MUVEs are Flying into the Classroom

Walk, Fly, or Teleport to Learning: Virtual Worlds in the Classroom by Maureen Brown Yoder

This article discussed how virtual worlds are improving the classroom setting. Many teachers are finding that virtual games known as multiuser virtual environments (MUVEs) can actually provide more for students than traditional teaching methods. Hurricane Katrina: Tempest in Crescent City, Ayiti: The Cost of Life and Teen Second Life are all MUVEs that have already been incorporated into the classroom setting. These games were created by the cooperation of Global Kids and GamePill who share the mission of informing the youth about leadership, as well as social and global issues. "Virtual worlds can provide an assortment of learning opportunities, from identity formation to social networking, entrepreneurial skills, and financial literacy," says Barry Joseph, director of Global Kids’ Online Leadership Program. " Students are soaking up the knowledge that stems from these MUVEs. Teenagers from New York and Chicago were selected to participate in a summer camp called I Dig Tanzania back in 2008. While at camp, the students explored “Tanzania’s culture, politics, and scientific research while they explored Second Life. Students drove their virtual jeeps through Virtual Tanzania and saw animated lions, giraffes, elephants, and hippos. They spoke with the international research team in Tanzania via Skype and debated the topic of ecotourism at Serengeti and Mount Kilimanjaro. Then they discussed paleontology and planned a fossil dig.” This article demonstrated the benefit and knowledge of fusing MUVEs into the curriculum.

Although this article was similar to another one that I have read and posted on, I still decided to post about this article because it further demonstrated what MUVEs are truly capable of. I hope that I will be able to use this form of technology in my future classroom. I really liked the idea of incorporating Skype into a lesson plan. I was thinking that I could have my students play one of these MUVEs that will teach about a different country. Obviously, before this lesson plan I would set up a time and date to have a Skype interview with professors at a university in that country. After I have the students play their in their virtual world, I would have the students interview the professors. This will allow students to ask questions, learn what the country is truly like, while making real-world connections. Most technologies have a use in the classroom; we just have to find it!

Laptops: The New Way of Test Taking

Assessment Made Easy by Andrew A. Zucker

In Colorado, the Denver School of Science and Technology (DSST) has adopted a new method of assessment. Each student who attends DSST receives a laptop where they may do their work, but more importantly take their exams. Teachers are capable of inserting multiple choice, short answer and even essay questions into a program that is installed on every computer and laptop at DSST. What the instructors have discovered about this program is that it is extremely beneficial to their classroom and teaching. The student’s exams are graded immediately and results are sent to the teacher, except for the essays, which allows teachers to recognize where the students are falling behind, and the instructors are capable of re-teaching that material the very same day. Also, teachers are using these one-on-one laptops in language arts. Students can write a paragraph or essay and submit it to their teachers that day in class. After teachers receive the assignment, they are capable of pulling up any assignment and displaying it from their projector without showing the students’ name. This allows the teacher to edit a person’s work the same day with the help of the class. Teachers are pleased with this option because it allows them to cover the entire writing process in one day. Also, these laptops are being used for science purposes. In laboratory settings, students can complete their lab assignment, and as they do so, their results can be immediately uploaded to their laptops. Using this one-on-one method of assessment has had positive effects on the students and teachers of DSST, connecting the student to their work in an unconventional way.

This assessment program reminds me of the WebCt and clicker systems that are used here at our school. The program that is installed on these laptops allows for a combination of taking quizzes/exams with immediate results, but also the program allows students to have class discussions and submit assignments. I found this to be an interesting technique to be used in the classroom, and is something I would consider employing in the future. Using this form of assessment would allow me to spend less time grading, and more time focusing on the subject matters and topics that students are falling behind in. I thought that one way I may adapt this for a science class is by having students complete their labs. As the students work, their results would be uploaded to a computer. Afterwards, I would have students search the internet to discover if their results were correct or skewed. As a closing assignment, I might have students type up a short reflection on what their results were compared to the results they should have discovered. Once they complete their reflection, they would submit it to me via the program. This would allow me to cover multiple subjects, from science to writing all in one class setting. I believe that this program is very beneficial to teachers as it will cut down grading time, and allow teachers to have neatly written assignments; educators would no longer have to struggle through sloppy handwriting if reports and papers were submitted electronically. I hope that one day we will all have the opportunity to use a program such as this to improve teaching within our own classrooms.

Video Podcasts Mix Up the Classroom Scene

Remixing Chemistry Class by Jonathan Bergmann and Aaron Sams

Remixing Chemistry Class was about two chemistry teachers in Colorado who were fed up with how their class time was spent with the students. After reviewing the previous night’s homework and providing the students with a lecture on a new topic, both Bergmann and Sams only had about thirty minutes for the students to complete actual lab work. During their class, Bergmann and Sams were not capable of giving all the students the individual attention they needed- so they remixed how their chemistry classes were taught. Bergmann and Sams decided to add a bit of technology to their classes in the form of vodcasts (video podcasts). These two teachers would record their lectures, and then post them online so that students could watch the lecture before coming to class. This allows Bergmann and Sams’ class time to be more devoted to student questions and lab work, without the lecture. For students who do not have internet or computers at home, the teachers had DVDs and CDs available to those students. Also, Bergmann and Sams could see who was watching the videos and who was not. What students, teachers and parents enjoyed the most about adding the vodcast element to the classroom was that students who were struggling received more one-on-one and individualized time with the instructors. Also, for students who understood the material, they were capable of working independently, and even moving ahead so they were not being held back due to the lack of classroom time.

I found adding vodcasts to the classroom to be a very inventive and creative idea. Vodcasts are great because they allow students to rewind, replay and revisit subject material that students find difficult or confusing. I truly believe that as educators, we need to have more student-centered activities in the classroom- and vodcasts are perfect for student-centered learning. If the funding and technology is available, I will definitely incorporate vodcasts into my classroom. I will have students watch my lecture as homework. As students are watching and listening to my vodcast, I will have some interactive worksheet available both online and as a hardcopy so that I can make sure my students are watching the vodcasts, as well as understanding them. I find this idea to have the best interest of the students at heart, and will benefit the students as it will allow students who are dedicated to learning to excel, and students who are struggling to have the attention and help they need. I believe that vodcasts will one day be an essential learning tool in all classrooms as more class time will be able to be spent on actual work and hands-on activities.

Gaming Today While Learning for Tomorrow

Web 2.0: Today’s Technologies, Tomorrow’s Learning by Jennifer Groff and Jason Haas

When I read this article, I immediately became a fan. Why not bring what students are comfortable and accustomed to inside the classroom? Video games are starting to hold a new purpose - allow students to experience situations that would not normally be permitted or physically permissible in the confines of a small classroom. According to the article, there are video games that deal with forest fire, evolution, and diplomacy. In such video games, students are capable of observing the damage forest fires can cause , and what effect they have on the surrounding environment. Students are able to observe evolution first hand without having to wait generations to examine the evidence and results. Also in diplomacy games, students can role play as they rule their own country while trying to negotiate with other diplomats (their classmates). Other games permit students to live in poverty, while trying to make real life decisions such as education, careers, purchases and healthcare. I believe that these video games will one day be an essential tool in the classroom. Role playing games are capable of giving students a real-life scenario and allowing them to solve problems where there is no “one correct answer.” These games also teach conceptual knowledge while allowing students to negotiate with one another and themselves. Tomorrow, video games will instigate students to learn cause and effect, how to prioritize, science and other life lessons that educators often find difficult to communicate. I believe that video games such as these have the potential to be very educational.

I would love to incorporate video games into the classroom. I remember playing a computer game called The Oregon Trail when I was an elementary student, and I enjoyed it. Playing a game and learning about the Oregon Trail was much more impacting than having a teacher lecture on the topic. I experienced starvation, disease, and wariness all because of a game - and I still remember it to this day. This is why I would allow students to play a video game in my classroom, while adapting the lesson. First, I would have students use the internet to research the time era, and history of the location and people in the video game so that they would have a better understanding of where their character in the game is coming from. I would then permit students to play the game for maybe 45 minutes, two times per week. At the end of each 45 minute period, I would split students into groups so that they may reflect on the choices they had to make, and how that impacted what had occurred. Students would share their results, and discuss what they might have done differently, knowing the impact their choice had. I would also, ask the students to discuss what was going on around them, and if that had any impact on the decisions they did or did not make. I would have students reflect on what they learned, etc. Afterwards, I would open the questions up for a class discussion, so that the class may be familiar with the other scenarios that took place. I feel that a video game could be a useful tool when teaching a subject that is hard to communicate, or if it would be more beneficial for the students to have a first-hand experience in that subject area. My only concern is that video games may be expensive; however I feel the outcome would be worthwhile.

Chatting My Way

Chatting It Up Online: Students Talk to a Favorite Author by Pamela Livingston

I found the article “Chatting It Up Online” to be very insightful. Before, I had never considered incorporating online chats into the classroom due to the nature of certain chat rooms; however, I now realize that it is actually possible to establish a chat room for educational purposes. What I found most interesting about this article is that this teacher was able to truly bring reading alive by connecting literature with the outside world. I feel that through the students’ ability to “chat” with the author, they were not only better able to understand the author, but the students were also able to form an even closer connection to their books and their reading. Due to this experience, these 3^rd grade boys will have formed a positive, fun memory that could potentially be very motivational and inspiring to the students. I believe that when teachers can think outside of the box and are able to connect a subject with an outside source, the students are impacted much deeper, and what they learn has much more meaning to them. Since these students conversed with the author on a more personal basis, it allowed the words to jump of the pages in Osborne’s books, allowing students to become even further involved in their reading and learning. I suggest as future teachers we should strive to make assignments a fun and enjoyable experience, as in this case, so that the children will become excited, igniting future goals and dreams.

I would definitely incorporate an assignment such as this into my classroom. If I could set up an online chat with a classroom’s favorite author, I would run it similar to the chat that was experienced by the 3^rd grade class at Chestnut Hill Academy. I would allow students to use the computer to type their questions to the author. I would give innuendos to ask questions about what goes into the writing process, what it takes to be an author, where does the author’s motivation come from, etc. so that the students have a feel for what it takes to publish a book. After their chat, I would reflect with the class about the experience and what they learned as opposed to what they thought they knew. I would adapt this lesson plan to make it my own by having the students create and “publish” their own books. I would have an assignment were the students brainstorm book topics and ideas. I would allow students to use the internet to discover and learn more about their favorite books. Over the course of the school year I would have my students write their books- a page or two here and there. Down the road, I would have students edit their own work, as well peer edit the works in their class. After many editing sessions, I would have students type their books and find pictures to accompany their stories online. I would allow the children to research online what should be included in a book, for example a title page and a table of contents. At the end of the school year, with the books complete, I would have the books bound and allow the students to share their stories with the class. I believe with an assignment such as this, the children would be able to learn about literature and writing while incorporating technology into this century old subject.

The relevant ISTE NETS standard is NETS-4.