Another argument for online educational gaming:
“A new study found that gaming improved generic skills such as problem solving, communication, resourcefulness, and may have a role to play in higher education.”
https://www.hindustantimes.com/fitness/it-s-not-a-waste-of-time-playing-video-games-can-make-you-a-better-college-student/story-Vq1v6b3cBjGLbVDmsMDOtN.html
Another argument for online educational gaming:
“Fifteen-year-olds who play online video games score above average in math, reading, and science, while those who engage in social networking tend to score below average, according to an analysis of international assessment data.”
https://www.edweek.org/leadership/social-media-use-linked-to-low-math-reading-science-performance/2016/08
https://www.edutopia.org/article/mistake-imperative-why-we-must-get-over-our-fear-student-error
“When Disneyland opened in 1955, it was a disaster … Walt Disney took it all in stride. ‘If you do big things, you make big mistakes,’ he told reporters.
For Disney, creativity and mistakes went hand in hand … he encouraged his team of engineers, designers, and mechanics [his Imagineers] to think expansively and be willing to break things. ‘I don’t remember anyone getting fired for coming up with a dumb idea or making a mistake,’ recalls Van Arsdale France, one of Disney’s earliest employees.”
https://www.edutopia.org/article/mistake-imperative-why-we-must-get-over-our-fear-student-error
In a 2018 study, neuroscientists at Caltech discovered that mistakes set off an almost instantaneous chain reaction of productive brain activity … the brain of a person making an error lights up with the kind of activity that encodes information more deeply.
As Carol Dweck, professor of psychology at Stanford University and the author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, explains succinctly: “Every time a student makes a mistake… they grow a synapse.”
Our premiere educational escape room experience (EscapEDX) has been launched! This VR RPG pits student-created avatars against the villainous S-Quad as they search for Indiana Royster, journalist and truth-sleuth. Hidden clues help players complete critical thinking tasks as they attempt to find Indy before he is silenced forever.
https://knowledgeavatars.com/node/3345
https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/11/no-tests-grades-classes/415509/
https://www.edutopia.org/article/when-students-design-their-education
“The goal is to show students ‘the connection between their learning and real life,’ explained … a second-grade teacher. ‘Everything they do and learn has a relevance behind it. Where are they going to use it in real life?'”
https://theconversation.com/what-if-young-people-designed-their-own-learning-59153
“Teachers need to strike the balance between encouraging independent learning and providing students with guidance. They have a key role in cultivating confident, curious learners who can take risks and learn from their mistakes. Feedback loops are critical, with students and teachers providing regular feedback to each other to achieve quality learning.”
Rubik: “Play is one of the most serious things in the world…I learn most from my failures. That’s the way to learn. That’s the way to be successful.”
https://www.npr.org/2020/10/08/915866139/rubiks-cube-inventor-writes-a-new-book-it-s-full-of-twists-and-turns
Most people give up on difficult challenges like Rubik’s cube because we haven’t been trained to persevere. The consequences of our instant gratification culture are not mitigated by our test-driven education system. Our assessments value quantity over depth and easily-measurable lower-level thinking skills (memorization, comprehension, application) over time-consuming subjective feedback needed for creative problem solving. And what we measure, we teach.
