Although a majority of my career has been spent working as a contractor for the federal government, I’m now working for a company in the e-learning industry. Therefore, I’ve begun to follow technology issues as it relates to education.
Mark Wagner of the EdTechLife blog linked this interesting video [Quicktime movie] about how educators can incorporate games to facilitate learning. He created a webcast about video games in education, with interviews of Henry Jenkins, James Paul Gee, Clark Aldrich…
Gaming is getting much more traction in the education arena. There are some fantastic ways that students can learn while also having some fun. Hopefully this video will encourage you to see the possibilities.
[Runtime: 22:12 | Please make sure you have the latest version of Macromedia Flash installed on your computer to watch this video. To download it, please visit: http://www.macromedia.com ]
When I tried to play the video, I got an error saying that it was “currently unavailable.” At any rate, this sounds like a very interesting topic. I’ve bookmarked your site and will be checking back to watch that vid sometime soon.
Hmm…let me know if it continues. Of course you can go directly to the source. The initial link in my post goes to the source file in streaming Quicktime format. I simply asked the owners if I could post it to Google video so it would be easier to embed on this site.
I was able to view the video with no trouble… and I think the idea of games designed for use in the classroom will be well received. Teaching history and science in this way will help kids (those who love gaming) remember what they’ve learned by applying it to the game. If they are not excited about the game, or if it isn’t popular and talked about amongst the students, then I doubt it will have any more influence on their learning than a field trip. So the games will likely need to be as dramatic and challenging as the ones they play with on their computers at home. Educational games (computer or other) have their place in the classroom!
Thanks for the comment – since I did get it from your site – I need to mention your site since that is where I got it – thanks a lot for posting it. I’m getting into my masters and I had to write a scholarly paper and try to get it publish – any ideas?