Week 4 Assignment #2 Gaming Lesson Plan

Below is the link to my Lesson Plan
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NspBG412YLo0vYbj8_oLQf7pNvX6O7sQl0P0Bajnmp0/edit?usp=sharing

Week 4 Assignment # 1 Gaming Literacies

1. What gaming elements provide users the learning content and how?

Gaming Literacy

It is quite evident that digital gaming is already making headway in education. Despite what cynics say about gaming, in the classroom, it can have a significant and positive impact on students. Many of the techniques like choice, challenge, control, collaboration, constructing meaning and consequences can be used to motivate students intrinsically or extrinsically. Furthermore, I believe that other elements like Mystery, Action, Challenge Being at risk, the uncertainty of outcome, the opportunity for mastery, the visible signs of progress and the emotional content are the driving forces behind the success of gaming. Gaming is that tool that all educators can use to keep students engaged and actively participating in their own learning. To me, the more engagement students have, there is a greater motivation in the learning process.Therefore, instead of trying to dissuade them from gaming, we as educators can make the most of students’ passion by creating easy access to gaming. 

Text: The myths are everywhere about gaming but it is clear that gaming can be used to develop new learning environments. It is not a brainless activity like many believe, in fact it is a transactional process that occurs between readers, text, and context to promote critical thinking and problem solving. According to Hsu and Wang; “players need to be able to read text to understand the information presented in the games and they are provided with immediate feedback that helps the players understand rules or functions, narrates the story,and enables characters to converse with one another. Furthermore, in gaming the players need to identify the main idea of textual information and use their prior gaming knowledge and experience to construct meaning and progress through the game.

Visual-graphic elements:The visual graphic element determine the look and feel of the game and make it all the more desirable for children to play. More importantly, the players need to be able to see and interpret the meaning attached to the graphics and animations. They also allow players to have choice and control over what they will do with any new information they receive and help them develop a faster stimulus-response, foster learners’ spatial skills, and detecting information in the visual environment.

Audio elements: To me, a video game’s sound design is one of the most important factors when playing a game. The elements are used to make the gaming experience entertaining and interactive. They serve to immerse the player in the game through dialogue, thematic music, and sound effects. Moreover, game audio and sound design plays an important role in creating a lasting, memorable gaming experience.

2. What is the goal of the game? The name of one of the games my five year old loves is Splash Math (https://www.splashmath.com/teacher/home).The goal of the game is to provide a personalized learning path and practice unlimited Math problems. It gives a real-time reports dashboard and provides exciting and engaging math practice for students.

3. What are the rules of playing this game? The rules of the game is very simple, there are several categories that the child can choose from. Once he selects a category for example Numbers to Ten, Adding or counting with counter, he has to master several skills before moving on. Each activity has several questions that he has to answer, if he gets the answer wrong he gets three chances before the game give him the correct answer. If he gets it right, he is congratulated and given another question.

4. Does this game have any scenario design? (Refer to the journal article page 5.) If yes, is this a fabricated or embedded in curriculum-related content? This game does not have any scenario design.

Week 3 Assignment # 2 Minds- On

Assignment #2 Minds-on “New Literacies Definition and Components.

1 . Which ideas from the PPT reflect what the ELA teachers you interviewed are currently doing to integrate technology with their literacy instruction?

The idea from the PPT that reflects what the English Language Arts(ELA) teacher I interviewed was doing to integrate technology in her literacy instruction is the fact that I saw her use technology (smart board, document camera and various software) as tools to showcases how a laptop complements and extends traditional literacy learning and supports student engagement.

2. How can you help change their instructional practices to include the use of technology and the Internet in their literacy and content-area curriculum?

I can help to change this teacher’s instructional practices in literacy by first of all helping her to understand that her most important role right now is to assist students in becoming critical consumers and informed creators of information in these new online contexts. She can provide instruction in how to critically evaluate the relevancy, accuracy, reliability, and perspective of information created for a range of purposes and audiences. Since, this teacher already use a variety of technology in her classroom, I would suggest using learning centers, writing prompts, graphic organizers, digital worksheets, and Kahoot to supplement what she already uses in her daily routines. Her role is to seek out peers who use ICTs responsibly, actively and share effective strategies applied to a range of literacy purposes and settings.

3. What professional development and/or resources will they need in order to make these changes?

Attempts to integrate ICT into the classroom are influenced by such things as the availability of the necessary technology infrastructure, support for teachers, accessible change models, teachers’ practices, curriculum constraints, assessment practices, education policies, and professional development. Since, this teacher already have the technology infrastructure and she is eager to learn and use technology to enhance her literacy instruction, I would recommend STAR-online which is a web-based Virtual Teaching and Learning Community (VTLC) system, which provides interactive, self-paced, and collaborative development. Also, I would recommend TECHNOSKEPSI, HANDLEARN, and ENVETI because in these programs teachers are taught how to integrate online technologies and web-based tools in their teaching by participating in workshops that are offered face-to-face and supported within an online learning environment.

4. What ideas do you have for grouping students so they will have equal access to technology in the classroom?

When it comes to technology in the classroom, I believe every student should have their individual laptops but because of budgeting constraints many schools are unable to do this. So I recommend grouping students in mixed ability groups where they can help each other navigate the devices as well as the various software used to improve literacy, comprehension and integrate ICT in their classroom.

Week 3 Assignment 1 Theory in Practice

In the article; Literacy Instruction with Digital and Media Technologies by Diane Barone, Todd E. Wright, we see how new literacies can be woven into or implemented into the everyday classroom to motivate students and improve achievement. Many teachers may identify with past models of literacy that are paper and pencil bound; however, with the advent of the internet we have seen a greater demand for students to move in the direction of using innovative text formats like multiple media or hybrid texts; or new reader expectations like reading nonlinearly;as well as new activities like website publication. Therefore, we cannot ignore the changes in literacy emerging from new technologies. Instead, we need to be equipped to incorporate different technological tools into our instruction not only to engage, but to help students learn in a way that is natural for them. Moreover, I believe that preparing our students to understand and adjust to these literacy demands is critical to current and future expectations for pleasure, future college or work. 

Furthermore, In the article; New Literacies and 21st-Century Technologies, by the International Reading Association, the authors posit that the Internet and other forms of information and communication technologies (ICTs) are redefining the nature of reading, writing, and communication. These technology can help to extend traditional literacy experiences with comprehension of information on the Internet; through the effective use of search engines, web pages, email, instant messaging (IM), blogs, podcasts, e-books, wikis, nings, YouTube, video, and databases to locate information; evaluate and synthesize Internet sources, word processing and productivity tools to make charts, graphs, diagrams, or apps like flowcharts, popplets,etc; communicate using e-mails, text,chat, video tools, imaging tools, audio recording tools,etc; as well as to use word processing programs. Moreover, the technology can be used simply in classrooms by accessing the internet on a computer, using a word processor, or presentation software. Technology can also be used to create authentic writing projects, communicate with peers from school and outside of school, and proudly display work for families and friends to see. 

The reality is that even though, literacy educators have a responsibility to integrate these new literacies into the curriculum to prepare students for successful civic participation in a global environment. Many teachers are reluctant or hesitant to use these new technologies because the Internet and other ICTs require new social practices, skills, strategies, and dispositions for their effective use; in other words, teachers have to learn the new technology and then figure out the best way to incorporate it into their teaching and learning activities. Then by the time they learn it and get the handle of the technology it become antiquated because something newer or better has replaced it. Nevertheless, it is crucial that teachers seek out professional development that is personally relevant, actively engaging, and cognizant of the developmental process through which they can integrate technology in their classrooms as well as establish a vision that includes the integration of new literacies within the literacy curriculum because new technologies are here to stay.

To conclude, in the article; Toward a Theory of New Literacies Emerging From the Internet and Other Information and Communication Technologies by Donald J. Leu, Jr., Charles K. Kinzer, Julie L. Coiro, and Dana W. Cammack, it became clear that these new information and communication tools allow us to identify important problems, quickly gather information, critically evaluate the information we locate, synthesize that information into a solution, and then communicate the solution to others. The new literacies required to effectively use ICTs to accomplish these functions are central to success in an information age because it produces critical thinkers and problem solvers.

Week 1 Assignment 1 Voki Introduction

Below is the link to my Voki video
http://tinyurl.com/y6nhm8bz