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Emotion-sensing computer software that responds to students' cognitive and emotional states, including frustration and boredom. This tool seems to address all the issues we've been talking about in T545! Could this be the tool that replaces teachers?!

Students at the Center Project Explores How Students Learn Best--Reports on Enhancing Literacy and on Math Instruction for Minorities also Released New educational technologies offer exciting ways to help teachers adapt classrooms to the interests, needs, and strengths of individual students, but they cannot replace the crucial creative and emotional work of teachers, according to a new research paper from the ambitious interdisciplinary project, Students at the Center: Teaching and Learning in the Era of the Common Core.

This blurb announces a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop software tools that detect student engagement while using educational software--and use the data to improve learning. "To study engagement, robust learning, and emotion in real classrooms, [Ryan S.J.d. Baker's] research combines quantitative field observations of student behavior while using educational software with data mining to detect patterns in the ways students tackle the tasks that [his educational] software presents."

This longer gamasutra article talks about Macro Flow and Micro Flow, complete with Csikszentmihalyi's flow diagrams. "Macro flow is the constant rise in difficulty to compete with the player's increasing skill level, maintaining the balance between boredom and anxiety. Macro flow refers to the entire gameplay experience from the beginning of the game until the end, and having a good macro flow will likely result in constant interest and intrinsic motivation on the part of the player throughout the course of the game." "Micro flow is short intense periods of flow that happen frequently, as well as the constant adaptation of the game's challenges to the player's increase in skill level. It is perpetuated by repeated successes in rapid succession, which provides positive emotional and tangible feedback encouraging the player to continue in the micro flow; this is known as a virtuous cycle."

Thanks for posting, Stephanie. I wonder if these instances of "micro flow' interfere with a gamer's chances of experiencing macro flow. I'm imagining instances of micro flow to be like interesting pit stops along a road trip, while macro flow would be equivalent to the exhilaration of cruising down an open road without any interruption. Not sure if that's the right way to think about it though...

Talk about high stakes tests! These soldiers in basic training are learning about the tools of the trade in simulations designed to evoke emotional reactions not dissimilar to the ones they may face if deployed to a war zone.

research shows that people prefer equity in situations. fairness affects one's emotions about a situation

Back to the basics: "Studies show that positive feelings can enhance students' attention and higher-order thinking skills, as well as encouraging perseverance."

Vivek Wadhwa provides an overview of emerging educational technologies, including sensor-based technology, which "detect the interest, learning, and emotion of the student".

Professor Rosalind W. Picard, ScD is founder and director of the Affective Computing research group at the MIT Media Lab, co-director of the Things That Think consortium, and leader of the new and growing Autism & Communication Technology Initiative at MIT. In April 2009 she co-founded Affectiva, Inc., where she serves as chairman and chief scientist.

Thanks for sharing Rupangi. This tool could provide so much valuable feedback to educators as they design formal and informal learning environments for students. There are two things which I think any educator should be very aware about before implementing it though: 1. The privacy of the data and who has access to it 2. The steps that can be taken to prevent a misinterpretation of the data.

An article that talks about how to view violence in games from a new angle. Violence in videogames can help kids gain practical skills. The mystique of violent and scary themes draws children's natural curiosity, and dealing with it is a part of normal child development. It's not the violence itself that is attractive to kids. It's the opportunity to develop and master skills and have the freedom to make choices in the game universe. Also, the violent games happen to have the most emotional appeal to kids.

An interesting post on games in education that links to many examples for learning to code and mentions some other online educational environments that use gamification.

Hi Stephanie - This article also seems to highlight the extrinsic rewards of points and badges -- calling it "gamification." And given our last conversation in class, I wonder if all the points and badges will kill the intrinsic desire to play the games. Interestingly, there was a comment with a link to another article http://www.hideandseek.net/2010/10/06/cant-play-wont-play/ where the writer notes that some games just use "pointification," and that the best games are the ones that have rich cognitive, emotional and social aspects, with choice and skill... but not dependent on points/badges. In light of our "motivation" conversations, it will be interesting to watch how gaming in the classroom plays out if they are largely point/badges driven.