Gaming
From TechHelp
The idea of gaming in education has been around for a long time. Whether it is board type games or computer games what is the value of these games?
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[edit] Gaming Genres
Video games have evolved into a rich medium containing many genres of games. While there are many video game genres we will look at some general genres in this article. Many games fit more than one genre of games.
[edit] Strategy Games
- "The game is an addictive blend of building, exploration, discovery and conquest. Players match wits against some of history's greatest leaders as they strive to build the ultimate civilization to stand the test of time." [1]
- "The new game picks up where Age of Empires II: Age of Kings left off, placing gamers in the position of a European power determined to explore, colonize and conquer the New World. This time period features stunning scenes, from towering European cathedrals to courageous tribes of Native Americans, and spectacular combat with Industrial Age units like rifled infantry, cavalry and tall ships bristling with cannons." [2]
[edit] First Person Shooters
- "Throughout each battle, teams establish bases, deploy defense structures, artillery, radar, and advanced forward-command systems into enemy territory while constructing and demolishing obstacles to speed progress and gain a tactical advantage over the enemy."[3]
- "The player again picks up the crowbar of research scientist Gordon Freeman, who finds himself on an alien-infested Earth being picked to the bone, its resources depleted, its populace dwindling. Freeman is thrust into the unenviable role of rescuing the world from the wrong he unleashed back at Black Mesa. And a lot of people he cares about are counting on him." [4]
[edit] Simulation
Simulation games are intended to simulate real life experiences, skills, strategy, though processes, and interaction, such as flying a plane or building a city. In simulations the actions players take have consequences inside the simulation rather than in real life. Simulations may be based on the real world or a fictional world.[5]
- Gamers and simmers of all ages and skill levels feel firsthand what it’s like to be an aviator traveling the globe solo or online with others.[6]
- "WWII in the Pacific challenged pilots and machines as never before. ...Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 2 takes you back to this historic time and place with exquisitely detailed aircraft, cockpits, and scenery." [7]
- "Crank Up the Volume and prepare to rock around the globe with Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. Battle against some of the greatest legends to ever shred on a guitar and become one yourself. Take your shredding skills online against other Guitar Hero players from around the world. Grab your Guitar Hero Wireless Les Paul or Kramer® Striker Guitar Controller and unleash your inner rock legend."[8]
[edit] Sports
[edit] Virtual Worlds
- Students work together in small research teams to help the town understand why residents are becoming ill. Students use technology to keep track of clues that hint at causes of illnesses, form and test hypotheses, develop controlled experiments to test their hypotheses, and make recommendations based on the data they collect, all in an online environment.
- Your little band of villagers has washed up on a remote island, and they’re lost and confused. Now what? There are two basic objectives in Virtual Villagers: successfully managing the day-to-day routine of your little band of castaways, so that they are able to thrive in their new home, and unlocking the mysteries of Isola. Can also be played in Spanish, French, and German (Japanese is coming soon). Designed for middle and high school ages.
- Children's Virtual Worlds
- Webkinz
- Webkinz pets are lovable plush pets that each come with a unique Secret Code. With it, you enter Webkinz World where you care for your virtual pet, answer trivia, earn KinzCash, and play the best kids games on the net. Designed for 6-14 year olds.
- Club Penguin
- Club Penguin is a snow-covered, virtual world where children play games and interact with friends in the guise of colorful penguin avatars. Designed for 6 -14 year olds.
- Whyville
- Whyville is a virtual world where boys and girls from all over the real world come to chat, play, learn, and have fun together as citizens. You design your face, earn clams by playing games, hang out at the beach, and go to town events at the Greek Theater. You can start your own business, buy a car and give your friends a ride, or write for the town newspaper. Educator resources available. Designed for middle school.
Need Editing
- Whyville
- Whyville was launched in 1999 by Numedeon, Inc. to apply over 20 years of research in education and cooperative learning to develop new web-based tools for education. Whyville is a virtual world where boys and girls from all over the real world come to chat, play, learn, and have fun together. You design your face, earn clams by playing games, hang out at the beach, and go to town events at the Greek Theater. You can start your own business, buy a car and give your friends a ride, or write for the town newspaper. In Whyville, citizens earn a salary of "clams", our virtual currency, by participating in a wide range of educational games and activities.
They include:
- The Skater
- is a simulation-based game on angular momentum. It challenges you to answer the question, How do skaters get spinning so fast?
- The Spin Game
- extends the Skater activity by addressing the issue of rotational axes and symmetries.
- The House of Illusion
- is an exhibit on visual illusions.
- The Sun Spot Puzzle
- introduces you to the concept that sun rise and sun set times vary according to your latitude.
- The Alien Rescue Game
- takes you around the world in search of lost aliens while honing your understanding of how the perceived path of the sun changes throughout the year.
- The Solstice Safari
- is an extended collaborative activity where citizens team up to collect data, plot graphs, and predict the solstices.
- The Great Balloon Race
- challenges you to navigate the altitudes and analyze vector fields to navigate your hot air balloon.
- Mimi's Dance Studio
- is where you go to design a dance using vector arithmetic.
- Treasure Hunt Safari
- tests your history of knowledge and powers of research to collect coins from exotic locations around the world.
- SmartCars Arena
- is where you can design circuitries to drive robot cars and challenge other citizens to races.
- Zero Gravity Chamber
- is a part of WASA, Whyville's own version of NASA. Here you can learn about angles as well as the principle of Newton's 3rd Law as it applies to propulsion.
- Rocket Design Lab
- at WASA houses simulations of rocket design that allow you to test parameters such as nozzle size and pay load.
- Ion Engine Lab
- another part of WASA, includes three games that takes you from learning about electric charges and their behaviors to a demonstration of how they drive ion engines.
- Geodig
- is a geology game that takes you around the world in search of rocks, fossils, and gems.
- WhyPox
- is an infectious disease that periodically plagues Whyville. During an epidemic, citizens investigate the parameters of the infection using tools at Whyville's Center for Disease Control.
- Club Penguin
- Create a penguin avatar and live in a world that is only for penguins. Students learn strategies such as problem solving, math, money management, collaboration, participating as a member of a community, as well as practice reading, develop keyboarding skills and participate in creative role play.
Different language options.
Free option. Or there is a cost in which the money is donated to children’s charities around the world.
Webkinz pets are lovable plush pets that each come with a unique Secret Code. With it, you enter Webkinz World where you care for your virtual pet, answer trivia, earn KinzCash, and play the best kids games on the net!
- Your child can learn lots of fun facts at Quizzy's. The questions at Quizzy's are age-appropriate, and most are educationally based.
- We also have several arcade games that promote learning:
- Lunch Letters helps children to learn how to type and spell
- Quizzy's Word Challenge aids in spelling
- Operation Gumball encourages children to think logically
- Webkinz Newz and the W Tales encourage reading, and our many contests encourage writing, creativity, and problem-solving.
- Your child can learn about money in Webkinz World; by earning KinzCash, your child learns how to save and spend money.
- Webkinz World also helps to teach children about responsibility, caring for a pet, and getting along with others.
Cost involved
Virtual Villagers is a village simulator where you care for and nurture a tribe of little people by teaching them the basics of survival. The object of the game is to grow a small village in your computer: your little villagers need to become farmers, builders, researchers, and parents and make decisions on unpredictable island events! As the village grows and prospers, the villagers become curious about their mysterious island home and the secrets it holds. Aside from guiding the villagers' day-to-day lives, the player helps them to explore and restore the island.
Language Options: French, Spanish, and German (Japanese coming soon)
Cost involved
[edit] Serious Games
Serious games can include games that raise awareness of world events or issues that unfold among and within nations. Many games like the ones listed below try to offer a perpective not normally seen from a mainstream media standpoint.
- Ayiti: The Cost of Life
- This is a Flash based game that explores what is it like to live in poverty, struggle every day to stay healthy, keep out of debt, and become educated.
- Darfur is Dying
- Darfur is Dying is a viral video game for change that provides a window into the experience of the 2.5 million refugees in the Darfur region of Sudan. Players must keep their refugee camp functioning in the face of possible attack by Janjaweed militias. Players can also learn more about the genocide in Darfur that has taken the lives of 400,000 people, and find ways to get involved to help stop this human rights and humanitarian crisis.
[edit] Platforms
- Microsoft XBox 360
- Nintendo Wii
- Sony Playstation
- Personal Computers (Windows/Mac/Linux)
[edit] Gamer Generation
- Who are gamers?
- Gamers are people who spend significant time playing video games as a hobby. While the amount of time spent playing games varies from gamer to gamer, gamers tend to spend a higher percentage of time playing games than other activities.
- What aspects of a game make it engaging to gamers?
- Video games allow players to assume roles, sets benchmarks for progress, complete small and large tasks/missions, provide unlimited opportunities to succeed and more.
[edit] Guiding Questions for Teachers
- What is your current perception of video games?
- What is my level of engagement?
- What am I learning while I am working/playing?
- Where is your level of frustration?
- What problem solving skills did you use?
- How did you respond to failure?
- What is your perception of video games after participating?
[edit] Research, Articles & Books
- Yasmin Kafai's Work
- No Gamer Left Behind
- Books by Mark Prensky
- Don't Bother Me Mom I'm Learning ISBN: 9781557788580
- Digital Game-Based Learning ISBN: 9781557788634
- Books by James Paul Gee
- What Kids Learn In Virtual Worlds
