KSP684 - School of the Future - Classroom 5 Summary

This week’s readings and podcasts were all about using video games and badges in a classroom setting.  

I found the article about badges the most interesting since in my classroom I give buttons to my students for various successes.  After reading about their work and planning I wanted to know how it turned out after they implemented it.  I looked at the Portland State University, Office of Academic Innovation’s website and was able to identify the results of “Project 139” and see the follow-up information from after they initiated their new badging system.  It seems that the big takeaway from this project was that the instructional design work they did to develop the new curriculum enhanced and enriched the courses.  

Using commercial video games in a classroom setting was another topic of this week’s material. I will admit that wrapping my brain around using some of the video games on the market in my classroom is difficult.  I see the 21st-century skills that come from exposure to these games.  I have seen first hand how Minecraft can turn a group of kids into a community who collaborates on a very advanced level.  I think the problem-solving and strategy development skills that games encourage are priceless.  My personal roadblock comes when I start to think more deeply about how to assess this value.  So much of what we do as teachers starts with the learning outcome and assessment and works backwards.  I know that if I sat down and started mapping it out I could make it work.  That said, it seems like an insurmountable mountain at the moment.  The time dedication seems out of reach for most teachers.  

My one a-ha moment this week was the “calling the video game development company and asking them” suggestion given by Richard Van Eck’s guest on the Ed Got Game podcast. I am a person who lives by the “it never hurts to ask” motto but I would never have thought this was an option!  I also like the idea of having games on consoles, computers, tablets, and non-digital set up as stations that students can rotate through. I can see this being very effective in my fifth-grade classroom.