“As an educator, I realized that this was just the problem our schools face: How do you get someone to learn something long, hard, and complex, and yet enjoy it. “
It is very hard for teachers to get students to want to learn something that is complex let alone expect them to enjoy it. A high percentage of students play video games, so it would be beneficial for the teacher to create a game to teach something that is complex so that they will enjoy it too. Gardens of Time teaches you vocabulary words by associating them to pictures. I absolutely love playing this game and I have learned some new words while playing.
“At a deeper level, however, challenge and learning are a large part of what makes good video games motivating and entertaining. Humans actually enjoy learning, though sometimes in school you wouldn’t know that.”
Students learn better when they are challenged. As the game Gardens of Time progresses, each level gets harder. I have to concentrate and focus more in order to complete the level. This also teaches patience. Learning to master something new doesn’t happen over night.
“You have to inhabit the identity the game offers (be it Battle Mage or field biologist) and you have to play by the rules. You have to discover what the rules are and how they can best be leveraged to accomplish goals.”
Children have to learn to play by the rules at a very early age. I have never really thought of video games as a way to learn to play by the rules, except for learning how to share. I get frustrated when I play Gardens of Time sometimes when my power runs out and I have to wait for one of my artifacts to get built to get more power and move on to the next level. Patience is a skill that everyone needs.
Gee, J. (n.d.). Good video games and good learning. Retrieved from https://online.fairmontstate.edu/webct/urw/lc15057011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct
This is a video segment on CBS news that tells about recent studies that prove that playing video games aren’t so bad. I was surprised to hear that violent games were not on the top of the list.
Sieberg, D. (Performer) (2011). Are video games actually good for kids? [Television series episode]. In CBS Evening News. CBS. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/16/eveningnews/eyeontech/main4453801.shtml
I would have to agree with you about Gardens of Time teaching vocabulary words. Sometimes I see Gardens of Time as a vocabulary word scavenger hunt. It's harder if you don't know what some of the things are, which is a problem I've run into a few times while playing this game. There are some items that we refer to as something, but the game refers to them as something else making it a fun, challenging, exciting, and educational video game.
ReplyDeleteIt is absolutely amazing to witness the patience that students exhibit during video games or interactive activities. Observing student engagement while they are working and having fun is an ultimate experience.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize until reading your post that I am also learning new vocabulary words from playing Gardens of Time. The challenge of learning the name of new items and then finding them is very rewarding. At times, I have found myself having to push the "hint" button to figure our exactly what object the word was tied to. Also, I agree with your statement that good games teach children how to have patience and play by the rules; which are two very important principals that relate to the real world.
ReplyDeleteThe challenge in Gardens of Time is one that gets deeper in each level, however, I noticed a "grouping" of objects in each level. If a player knows the general shape of an object they must find, then it is generally placed within the picture that fits well. For instance, a dartboard would be placed where you might find a clock, or an umbrella would be placed as the leg of a table. I noticed that each level was like this.
ReplyDeleteAmy, I'm glad you chose the quote about humans enjoying to learn. To often I hear educators complain that kids don't like to learn which is not at all true. They don't like being bored, or being asked to things that are irrelevant to their lives, or things they don't understand.
ReplyDeleteIt is my hope that the game you design later this semester will provide students with a reason and purpose for learning science content!
Great connections between the reading and learning in school!
Great post. I never thought of Gardens of Time being a way to teach vocabulary, but it is a great way. I had to attend a meeting at an elementary school I subbed in a few weeks ago. They were trying to incorporate higher order thinking skills into the classroom. One of the examples that they gave involved a kindergarten teacher using an aquarium as a station and giving the students a list of aquarium typed words with pictures. The kids had to match words like gravel and filter to the appropriate picture. Who would have thought something so simple would incorporate higher order thinking skills in children?
ReplyDeleteI had not associated Gardens of Time with teaching vocabulary words either. That is a good perception. I agree that it is hard to get students to enjoy learning something new if it is not exciting or entertaining. That is a difficult concept to incorporate into school work.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about reading skills by connecting words to pictures. I am in a vocational setting but still see how many students have trouble reading and always looking for reading practice and never thought of video games. I also agree that children learn rules at an early age and use these rules to interact and in this game there are rules and also opportuities to interact with others to accomplish goals.
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