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This is a really good paper that shows how to evaluate tools for education with learning curves. They use adaptive tutoring systems as an example but it can be applied to just about any educational tool, such as a website, tablet app, and so on. There is some math, but it is very approachable. 

Includes practical tips; even though the blog post is written mainly from undergrad perspective, I think many of the tips apply to grads as well. Hope the tips help keep us "engaged" in our readings. :-)

game advocates are finally realizing the same criteria apply to games as to other types of learning environments

Very good synthesis of applying Flow in Education; in time for next Monday's topic on Flow. Good takeaways in the "Implications for Teachers" section.

Thanks for sharing Malik. I think this article provides a nice overview of flow and one main takeaway was the importance of positive affect. I agree that it is a good predictor of flow in an activity.

FYI. Great speakers and program last year. Although not education focused, ways to apply to teaching/learning and many education related workshops.

A new Facebook game aims to motivate low-income high school students to apply to college and provide them with the necessary tools to gain admission.

This article applies what we've learned about self-efficacy, interest, and engagement to literacy: "What makes a child an engaged reader?"

Thanks for sharing this, Stephanie. Part of my job is to select books for a reading & writing academy in Seoul, and after reading this article I realized that affective elements of reading play a significant role in my book selections.

Hi Stephanie - The author is listed as working for Reading is Fundamental, which is an organization I now follow for my work on the T545 class project. Part of their agenda is to "prepare and motivate children to read by delivering free books and literacy resources to those children and families who need them most." They focus on reaching underserved children from birth to age 8. I am hoping my website project addresses some of the issues raised in this article. Thanks.

This article talks about a study on the positive and negative effects of "challenge stress" and "hindrance stress" on motivation to learn and learning performance. I linked the citation here; to access the full text, I recommend using Harvard's E-Research site to search for the Journal of Applied Psychology and then getting to the article via the EBSCO link in the catalog record. (Or else find J Appl Psuchol through EBSCO and log in with Harvard LibX.)

States use simulations to assess science skills and students seemed to "enjoy playing with the computers and took quickly to the assessment." A costly option, but goals to have all students complete computer-based tasks as part of Common Core assessments by 2014. NOTE: This article just scratches the surface of actual results, but for more commentary about this year's results take a look at: "NAEP Reveals Shallow Grasp of Science" http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/06/19/36naep.h31.html?tkn=VLPFYOoO%2Fh6K0gBMoWRnkBNKB%2B3NDBvfmvWl&cmp=ENL-EU-NEWS1 It will be important to watch if/how computer simulations help students explain or justify their responses and apply concrete knowledge to real-life scientific scenarios.

Here is an ethnographer's in-depth look into World of Warcraft. From this site you can read the full book online, read an interview with the author, or listen to a podcast. The author "introduces us to her research strategy and the history, structure, and culture of Warcraft; argues for applying activity theory and theories of aesthetic experience to the study of gaming and play; and educates us on issues of gender, culture, and addiction as part of the play experience."

Here is more on self-efficacy theory, particularly how it was applied in the author's game "Air Medic Sky 1."

Nice post, Stepahnie. I have already borrowed a couple of ideas from this for my project, such as some training modules within the game to provide mastery experiences.

Though geared to the for-profit tech and design industry, this article describes what designers at Ziba learned in 2012. How might we apply these insights to education?

One of the most powerful classroom management strategies available to teachers is the provision of learning activities which actively engage students during the lesson. When students arrive at the lesson in a motivated state, eager to take part -- and then apply themselves to a given task - there is far less likelihood that their behaviour will become a problem. Like most teachers, you have probably tried a wide range of student engagement and motivation strategies to deal with disruptive students but if you are looking for a reliable SYSTEM which has been proven to raise motivation and engagement levels among the most uninterested, dispassionate learners, you'll love this video series. In this first video, Rob Plevin from Behaviour Needs Ltd explains two reasons WHY it is important to engage your students during lessons. There are hidden benefits to ensuring your students are motivated and engaged during learning activities -- as the video shows.

Computer-led math learning at Virginia Tech.

Interesting article and very ambitious to address an academic need, but I wonder if the instruction/test environment addresses UDL principles to appeal to a variety of learners or if the multiple choice tests target a narrow definition of math success. I added a blog post above that highlights some of technology's short comings as a platform.

Great point. My feeling is that a lot of higher ed institutions use technology as a way to cut costs, so not much attention is paid to accommodating diverse learners. If I may think back to my own undergrad experience, the prevalent assumption is that you're old enough to seek out additional support on your own when you're stuck or want to learn more. I definitely think though that more attention should be paid to applying UDL principles to educational software (yes, even for adults), so that learning can move beyond passing multiple-choice tests!

A basic How-To for creating engaging presentations. Nancy Duarte applies the aspects of great storytelling to giving a presentation.

This article examines how to best create flow experiences in video games. The author argues for 1) including a variety of gameplay activities, 2) allowing players to play at their own paces, and 3) letting players make choices.

Podcast about the need for students to be engaged and motivated in their learning before they can apply higher-order creative thinking skills. They are most engaged when they themselves are part of constructing meaning, not when teachers do it for them. This podcast is about engagement in the real schools but I listened through the virtual learning lens.