So, as we have learned from our readings by McGonigal, she has some wonderful ideas about how game theory applies to real life. I don’t know whose post it was, but someone mentioned not knowing anything about the gaming world and totally getting it after reading McGonigal. Well, I am in the same boat. I am not a gamer, never really have been since Super Nintendo when I was a kid, and don’t know anything about, or keep up with, the new games. The only gaming knowledge I currently contain is from my boyfriend, who is a gamer. Not that that’s a bad thing. I went into the gaming section of our class being a little hesitant since I am not a fellow gamer, but reading McGonigal’s work has definitely peaked my interest. I even started taking a little more interest in my boyfriend’s gaming activities and asking him questions about how his games work, applying my new found knowledge to what he was telling me. I have told him about what we are doing in class and the book and am hoping I can convince him to read it… or at least some it, which I think he’ll appreciate.

Jane explains game concepts in a way I thought I would never in a million years know or care about since I’m not part of the gaming society, but I definitely have an interest in it now. Not to say that I’ve suddenly started playing games consistently, but I have actually played a few games with my boyfriend that I found interesting and was able to pick up on some of the game theories Jane was talking about. I’m even more interested now that we are actually using some of our new found knowledge to a game that will be played by real people.  So, I’m a little nervous about suggesting things, only because I’m not an expert on the gaming theory or world, but I have definitely thought of a few things that could, potentially, work or at least lead to bigger and better ideas.

So, I am really excited about this whole “Zombie Apocalypse”, but I am also really excited for, and have a few ideas for, the CLUE idea. I don’t know which one would be more fun, but they both seem like pretty strong options to explore and see what will, or can, work. I was always a fan of playing CLUE as a kid (and even to this day and age, even though I’m not very good at it). I thought, in order to make a real life version of this, we need to have some physical objects and locations that could lead the players/victims/students around the campus and community to start getting them familiar with their new home town. I also thought about the fact that there will probably be somewhat of a time restriction, so I thought of something that may work.

For the CLUE “rooms”: they could be buildings on campus +/or businesses that are willing to be a position.

“Weapons”: school related objects such as a pencil/pen, a laptop, lanyard, a full Kleen Kanteen, a heavy backpack full of text books

Suspects: A professor, Willie the Wild Cat, an intern, a student, a janitor, the president of the school

Everyone is pretty entertained by the idea of duping the students…which I am too, so I also think we should start them out in a boring lecture hall, such as one of the large ones at the PAC, and maybe talk about GE requirements or something rather boring. Then there’s a phone call about a murder. We’d have to think of how to get them on board with being the ones who should solve the crime though. Maybe something like “We don’t want the campus/community/police to know about this, so why don’t we work on figuring this out together (or something less cheesy than that).

So, they could start out in teams, instead of individual players. Each business/building can have one card to reveal, just as each player has multiple cards when starting out, and maybe even contain some kind of fact about school, the community, or the item on the card.

By visiting each location, the group will be able to eliminate some of their options until they have it figured out and the answer packet will be in one set location such as the BMU (for example).

They are not allowed to share answers with other groups and the first group to figure it out gets awarded….somehow. I haven’t thought about that part yet.

There are a lot of details to work out, which would come later if we decided on the CLUE option, but I think it has potential to be fun, get them to visit certain spots around Chico, and get them familiar with people, places, and things that they will see in, on, and around the campus and community.

I don’t know if this will pan out as well as the Zombie Apocalypse idea, which is also pretty awesome, but there’s a possibility it could work. Either way, I bet we’ll all come up with some pretty great ideas to make it fun, interesting, and unknowingly educational for them.

-Teri Snow

One of the quotes that caught my attention from Wenger’s article was on pg. 4, concerning the the nature of knowledge. It was her second point that made me stop and think for a moment about how knowledge can be defined “Knowledge is a matter of competence with respect to valued enterprises- such as singing in tune, discovering scientific facts, fixing machines, writing poetry…and so forth”. I felt this is a great way to think of defining knowledge to someone, especially to a student who may feel as though they are not knowledgeable. Not everyone can be smart at everything, but individuals can be knowledgeable about a hobby, way of doing something, or be knowledgeable about how things work, such as the mechanics example. I just felt inspired by this quote because there are times when I don’t feel very smart when doing something, such as math problems, and feel as though I’m not knowledgeable, but I now feel more confident in knowing for myself, and being able to encourage students, that just because they/I struggle in a course does not mean we lack knowledge, it’s just that we aren’t familiar with or are just having a little trouble with the struggles endured in that course, but we can feel confident knowing that we are full of knowledge in other areas of our lives. The other points Wenger brought up have been pretty genius as well, but this one struck a particular chord with me and made me aware of how knowledge can be defined.

Another quote I found intriguing to my current learning experience of teaching was on pg. 10, discussing how there is no one way of learning and that we should break the traditional learning style of lecturing to students. “What does look promising are inventive ways of engaging students in meaningful practices, providing access to resources that enhance their participation, opening their horizons so they can put themselves on learning trajectories they can identify with, and of involving them in actions, discussions, and reflections that can make a difference to the communities that they value”. What I liked about this quote is how it resonates with today’s learning styles and the fact that they are constantly evolving, especially when you include the many resources online. While there is still a lot of debate about the distractions with social media and video sites, that’s no reason to dismiss all the positive resources that are online for students. Utilizing those “distracting sites” could be something to consider using in a class room too. For example, if students are using laptops in the classroom and are working on a project that requires the use of that laptop, this would be a great opportunity to have students see the beneficial, and educational/social side of those sites. With Facebook being one of those distractions, let’s say you have a social studies class and want a public opinion. You can make a game out of these sites by having students post a question that is school related, see how many responses they get from that question, then do a blog post or short write on what they discovered from that question.

One of the benefits to learning and education now is that it is changing and there are so many sources, both educational, entertaining, and social wise, that can keep students involved. As we have discovered over time, the less interested a student is in what they are learning, the less engaged they will be and are not actually learning anything, which is detrimental to the student and teacher. It should be an experience where the teacher/professor is teaching something that students will walk away from the class with some knowledge of. I know, not every student is going to enjoy what they are learning in a class and it’s almost impossible to find a way to teach a subject that all students will learn from, but the more effort you put into finding an interactive or somewhat entertaining way, the more likely your students are to pay attention to you. As long as you can find a good balance between education and some form of entertainment, you will lead a successful class and your students will walk away from that class with at least a portion of what you were trying to engrave in their brains. That was a little bit of a rant, but I was mostly trying to point out/get at the fact that Wenger is discussing how we need to rethink about how we look at/define knowledge and learning and that we, as teachers, need to think outside the classroom box and get creative with how we educate students.

 

 

 

Hello all! My name is Teri Snow, I’m 26 years old, am a Senior, and am graduating this Spring with my BA in English Ed (finally)! I was a Music Minor, but ran out of time to finish the last few classes, so will have to complete that at a later time :( I originally wanted to be a music teacher, but CA does not seem to appreciate that art form as much as they used to, or should, so I decided to teach my other passion, English, and maybe find a way to teach music on the side, as in a Music Appreciation class, or find a way to incorporate it into my English classes, so we shall see how that goes. I am ridiculously excited to be a teacher in the somewhat near future and get super excited when people tell me “I can totally see you as a teacher” or, even better, “You’ll be a great teacher”.

When I’m not working at one of the many good old neighborhood Starbucks locations or in school, I like to get outdoors, go hiking, go for a bike ride, hang out at Bidwell and read, or even just go for a little walk. When I’m feeling especially lazy, I like to stay indoors and read, watch Netflix or movies, pig out, or mess around on the computer. I love meeting new people and getting to know others, so don’t be afraid to hit me up for a cup of coffee or something. I look forward to getting to know everyone and getting through this semester so I can take the next big step, the Credential Program. See you all around!