20% Project February 28

I think that I will benefit a lot from what I learn. I am interested in incorporating new teaching strategies into my future job, and that includes the progression of teaching through video games like Minecraft. Researching about MinecraftEdu will help me find ways to teach through one of my favorite video games which will possibly benefit me a lot in my career. The others who will benefit from this will possibly be the children that I help in the future. I believe that video games are great for keeping a child’s attention so if we can utilize it for teaching, a lot more learning will probably occur. If I want to benefit future children, it would be a good idea to convince schools and parents that this is a good idea. Playing video games in school doesn’t really sound like actual learning. I would write my blog with a new lesson every post; I would also try and think outside of the box with ideas from MinecraftEdu with my own twists. If I ever got a chance to teach a child through Minecraft, I would also post updates of his or her progress on my blog to prove that the child is learning. Since I probably won’t be teaching in a classroom setting and I’ll be working one-on-one, it’ll be a chance to focus on one individual and correctly evaluate his or her progression. I would also ask the child often how they feel about this teaching strategies to make sure they even like it.

"Is School Enough?"

20% Project February 14

When I first started looking for topics for my 20% project, I already had a broad idea of what I wanted to research. I knew that I wanted to learn about the integration of video gaming in classrooms after I read an article about it last semester. When I began searching, I read about different games like Angry Birds, World of Warcraft, and others. I knew that “Integrating video games in classrooms” would be a very broad topic so I chose one video game specifically to research about. I choose Minecraft because it is one of my favorite video games and I’ve learned a lot from just leisurely playing it over the years. I can easily see how this game could be implemented into a classroom setting.

To make it even more specific, I going to research about an organization called MinecraftEdu that was created to help get Minecraft into classrooms. Minecraft is interactive survival game where kids can explore and create whatever they can imagine. The game forces kids to think critically and creatively at all times.

To divide my project into different questions for each week, I will focus on a new lesson to be learned each week. There are so many different tools, machines, kids can build. MinecraftEdu created a modification specifically made to help teachers teach through the game. I could focus on a new lesson from that modification each week and ask questions about it. With my extensive knowledge on the game, I can ask very well informed questions also. 

Horizon Report

The first trend that I read about was Cloud Computing which is basically when students engage in computing and communication, data storage and access, and collaborative work via cloud-based applications and services on the internet. I can see Cloud Computing becoming more implemented into K-12 classrooms even sooner than the full near-term horizon (within the next 12 months). Well into college, I am using Dropbox and Google Drive to save and access assignments. I even distinctly remember using these online programs in my High School Economics classroom. My Dropbox account currently has years and years worth of assignments and papers that I have done for many different subjects. 

Open Content refers to the current form of a movement that began a decade ago when universities such as MIT began to make their course content freely available. Open Content is projected to grow on a mid-form horizon (within 2 to 3 years) and expand more than it already has. The increase in the Open Content movement is due to the rising costs of education, the desire to provide access to learning in areas where such a access is difficult, and an expression of student choice about when and how to learn. I believe that Open Content learning is a great opportunity for so many people who don’t have the chance to get a good education. However, we must be careful of how much we integrate Open Content learning because we might put teachers out of work with the availability of learning anything through an online class. Although Open Content has and will positively influence many people’s knowledge, we have to be careful that we don’t go overboard.

3D printing has always sparked my interest. On the far-term horizon ( four to five years away), it has become much more affordable and accessible in the recent years. Schools, like my high school, are using 3D printers to illuminate the design process, build rapid prototypes, and create models that demonstrate concepts in the curriculum. I am very interested to see how 3D printers work and to have the opportunity to interact with one. Hopefully, I will get the chance to play around with one in the next few years.   

Personal Reflection

Over the course of the Foundations of Technology Integration Project, I've learned a lot about integrating technology into the classroom. I understand that technology will never replace teachers but will only aid them in their teaching. Technology is an intellectual partner in the process of teaching and learning. I have wondered about this relationship, however. I believe there is a fine line between helping and substituting. My big question is: How much can we integrate technology before we cross that line? I have learned from my readings that a teacher will also be needed for meaningful learning to occur. But what if websites, videos, and online courses start to replace classroom, lectures, and teachers? I hope that technology never advances to this point, because meaningful learning would be more difficult for students to achieve and teachers wouldn’t have their jobs anymore. The one thing I would do to integrate technology to create meaningful learning would be utilizing video games into my curriculum. Educators are increasing the use of entertainment software as a teaching device in a growing number of classrooms and business settings. Entertainment software helps impart knowledge, develop life skills and reinforce positive habits in students of all ages. In addition to being a great way to keep students engaged, researchers have found that video games have real potential as next-generation learning tools. Games use new technologies to incorporate principles crucial to human cognitive learning. Dr. Jeffrey Taekman, the director of Duke University’s Human Simulation and Patient Safety Center noted, “serious games and virtual environments are the future of education.”
As a gamer myself, I’m very interested in the application of my favorite hobby to the learning environment. When I’m a specialized teacher, I will be following the development of educational video games very closely.

Meaningful Learning with Technology: Chapter 1

           The biggest takeaway I got from “Meaningful Learning with Technology Chapter one” was that technology is not a replacement for a teacher but more of a teaching aid. I've never really thought about how important teachers are when it comes to actually teaching. As technology becomes more and more prominent in classrooms, teachers will still always be required for meaningful learning to occur.

            One thing that surprised me was the all the different ways in which technology can aid meaningful learning. Technology is a tool to support knowledge construction, an information vehicle for exploring knowledge, as authentic context to support learning, as social medium to support language by conversing, and an intellectual partner to support learning by reflecting. Technology should be used as an engage-r and a facilitator of thinking.