“Do
not confine your children to your own learning, for they born in a different
time" -Chinese proverb
The
perspective I have taken from this class is more about the willingness to try
new things in the classroom for students’ success, and less about redefining
classrooms with games as the next savior in learning theories. Perhaps that is
the biggest misconception of gamifiying and the pursuit of simulation based
games in the classroom. From the research of Katrin Becker to the insight provided
by Jane McGonigal the belief, to me, is in the tool games can represent. I had
a powerful moment of clarity towards the end of this class. During the
beginning of class, I wanted to debate and argue that gaming could change
education, and I still feel it can. However, my fight was for all the wrong
reasons. I wanted to challenge decades of research and theory and jump start
gaming as the next epistemology concept that redefines what education is and
"should" be. Then towards the end of class, the "point" hit
me square in the head. The “should be” was pure ignorance on my part. What
"should be" in my classroom is different from yours. What
"should be" in my lesson plan, is different from yours. I am not
claiming the learning objectives should be different. I am, however saying the
educators themselves "should be". Let me clarify by introducing
myself; my name is Jason Marconi, and I have a passion for the culture of video
games. From talking about subplots, lore, and hidden meanings, to playing for a
two-hour session in one sitting, I enjoy video games tremendously. You should
also know, I am the business program director and equally passionate about
economics, management, and marketing. The marriage of my passion and profession
started in the spring semester at Boise State taking Edtech 532, where I found the idea of using
my fascination as a tool for student success. The way I use video games as a tool is suppose to be different from other tools educators have. This is the evolution of our profession. Where we should be allowed and encouraged to be different. This is where using video games as a tool can truly shine and benefit our students.
I am the 21st Century Educator
I am the twenty- first century
educator, NOT because I play video games, NOT because I embrace social media, and NOT because I can make a Google site with connected
Google docs and forms. I am the twenty- first century educator BECAUSE I am willing to try ANYTHING under the natural sun, moon,
stars, and cosmos to bring light bulb moments to my students. I am the twenty-
first century educator because in my
free time I am building, scraping, reconstructing, destroying, fixing, and
trying new lesson plans. The educational tools have changed compared to the tools used by
educators before us. These were lessons written in dirt by stick, text books
written on papyrus scraps. Then there was chalk and boards, projectors for slide
shows, grade books, TV, VHS players, VHS tapes, dry erase boards, different
color markers, magnifying glasses, telescopes, the internet, websites, and now
games. Okay, there were probably some tools used in-between this mediocre list,
but I'm on a one-train thought to Reflection Town, destination the point, so
cut me a break :-) . Speaking of the point; what I am trying to say is the tools have changed. They have evolved. To me this
class was less about games and more about redefining what our comfort zone is
with the evolution of these tools, specifically games and gamification. It was about building
confidence in a medium that perhaps we never explored fully prior to class. This class should
be a requirement not only for the twenty-first century educator, but for the nineteenth
and twentieth century educators who may feel that educational tools should have
never changed. I have found one common theme, whether the tools for education
change or not, you can bet all your Mario coins the students are changing.
The next chapter:
Look for game-on lesson plans in
Kickstarter and on the web in the coming weeks! Check out the basic website
done in Google sites linked below. I plan to raise capital to purchase the
tools necessary to create a dynamic website and database that will be the
starting point for my crowd sourced lesson plans idea. A tool that will aid in
my pursuit of a Doctor of Education in Educational Technology (Ed.D.) A big thank you to all my fellow classmates and +Chris Haskell for their incredible help, suggestions and work throughout this semester! Until the next level, Game-On everyone!
Thank you.
https://www.sites.google.com/site/gameonlessonplans/
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