MOOCS AND EDUCATIONAL GAMING

BY JOHN BERGLUND DANIEL BOTTEHSAZAN SEAN BRADY

WHAT ARE MOOCS?

• A massive open online course

• Free web based distance learning program

• Pay for accreditation

• 2012 year of the MOOCs

HISTORY OF MOOCS

• 2008 the term MOOCs was coined by Dave Cormier and Brian Anderson

• Response to a course at University of Manitoba CCK08

• 25 paying students and 2200 free users

• Connectivism and connective knowledge

WHERE TO GET ACCREDITED

• UC Berkley

• Stanford

• Harvard

• Johns Hopkins

• 5-9 weeks with a certification of completion

VIDEO

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eW3gMGqcZQc

EDUCATIONAL GAMING

• Games that are designed to help people expand concepts

• Understanding an historical event or culture.

• Games types are board, card and video game

HOW TO LOCATE EDUCATIONAL GAMES

• Try the internets!

• http://gaming.psu.edu/

• http://www.funbrain.com/

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30oZ7WVdheg

WHY GAMING?

• 97% of US teens play digital games on a regular basis

• Gaming can be described as a system in which players engage in artificial conflict, defined by rules, that results in a quantifiable outcome

• Elements of “gamification” applied to traditional teaching increase motivation or engagement

FIVE MAJOR CHARACTERISTICS/CLAIMS:

• (1) are built on sound learning principles

• (2) provide more engagement for the learner

• (3) provide personalized learning opportunities

• (4) teach 21stcentury skills

• (5) provide an environment for authentic and relevant assessment

GAMES ARE BUILT ON SOUND LEARNING PRINCIPLES

• Play is an important element for healthy child development

• Children learn through imaginative play

• Games provide an opportunity to think, understand, prepare, and execute actions

• Games also are built with clear goals and provide immediate feedback

GAMES PROVIDE MORE ENGAGEMENT FOR THE LEARNER

• Digital games can be more engaging than regular classroom activities

• Ability to sustain engagement and motivation across time

• A European study demonstrated that gaming increased student motivation/engagement

GAMES PROVIDE PERSONALIZED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

• Identifies strengths and weaknesses

• Develops teaching strategies based on student need

• Provides engaging curriculum choices

GAMES TEACH 21ST CENTURY SKILLS

• Many games take advantage of technology that is familiar to students and use relevant situations

• Provides the ability to interact with other learners and trained professionals

•Games foster collaboration, problem-solving, and procedural thinking

PROVIDE AN ENVIRONMENT FOR AUTHENTIC AND RELEVANT ASSESSMENT

• Games provide a means for quantifying knowledge level and abilities

• Assessment occurs as the game engine evaluates players’ actions and provides immediate feedback

• Assessment occurs naturally in a game: players make progress or they don’t

• Analytical tools rate the success of students throughout the entire range of a game

EXAMPLE

• http://player.piksel.com/player.php?p=wow8r9la

REFERENCES

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massive_open_online_course

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educational_game

• http://gaming.psu.edu/

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eW3gMGqcZQc

• http://researchnetwork.pearson.com/wp-content/uploads/Lit_Review_of_Gaming_in_Education.pdf