Over the past eight weeks, I have gathered and experienced more applicable knowledge than in any other course I have taken (and that is saying a lot). I am always searching for new technology to integrate into my methodologies, but my search has constantly been alone or unsupported. I am one of the few teachers in my building that sees technology as an asset to student learning as opposed to a headache to the teacher. Even though many times incorporating the new technologies has been a difficult, bumpy road, I have always reaped the benefits of student motivation and engagement in the end. I realize that I have a big responsibility to my colleagues and the rest of the student body in my school to break down the negative stigma surrounding technology and its application in the classroom, but I feel well-prepared to take the nay-sayers head-on and make believers out of them. The tools I have to share this upcoming school year are nothing short of amazing and exciting. I am confident I can at least change a couple of minds, or sway some people to try some new things.
One new idea I feel very comfortable sharing with my colleagues is the use of digital gaming in the classroom. I understand the application completely, and I know the reception will be positive. Even if technology causes apprehension, my colleagues understand what motivates junior high students, and incorporating a learning tool that is disguised as a recreational activity is genius. Maybe my favorite quote concerning the implementation of digital gaming is
“…[C]hallenge and learning are a large part of what makes good video games motivating and entertaining.” (p. 34).
The plan I created during week six and seven will help me to share my excitement with my peers and show that this technique is easy to implement and accomplishes what we are all setting out to do: engage students in innovative, exciting learning opportunities. It is easy to argue the value of a tool that has such high teaching/learning potential. While students are playing, they are learning key concepts, and while they are learning, they are practicing necessary 21st century skills. I found value in all the new, emerging technologies we learned about during this course, but I am not as sure of my own application of tools like MUVEs. Though I find MUVEs intriguing and appealing, I have little personal experience with them. I plan on becoming much more familiar with them, and I am sure I will be able to find multiple ways of incorporating them into my classroom and share them with my colleagues. Overall, I am thrilled at the outcomes of this course; I have a lot of great new ideas and teaching tools that I did not have prior. I have not been this excited for the start of a new school year in a while!
Reference:
Gee, J.P. (2005). Good video games and good learning. Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 85(2), 33-37.
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