HGSET545

Got ideas?!

Good summary of the dilemma with iPads and tablets: are they good readers or do that make distractions too available?

Great article. Since readers require a higher degree of motivation when reading any given book on a tablet (to actively ignore distractions), this puts more pressure on publishers/authors to make their content meaningful and engaging. Perhaps this might result in higher standards for books/fewer books being published?

A research article regarding the interesting phenomenon of choosing avatars opposite of your real-life gender.

Children who cannot use a mouse or keyboard can play computer games using their eyes Computer games which can be controlled by eye movements are being developed by researchers at a UK university.

Good article on the issue of divided attention as a consequence of technology-enhanced multitasking in the classroom.

A study on game-based cognitive training and performance.

Panel Discussion at the DML Conference on March 2, 2012

An example of how teachers are using iPads to streamline data collection and analysis

I saw connections between this and Betty's Brain, though SimSchool is intended for actual teachers, rather than motivating students by placing them in the role of teacher. The "How does simSchool work..." and Academic sections were particularly interesting to me. For the teachers in the course, would you find this simulation motivating?

This article breaks down Angry Birds to distill lessons for educators, talking about engagement, mastery, keeping users in the zone of proximal development, and of course, gamification.

This article discusses play in virtual worlds (focusing on World of Warcraft) with an emphasis both on the learning that takes place and the engagement. You'll have to log in with your Harvard ID to get the article, FYI. "Our observation showed that players are motivated by the game's scope, rules, and scenario to create and participate in virtual communities, and share their knowledge with others, while newcomers are encouraged to engage in collective actions, and develop their skill base. We also found that although current MMORPGs have not been designed as instructional tools, they provide an excellent fantasy environment for intrinsically motivating learning, where players can experience the elements of challenge, curiosity, and control [30]." "People engage in pervasive games that use the best of two worlds, the virtual and the physical, in order to offer to its players the sense of maximum enjoyment."

Our schools and system are mostly designed for extroverts and for their need of lots of stimulations. The ideal students in schools are believed to be extroverts although researches show that introverted students tend to be more knowledgable. Instead of emphasizing too much on group work which benefit both extroverts and introverts, schools should also teach students how to work on their own. That's because solitude is critical for creativity and where deep thoughts are formed.

Here is a TEDxBlue talk by Dr. Duckworth on "grit," including overviews of some of her studies.

This article reminds me that not everyone is convinced that video games and other educational technologies belong in the classroom.

Written with Alan Gershenfeld, Founder and President of E-Line Media The White House recently announced two major initiatives in learning and technology -- these "digital seed capital" efforts are "down-payments" to jumpstart innovation and break a two decade long cycle of snail-like reform.

While this article mostly discusses digital textbooks, there is a section devoted to "The Engagement Challenge" and how quality video games can make education more relevant to children.

Common features of successful iphone games.

This is a great overview of connected learning, an initiative/movement to enhance educational experiences

Here is an overview of several theories of motivation, with some tables and simple animations and games illustrating concepts. It addresses a mix of articles and ideas that have come up in class and ones we haven't touched on yet.

Wow! Stephanie, what a fantastic resource! Thanks so much for sharing this with us.

This conversation and the reporting her have more depth.