Hey Melanie, great presentation. This is the second project I have watched that details interactions on reddit. I am seeing more of the value of that space for community interactions. Where else would I have learned that someone had made a song about factoring trinomials? That’s cool. I always liked math, but that would have made learning it more fun. It is great that you felt like part of the community once you started interacting. You mentioned that new ideas presented themselves through your interactions on the space—I love when that happens. That’s the great thing about these communities, brainstorming anything becomes less of a chore. You are usually able to, at the very least, glean a hint of an idea. You made a comment about how you felt like you didn’t have much to contribute because you don’t have years of experience teaching—I think we all feel, or have felt that way at different points in our lives. I get that feeling every day, but those feelings are usually unwarranted. The positive experience you had with your subreddit is encouraging. I like how you described the idea of games and learning and that we should think about what “game” really means. Awesome work!

I wonder if a game with a more focused intent would be an effective simulation and get the player more involved.

Interesting thoght. Great way to support a message and get the word out.

That does sound really interesting. Utilizes many of the resource management ideas that are present in many games and placed in a real-world context.

You're not alone. I didn't either. The readings provided some insight into a world I know little about, but I didn't connect with them.

That is a good point. I wonder sometimes if moderators are more worried about nitpicking things like posts being in the wrong spot than the overall behavior of the community.

I see this result as the player's mind surpassing the dull slowness of real life. Playing games influences thinking speed. You have to learn to process information and make decisions quickly to suceed. Serious gamers don't have the patience to deal with the vapid nature of reality. They require more stimulating input than mere non-gaming humans :)

Interesting setup. If any class could use a change in methods, it is math. Yawn.

It is if you don't know how you learn new things and process that information. Where do you start? Am I understanding what I am expected to? I have found through this degree program that I am able to manage just fine, although the added social connectivity we practice via Twitter and Hypothesis is a great help.

Thanks for giving us a perspective of the disappointing and functional issues of an affinity space. I like to learn what works as well as what does with any system.

This kind of thing usually turns me off of any site when I run into them.

It takes someone to drive the discussion, to encourage people to want to contribute and bring others into the disussion(s). I agree with you about status acheivements helping to engage more folks.

I have found this to be the case in any of the creative communities I have either participated in, or browsed through.

It sure is.

I think it is all of the above as well. If the badges give you something to achieve that motivates you learn something new, well that's a plus.

That's a cool feature of the space. It is similar guild ranks in pretty much any MMO game like World of Warcraft. Guild members can be promoted by the owner of the guild, giving that member more responsibility and ways to contribute to the guild.

Those who hold to these regressive ideas are lashing out--a cornered dying animal in its last death throes.

As I see most video games.

I have said this before: Violent media is a reflection of our violent culture. Not the other way around. We are constantly at war with someone, or something.

I think it is brilliant. Use the game to send a message and take out some agression at the same time. Since it isn't purdent to smack ignorant people upside the head in real life.

This is amusing. Seniors playing Grand Theft Auto V.

https://youtu.be/KHoOrFdgYR8

I think our attitudes toward assessment have to change along with our ideas of teaching. I feel it is difficult to evaluate a students' understanding of an idea through game-based learning with a straightforward quantitative test.

great list of the pros.

It sucks that you have to dig a bit to find the original poster's thread to get the gist of what is being said--then you miss out on what has been going on while you were digging about.

That's something that has irked me too, but I have slowly come to terms with it.

I need to join one some time.

That's neat. Cost effective field trip.

I doubt it. I don't watch where I am going and fall down crevices every time.

yup, or they get are denied any of the loot.

Any raid that I have been involved with--it took 2-3 hours just to get the thing going. So much arguing, shuffling players' groups, etc. I don't have that kind of time.

now that is cool. I haven't come across anything like that in the WoW forums. You can find vids on YouTube, but that doesn't get you into the content first-hand.

Same thing with Warcraft.It's irritating.

I see nothing wrong with this. All writing has an agenda, but to complain that someone is producing content with the aim of social justice is warped thinking. I do agree that being in bed with the industry and not disclosing those ties is unethical.

I wouldn't have thought of this, but it makes sense. I would decline as well.

If I post about a product, I make a note that it is not a sponsored article--I just happen to like whatever it is

That does sound like a great idea.

Brilliant! I've let my skills pretty much wither and die. It's been over twenty years, but I have to get back in the habit. I miss it.

Having to be involved in all the administrative tasks rather than the creative ones, you find yourself removed from you initial passion. It is easy to slip into that rut.

Those that exclude just need to stop being obnoxious weiners about everything.

Many male gamers think that they are part of a special breed, better than everybody else just because they might be good at pressing buttons on a controller. It's nonsense and makes for a toxic environment.

You see this in all facets of society. It is childish, shelfish, and greedy. Me, me, me, mine, mine, mine. Rubbish.

It confuses me as well. A lot of ugliness swirling about out there.

this is a good rule to have. would make a more coherent discussion space.

well stated

Depends on how you define success. I would say that the model has been passable at best. It has been, in general, the only model we have had.

It's bound to happen. I get thumbs downs on my youtube from time to time. Just post stuff and keep posting stuff. You will have more positive than negative responses.

understandable way to equalize the parcipants and keep the focus on the material.

clever idea

I am sure it was more memorable for them making it easier to recall the context and what was being taught.

by the end of this course we will have harnessed this power in order to destroy the galaxy. Wait, I think I got that wrong...

There is some great artwork produced for games. The concept work alone is impressive. There is a lot for kids to emulate and study with that genre of digital art.

great analogy.

It's nice to have the control over the difficulty and sometimes even the parameters of the game itself.

I do to. A lot of games have started using loading screens for tips about the upcoming mission, or the game in general. They also usually use concept, or other artwork for something to look at too.

I only played the first starcraft. The second one is enticing too. Including that kind of complex information for a game is nice for reference and learning more about how to get better along with just playing the game.

just save it frequently. Game crashing on any system is an inevitability.

I appreciate games that give a lot of options for creating a character. It makes the game world more diverse and allows for more personal expression. Though sometimes all of those options can be overwhelming and I will just pick a random configuration to just get into the game.

I tried the first one out and thought it was interesting. I got silly with it by testing the system. I built four walls around one of the sims to see what would happen, give them no way to clean dishes, or just let the trash pile up.

The first thing I think of when I hear "card-game" is "boring." But there are some complex ones out there. This sounds like one. I have gotten into Magic the Gathering battle card game a bit recently.

As long as a game has the history, names, dates, etc. correct, then they can be great for education. The actual design of the game is a whole other matter.

You would start to see patterns emerge and repeated through the course of the games. The outcomes of those patterns give you insight in to what you can do the next time around.

Just made me think of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn

https://youtu.be/Xa6c3OTr6yA

Humane behavior is detrimental to conflict. Everybody can win much more through mutual respect, cooperation and collaboration. But greed is a difficult beast to kill.

I used to play a large board game called Axis&Allies. the context of the game was WWII and the five factions would battle it out with troops, tanks, airforce, and naval ships. Sometimes games could last more than three hours.

Risk can get that way. ruthless.

Minecraft is a pretty deep game. Players have to manage resources, craft items for building and survival. You can even create complex circuit and switch systems for various reasons. It really engages the imagination as you can build and create what you need to get whatever job done you want in the game.

I play around with the game every now and then. I even got to create a short course for summer camp kids to teach them 3d animation using Minecraft characters and envrionment. Minecraft is used in education as well.

https://education.minecraft.net/

there is little evidence of this assumption. Of the tens-of-thousands of kids who play violent video games you'd think that there would be utter chaos in the streets. I am sure there is an effect on impressionable minds. I see violent video games a reflection of our violent war-obsessed culture we live in which kids are exposed to on a daily basis. We have elevated violence to an interactive art form through video games.

the basis of the whole "but school is boring" sentiment.

that's the one question that I would like the answer to. Of course there is no one right answer as every need and every game will be different. We will have to create answers that are conditional to the context they are applied.

It is great for people with overactive imaginations. Helps feed that hunger

It is interesting--destroying monsters and saving the universe with complete strangers is a hoot.

I wonder what kind of effects these types of games can have on reading for learners. The social dynamic opens up the experience than a single-player experience.

I can see how the engaging nature of video games can keep the learner's interest to the reading.

There are a lot of games that I zoom past the reading so I can get to the pewpew and fun stuff. But you miss out on much of the story that way. The final fantasy games and other rpgs I always read though.

I'm looking forward to the remake...

FFVII--such a great game

I didn't thing it would be entertaining either, but found myself watching and enjoying it.

I have heard guild wars 2 has a great community. I kind of got turned off by the WoW community when many people really got uppity about things and just couldn't enjoy the game. They took it far to seriously. It's a game. Have fun.

But that is when I started to realize that I was interested in observing the behaviors and analyzing in a way how the dynamic worked in MMOs

I am a console junkie, so I end up trading games in after a bit. I only own a handful at any time. Steam is a great platform. Great deals quit often.

Haven't played it, but looks fun.

back in the day, I really liked that game. It was challenging and kept my interest even when everybody died. I remeber hunting rabbits, or deer, or something.

Depends on the design of the game, but both characteristics can be true.

I am insterested in how gaming can empower adults' learning as well.

I heard this comment from a few people that they aren't into gaming, but they play games on their devices.

It's a weird feeling, isn't it? That is one of the reasons I play video games. Keeps my mind exercised.

The one thing that a lot of people lose as they get older, yet I think it is the most important thing to retain.

I remember arguing politics with another player in World of Warcraft. We clashed a bit, but when it came to accomplishing a shared goal in the game those differences were gone for the moment.

I tend to focus on those aspects as well when I am playing or watching video games. I like to examine narrative and storytelling in games.

Goes to show what an impact games (video games in this instance) can have on players. I have had emotional reactions to games, not to the point of running to my parents bedroom--i was too old for that, but impactful moments that I still remember.

There are thousands out there that stream their gameplay for others to watch. You can find these streams on YouTube or Twitch.tv

I thought it was a novelty at first, but come to realize that it's a real thing that many people enjoy.

Our system of education should nurture these individual passions, so they don't get lost in the quagmire of life.

Well stated. Ignoring this is counter-productive and will only hinder their growth, turning them into bitter, cynical creatures like me :)

Not being an educator myself, It helps to get that first-hand perspective.

No. Do your multiplication tables. That may be an old reference :)

Good way to put it. "games", or "play" don't have to mean the type of games you listed above. I feel like I am playing when I am creating graphics, or writing. So competition, winning, or success aren't necessarily the purpose of games or play.

This describes many learning journeys I have been on. I hope that this isn't the case for you with this class.

Daily Create: show us a martian https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/756637335320600576

Daily Create: contrasting emotions https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/755847576608382976

Daily Create: design a really bad logo https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/755847161841983488

great comparison.

I applaud your openess in inviting discussion regarding this affront. It is the only way to move forward and hopefully change some minds for the better in the process. I can only hope to aspire to be as forgiving in situations such as this :)

That's ridiculous. The only thing that comes to mind is "to hell with them." I know, that's maybe not the most articulate way to express frustration, but I have always reacted to reppresive authority in this way--don't try to shut me up or dumb me down. Yes my take may offend 'others,' but--tough.. And for the sake of everyone else involved in or reading this discussion: the views expressed in this comment are solely those of me: Brian Rocz aka Rocz3D.

Another Daily Create https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/753364847840985088

Daily Create 2: Retro Power! https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/753004636517330948

Daily Create 1 https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/752664771355242496

I know! I love all space stuff. I was glued to the tv when the first Mars rover landed and they waited for the first images to come back.

Daily Create 2! https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/752173381793947652

Daily Create 1 for the week: young me, now me

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/751215337488527360

Forgot to put the link to a Daily Create yesterday.

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/749327471594450949

How about another TDC https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/747921459050217472

1st Daily Create for the week

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/747851031569018880

My second Daily Create

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/747142554102075393

Public Service Announcement Daily Create

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/745394033803960324

The Daily Create I did yesterday and forgot to post here.

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/744757456853622784

Today's Daily Create. A "remix" I did a while ago while testing out a plugin for Blender.

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/742849700215197696

I was looking for a pulp book cover for this Daily Create, but... https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/742527165774761985

Daily Create: What's on the Dark Side of the Moon?

https://twitter.com/Rocz3D/status/742174171635941380

my daily create

https://soundcloud.com/brian-rocz/5-sounds-that-shouldnt-go-together

My first daily create.

https://soundcloud.com/brian-rocz/5-sounds-that-shouldnt-go-together