Jane McGonigal - Games Can Make the World Better
As a gamer myself, I found this TEDTalk very interesting. It's true, game worlds offer and escape from reality and offer many more rewards and opportunities to connect with others than in real life. Learning with games has it's limitations though, as not all people are gamers.
Can play and learning be combined?
Absolutely! I personally think this is the very best way to learn. Engagement and learning is often emphasized in all areas of study. Engagement isn't just keeping students' attention, it's presenting them with tasks that require mastery of a skill and collaboration with others. In school today, many problems are still presented without collaboration and without minute systems of reward. For example, students in a math class are presented with concepts of solving math problems, but they are usually assigned to solve problem after problem, with no reward for each problem, only a point grade at the end. For some people, this is highly motivating in itself, but for many, it isn't. I think if there were a math game where each problem solved or concept mastered a student could earn a small reward of some kind, a lot more people would learn mathematical concepts more easily. I know if I could get a new skin, or work towards an awesome new plasma cannon in a game, I'd know a lot more about math!
What role does acknowledging progress play in successful gaming and is their transfer to education?
Acknowledging progress is very important in learning. As students progress, feedback and progress monitoring are vital to student motivation and success. Students must receive both to be motivated to move forward in the learning process. People are motivated by progress, rewards, and feedback from others. Receiving feedback also helps students work out problems and sort through issues with difficult concepts or personal difficulties with activities.
What do you think MacGonigal's thought about paralell tracks of education (school/games)?
This is a difficult question to answer. Many educational games are done very poorly and simply don't compare to fantastic entertainment games. I think it will be difficult to direct people to educational games unless we put forth the same effort into educational games as we do entertainment games. For example, I have learned exactly how to handle my controller for a perfect head shot, but I have no idea how to get anywhere without Google Maps. I definitely thing gaming should be implemented into all tracks of education, but it is an area that also needs a lot of work before people/gamers will take it seriously. As it is, when I hear about educational games, a heavy sigh often escapes me. The good news is that it can only get better from here.
Reflect on Jane's 4 things that games do to make us "virtuosos": Urgent Optimism, Social Fabric, Blissful Productivity, Epic Meaning.
Urgent Optimism - Often in games, people play to achieve status, awards, items, and other things. Even when the odds of getting an item or reward is low, people still hope and want it so much that they will try and try again to achieve in order to receive reward and success.
Social Fabric - Many multiplayer games rely on social interaction and teamwork to achieve goals. Online gaming offers many ways to connect with others and interact in meaningful ways. Certain types of games will often have massive communities of people who collaborate and create together which is highly rewarding and motivating to players.
Blissful Productivity - Jane comments that people are happiest when they are working hard. This is why many gamers prefer to play games and work within that game to achieve than laying on the couch. People enjoy productivity and this is highly motivational for learners. People are happiest when they are doing meaningful work and are productive.
Epic Meaning - In order to learn and complete tasks, people need the task to have meaning. Emotional engagement with learning material is highly motivating and meaningfulness to the learner is essential to success. Personally, I find it very difficult to study anything or learn new concepts if it has no meaning to me.
In conclusion, we need better games in education!
Can play and learning be combined?
Absolutely! I personally think this is the very best way to learn. Engagement and learning is often emphasized in all areas of study. Engagement isn't just keeping students' attention, it's presenting them with tasks that require mastery of a skill and collaboration with others. In school today, many problems are still presented without collaboration and without minute systems of reward. For example, students in a math class are presented with concepts of solving math problems, but they are usually assigned to solve problem after problem, with no reward for each problem, only a point grade at the end. For some people, this is highly motivating in itself, but for many, it isn't. I think if there were a math game where each problem solved or concept mastered a student could earn a small reward of some kind, a lot more people would learn mathematical concepts more easily. I know if I could get a new skin, or work towards an awesome new plasma cannon in a game, I'd know a lot more about math!
What role does acknowledging progress play in successful gaming and is their transfer to education?
Acknowledging progress is very important in learning. As students progress, feedback and progress monitoring are vital to student motivation and success. Students must receive both to be motivated to move forward in the learning process. People are motivated by progress, rewards, and feedback from others. Receiving feedback also helps students work out problems and sort through issues with difficult concepts or personal difficulties with activities.
What do you think MacGonigal's thought about paralell tracks of education (school/games)?
This is a difficult question to answer. Many educational games are done very poorly and simply don't compare to fantastic entertainment games. I think it will be difficult to direct people to educational games unless we put forth the same effort into educational games as we do entertainment games. For example, I have learned exactly how to handle my controller for a perfect head shot, but I have no idea how to get anywhere without Google Maps. I definitely thing gaming should be implemented into all tracks of education, but it is an area that also needs a lot of work before people/gamers will take it seriously. As it is, when I hear about educational games, a heavy sigh often escapes me. The good news is that it can only get better from here.
Reflect on Jane's 4 things that games do to make us "virtuosos": Urgent Optimism, Social Fabric, Blissful Productivity, Epic Meaning.
Urgent Optimism - Often in games, people play to achieve status, awards, items, and other things. Even when the odds of getting an item or reward is low, people still hope and want it so much that they will try and try again to achieve in order to receive reward and success.
Social Fabric - Many multiplayer games rely on social interaction and teamwork to achieve goals. Online gaming offers many ways to connect with others and interact in meaningful ways. Certain types of games will often have massive communities of people who collaborate and create together which is highly rewarding and motivating to players.
Blissful Productivity - Jane comments that people are happiest when they are working hard. This is why many gamers prefer to play games and work within that game to achieve than laying on the couch. People enjoy productivity and this is highly motivational for learners. People are happiest when they are doing meaningful work and are productive.
Epic Meaning - In order to learn and complete tasks, people need the task to have meaning. Emotional engagement with learning material is highly motivating and meaningfulness to the learner is essential to success. Personally, I find it very difficult to study anything or learn new concepts if it has no meaning to me.
In conclusion, we need better games in education!
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