Kids are told non-stop to put the video game controller down and go outside. Or read a book. Or play with siblings. Video games have gotten a bad reputation as a waste of time, but in the field of education, they just might redeem themselves. The incorporation of games in education has its benefits, including increased learning retention, greater…
Resources and Further Readings on the Benefits of Video Games in Education Many recent articles have been critical of the computer games industry siting evidence of the negative effects of computer games on learning and even on physical and mental health. These studies raise the alarm about how video games lead to addictions, violent behavior, sexism,…
Last time, we featured Ball State University Achievements program coordinator, Scott Reinke to talk about the university’s student engagement app, Ball State Achievements. Developed in-house, the mobile application helps at-risk students engage with the university ecosystem and improve learning outcomes in higher education.
Watch the full interview below to learn about:
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The New York University Polytechnic School of Engineering is a comprehensive university of engineering, applied science, and technology. Its 150 year history of education makes it one of the oldest engineering schools in the United States. With campuses in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai it is also a multi-cultural, global institution.
When the NYU Polytechnic changed their course registration procedure to a more self-service approach, they hoped it would lead students to take more ownership of their course of studies. Whereas before the students would be presented with a schedule and entered into courses by university staff, students would find and register for classes themselves through the new gamified tutorial system.
On the theory that the best way to learn “business” English is by reading the Wall Street Journal and other publications of Dow Jones & Co., the WSJ has launched an online video-driven educational program called Newsmart. A subscription based service, Newsmart proposes to use game based learning to teach business English to non-English speakers by exposing them to actual WSJ articles and videos drawn from the general areas of business, finance and technology news. Once the learner has read or viewed the media, she is guided through an array of exercises intended to test comprehension and to both teach and improve vocabulary and grammar. A beginning user is also offered the opportunity to self-test on a TOEFL interface presumably to assist the student in determining the proper entrance level.
Games in education are nothing new. Because of their strategic nature that they share with subjects such as math, reading and writing, games have been used in the K-12 curriculums for decades. What is new is the use of a specific type of game for these subjects: the video game. This is especially the case with language arts. Like comic books, video games (including computer or PC games) in language arts curriculum have been controversial over whether they’re appropriate learning tools. This is because of the violent and seemingly trivial subject matter that video games have been stereotyped with. Besides this, its very graphic nature, moving pictures, has connoted the video game to be as mind-numbing as television has typically been made to seem. Like TV, the video game has been turned into an enemy of the traditionally more academic medium: the book. But these stereotypes are being broken more and more each day. Video games are showing capability of teaching the necessary literacy skills kids need to survive both in their studies and in the workplace later in life.
Virtonomics is a strategic online business game that gathers over 1 million players worldwide. A virtual economy, fully populated by sentient people – businessmen and businesswomen, entrepreneurs, university and college students and overall smart individuals forming a friendly, business oriented community since the game was released in 2006 , December 11. Players are keen to share their knowledge and experience, explain how to implement successful business strategies and grow your company exponentially.
Part of what makes Texas hold ‘em poker intriguing to watch is that it’s a game where some of the cards are visible to all – both the players in the game and any spectators who are watching. This type of poker is what’s called an imperfect information game – all the players know different pieces of information about the elements in play. This kind of thinking has implications for technology, Slate reports.
In 2014 Notre Dame chose to switch faculty and staff over to Gmail and Google Calendar. At first, they were aiming to train 120 IT professionals how to provide support for the new system. This would enable students and the rest of the faculty and staff to get help when needed.
Although I haven’t been particularly interested in getting my Duo a fancy robe or other sort of outfit, users that get a kick from customizing their avatar probably do so. Let’s take a peek behind this door and imagine for a second the opportunities by further developing user avatars’ customizing options. I wonder if the app creators have considered the business deals that could potentially come together on this end.
The Washington Examiner recently ran a story about a new video game that teaches the United States Constitution by casting the student players in the role of constitutional lawyers. The game is called “Do I Have a Right,” created by a company called iCivics. Playing the game is part of a three-week college-level course run by Georgetown University in Washington D.C. that teaches high school students subjects ranging from international relations to politics as part of a summer program run by the Junior State of America.
Duolingo has become a hot topic in recent reviews that underline both its pioneer path in the demonetization of online education, as well as its success rate since it first launched. Without a doubt, its gamified design plays a significant role in this success, which itself has obtained the attention of investors interested in its expansion. Duolingo is an online application currently available for use in 21 different languages, offering a free learning experience for 13 different languages.
One of the characteristics of autism is the struggle to make and maintain eye contact. That challenge is part of a broader difficulty that autistic children have with social skills. Health care professionals have various ways to help autistic children connect with the world. Samsung is trying to do it with game-based learning.
For many students, a field trip to the museum is a break from the classroom but to others it’s not much more fun than school. However, mobile gamification apps can give students a real escape while engaging them in the subject matter of the museum. These apps can turn museum visits into interactive adventures. Canada Aviation and Space Museum’s Ace Academy is one of these apps. It takes a visitor on a “time-trip” to World War I flight navigation training.
While educational games have a history of contributing positively to student learning, there are cases where something developers perhaps should not have turned into a game. The recent flak over Mission US: Flight to Freedom illustrates the point.
