Video Games And Higher Order Thinking

Video Games and Higher Order Thinking Doug Adams ALTEC

Resources and Files
My Wiki page:
http://dadams- altec.wetpaint.com
Technology Expectations in Education
Games and Education
This PowerPoint:
http:// www.slideshare.net/dadams.altec

What kinds of games?
I’m talking about:
Puzzle games
Simulation games
Problem-solving games
Story games
Collaborative games
Music games
NOT today:
Arcade games
Drill and practice games

Why Games?
21 st Century Skills

The Millennial Generation
Millennials
Generation Y
N-Gen, Generation Next
Digital Natives
Oyayubizoku ( 親指族 ) “Thumb Tribe”
“ Kids say e-mail is, like, sooooo dead.” – CNET News , July 18, 2007

The Millennial Generation
“ Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach”
Mark Prensky

Millennial Attitudes
“ I have to ‘ power down ’ when I go to school.”
“ When I am really busy, I hate going to school because I can’t do any work there.”

Characteristics of Digital Natives
Active
Multi-tasking
Non-linear thinking
Ubiquity
Technical Fluency
Feedback
Individualization
Risk-taking
Collaborative

Attitudes in the Millennial World
“ Our knowledge comes from the intelligence of the mob . There are websites that let us view user ratings on news , bookmarks , definitions , wines , burritos , beers , and videos . I want to have that same experience when searching for my first home. Show me what the community thinks. Give me the data the way I am used to receiving it…. ”
-- Beam Me Up Jimmy - A Look At Tomorrow's 1st Time Home Buyer
http:// realestatetomato.typepad.com

Brain Research
The brain developed to solve problems related to surviving in an unstable outdoor environment that occur in near constant motion.
John Medina, Brain Rules

Brain Research
If you wanted to create an educational environment that is directly opposed to the way the brain is good at doing, you would probably design something like the modern classroom .
John Medina, Brain Rules

Patterns
The human brain loves patterns. We see patterns all around, in everyday life, in nature, in manmade objects.
We see patterns even when they don’t exist

Emotion
Our brains work best when there are emotions involved
Excitement
Engagement
Enthusiasm
Exploration
Frustration

Collaboration
Our brains want to work with others

Games…
…provide structured patterns
…create emotional connections
…encourage collaboration

“ Better theories of learning are embedded in the video games many children play than in the schools they attend.”
James Paul Gee What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy

What kinds of theories?
Student-centered learning
Peer teaching
Scaffolding
Feedback
Problem-solving
Empathy, role-play
Collaboration
Practice
Development of expertise

How Games Teach
Activity – a game depends on learner not being passive
Engagement – longer time on task, greater involvement, rewards
X2: Exploration and Experimentation – support creativity, scientific thinking, opportunity for (relatively consequence free) failure

How Games Teach
Frequent achievement – smaller tasks with individual rewards, motivating
Expanding competence – scaffolding and breadcrumbs
No right answer
Working within a set of rules
Language – signs, symbols, slang all promote language skills. Game literacy = world literacy

How Games Teach
Social nature
Identity and empathy – students identify with characters and situations
Simulation – students can explore situations that are otherwise impossible
Practice – drill and repetition

How Games Teach
Application – learn and apply new knowledge
Context – relationship between objectives and game content
Feedback cycle – analysis > decision > feedback > analysis

How Games Teach
Multimodal – text, images, sounds, symbols, actions
Reflection – emphasis on thinking, problem solving rather than “twitch”
Mastery – Experienced players teach new players, experts become mentors
Challenge – game players seek out difficult or challenging tasks

Concerns about Games
They cause violence
They are just for boys
They are just for kids
They are just for solitary loners who spend all their time in the basement eating Cheetohs and drinking Mountain Dew

Umm, what?

Challenges for Teachers
Time
Alignment with Standards
Cost
Software
Hardware
Assessment
Rubrics, participation, presentations

Game Examples
Food Force
Stop Disasters
Magic Pen
You Are the Historian
Team Treks
Third World Farmer
Minyanland
ElectroCity
Nanoquest
Real Lives
Traveler IQ
The Forbidden City
Virtual History: Settling America
Discover Babylon
Dimension Math
Lunar Quest
Web Rangers
Peacemaker
Budget Hero

Doug Adams [email_address] http://altec.org

Video Games And Higher Order Thinking

by Doug Adams on Feb 16, 2009

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