, and are quizzed. This incongruence in the ways students learn informally may conflict with what they may encounter in college, creating the potential for disengagement, learning problems, or retention issues. Consider the large high school drop-out rates (50 per cent) in urban areas across the USA Almost half of these students who drop out report ‘classes were not interesting,’ and they were ‘‘bored’’;
meanwhile, 88 per cent of dropouts had passing grades.
English instructors now note that more than ever, teaching information literacy, including discerning where information sources lie along the continuum from scholarly to popular/unreliable is complicated by quick and easy access to information on the Internet. However, Dawley notes a different type of information paradigm, by asking a couple of valid questions. “Who is the credible authority? Whose voice counts in the construction of knowledge?” Students are no longer simply “Passive consumers of knowledge, but rather “self directed …constructors of knowledge.” With the shifting knowledge paradigm, new knowledge and learning platforms must be constructed in light of these trends.
Additionally, Dawson notes “Building. A major strength of the virtual world environment is the ability for the user to construct the world around them. Unlike game engines that provide the setting, content, and storyline for the user (such as Everqueste), users in virtual worlds generate the terrain, buildings, objects, and activities.” This allows the learner the exciting opportunity to become a content expert and demonstrate new-found knowledge in a fresh and exciting way. I know grasshopper98 has had some exciting success in this regard in her Dia de los Muertos activities with students.
~XQC

Yeah I did have fun with the Dia de los Muertos group. Here is this year's altar project My Facebook Album of 2012 Album I really liked that last part regarding creating your own world around you, I think when Kae was at FRCC and we showed "Darfur is Dying" game and had the student's play it, and then see, "The Devil Came on Horseback" about the same thing, they said they only needed to play it about three minutes, and then with the film they understood why the characters included children in the game. But when asked about gaming in general, my students said what they don't like is when an instructor has some game that is basically, "books with moving pictures." In other words they want to enter that game and be part of the reality, not buy some viking rope for three gold pieces and click to the next picture... if that makes sense.

PS I just made 100 sugar skulls for FRCC (BCC) "Sugar Skull Decorating Contest" and my student made about 150-200 for themselves and the altar. I am now an expert. LOL

Today I took a marvelous journey back in time as I revived my Flickr account and added some new photos to it. In the process, I looked back over all the photos from my first three years on SecondLife. The beauty of the setting and the interesting things we did were totally mesmerizing. It was like looking at a high school yearbook or photos from a great past vacation.

Going back into my blogs was a similar experience. Yes, I remember being the person who wrote that. She's pretty cool, but she isn't me now. And why did I ever put this post online? Well, at this point deleting it would be pretty silly. Etc, etc, etc....

#6887478 rivenhomewood wrote:

Going back into my blogs was a similar experience. Yes, I remember being the person who wrote that. She's pretty cool, but she isn't me now. And why did I ever put this post online? Well, at this point deleting it would be pretty silly. Etc, etc, etc....

Ah, memories! I remember when, pre-college, I used to sell (broker) 3D models using the username Kimmarcus. When I go back, I cringe at the level of ineptness my graphics showed. On the other hand, some of the technical stuff I accomplished still impresses me.

I remember having an interesting conversation about online identity related to learners. There was a question brought up...it was something like, "How can we get students to integrate their academic identity online?" At the time, my mental image was of a student building an avatar to represent themselves in their academic journey.

What would it be like it we could encourage students to build an avatar (RPG-like) and build in certain characteristics to emphasize what kind of learner they are and what they want to learn? Honestly, I don't know if this would be something that could work or not. It could so easily be seen as "lame" by students, including adult learners. So much would depend on the presentation.

I do know that every time I have brought students into Second Life or Open Sim, the first thing they do is ask, "How do I change his/her clothes? How do I put on this robot costume?"

For us as educators, I think that how we represent ourselves on the various social networks (our PLNs) is important, too. (Maybe this is just my bias?) It's not just about gathering resources and figuring out who is the "go to" person for certain subjects, it's also about establishing ourselves with our strengths and interests, academically and technically speaking. "I'm a designer. I'm interested in educational technology, especially with games. I know Photoshop." This is pretty much what Dawley was saying about educators in virtual worlds: "Teachers and students in virtual worlds must gain ‘‘avatar capital’’ (Castronova, 2006) through ongoing participation in networks to develop their credibility as a network member. What does this mean for a teacher in virtual worlds?" We need to consider what this means in our social networks, too.

So, how do you manage your past social interactions? How do you curate them or even censor them? Rivenhomewood decided to leave that post, but has anyone ever had to go back and try to change history? :D

-LeeDale