Six Answers

Denise Pinho was a participant in the MIT edX MOOC on Learning Game Design. Denise lives in  the interior of southern Brazil and is a student, a published poet and an artist. She has kept in touch and is a member of the Facebook Learning Game Designers Group.

Denise recently asked to interview me for her post graduation's conclusion work where she's writing about learning games in math classes.

She sent me six questions.

  1- Can you tell me a bit about your experience with learning games?
CBS Software published my first computer learning game, Math Mileage, in 1984. This game was based on pencil-and-paper games I had used with my students in the '70s as an elementary math teacher. In the '90s and to the present, I've designed computer games based on my teaching experience. My games are not generally designed for classroom use. They are mainly consumer games where I keep homeschool families in mind.

2- You live on the United States. Could you tell me about how the educational system is receiving this proposal of using digital games?
The adoption of digital games in our government schools is growing at a very slow pace. Learning games have been researched since the '70s but usage lags, even though other computer applications in schools have increased. I blame this on inflexible curricula and schedules as well as teachers who do not realize the benefits.

3- Which do you believe are the characteristics of a good educational game?
This is my favorite question!
⦁ The game must be fun.
⦁ The goal of the game should be as simple and immediately obvious as possible but playing the game should provide almost endless challenge.
⦁ So, the game should be challenging but not discouraging with opportunities to learn from mistakes and try again.  And, by the way, if a game isn’t challenging it won’t be fun either.
⦁ Digital games should make good use of the special capabilities of computers, rather than simply imitating real-world activities. For instance, I wouldn't design a virtual sandbox for youngsters to play with.
In fact, I'm particularly interested in programming games that can ONLY be fully realized with a computer. Computerized versions of existing board games, card games, or puzzles should at least add some value that wouldn't be possible in the physical game.
⦁ The educational value of the game should be intrinsic to it. This is true of Math Mileage, for example, where using mental arithmetic to plan one's route to the goal is essential to winning. You may have seen games where this organic quality is completely lacking, such as a math game in which the player gets to make a football goal each time she solves an arithmetic problem.
⦁ Good games go beyond simple drill and memorization to a deeper understanding of a topic.
⦁ Good educational games can be for solitary play or competitive or cooperative, and never portray violence.

4- Could you tell me some advantages of using digital games on education? Especially in math classes.
⦁ Games can enhance engagement and concentration.
⦁ Games can provide individualized learning where a student can start right from where they are and “level up” at their own speed.
⦁ Games can give instant feedback which is optimal for learning a new skill.
⦁ Games can reduce “fear of failure” in math learners and increase confidence.

5- Could you tell me about some success story regarding the use of digital games in math classes?
My game Number Round-Up is a number theory game and was planned for ages 12 and up.  Although I’ve included advice for classroom uses in additional resources online, I don’t know that Number Round-Up has yet been used in a classroom. But an ambitious 7-year-old spent all his “screen time” at home to play it every day. The next year his math teacher moved him into algebra class!

6- And finally... Could you tell me about some difficulties occurred on implementing digital games in math classes?
I can only say that teachers will have to be assertive and plan more flexible and creative ways to use games in classes. Meanwhile, students will probably be playing them outside of school!

Thanks to Denise's questions I was able to put some of my thoughts about computer math games in writing.

I just completed another MOOC, "Implementation and Evaluation of Educational Technology" from MIT

I was a bit of a rebellious student in the fourth MITx class on educational technology: MITx: 11.133x Implementation and Evaluation of Educational Technology.

This course was less interesting to me than the previous two on educational games because it focused on traditional classroom management and government school administrators and evaluators. I'm not that hopeful about trying to enhance the current system with technology.  And, I'm biased against central planning.  I'm more interested in the use of technology to allow kids to do self-directed learning.

Anyway, I watched all the video lectures, did the readings, did some assignments and participated in the student discussions to see what I could glean.

Much of the material seemed irrelevant to my interests. And, I saw evidence of many things I already knew: Technology is not a magic bullet. Change is slow and painful in U.S. government school systems. Childrens' curiosity and initiative get squelched in schools.

But, I was surprised by some new information. Also, I participated in specific discussion groups on game design, math teaching and homeschooling.  Beyond these groups, I was delighted by the many intelligent viewpoints and projects of the other participants who live all over the world. Many of them were dedicated teachers.

My top 10 tidbits from the  course:

10. A new position in some U.S. schools is "Educational Technologist".  An Educational Technologist helps teachers find good technology to help them teach and checks to see that it will work with the school's computers and connectivity. This position is often held by the geekiest teacher in the school for no extra pay. They may also be responsible for maintenance and repair of the equipment.

9. In the state of Massachusetts (for example) there are hundreds of entities that must sign off on any technology proposed to be used in the public schools.

8. A computer game for use in a classroom doesn't have to be very well designed for kids to want to play it. As one prof said, It just has to be "better than jail".

7. Homeschooling parents are actively interested in computer games and debate their efficacy.

[The four above affirmed my focus on the consumer market for my games.]

6. My questions about the development of logical thinking in children may be better answered by Vygotsky than Piaget. We'll see. I've acquired two thick books to study. And, the reason I'd never heard of Vygotsky when I studied development psychology in the 70s? He was considered "Soviet" at that time.

5. You-tube is a fabulous technology for learning just about anything.

4. The public library is probably a better place to facilitate self-directed learning than the public school.

3. In a case study a grant-funded iPad learning app needed to be tested in preschools. So it was put in the iTunes Store for free. The kids (inner city) mainly had iPads and so did their teachers. But, the preschool teachers couldn't download the free App because they didn't have credit cards, which are required by iTunes.  [This speaks to the advantage of easy access to HTML5 games on the Web]

2. There's nothing new under the sun in educational technology.

1. Or maybe there is.

My Venn Diagram / Logic Game Needs Testers

Update:  Marble Factory now runs on iPad

logicalgames.co/MarbleFactory/Marbles.php

I've been taking the next edX MIT class in the game design series. This one is "Design and Development of Games for Learning".

For this class, I've prototyped a game that will be part of a series of logic games I've been thinking through for some time.

This one is a Venn diagram game called "Marble Factory".  So far, I've coded two levels for Marble Factory.  I've worked through several prototypes, done technical testing and some play testing with classmates online. Now I'm ready for some user testing.

I want to get feedback from as many testers as I can. I plan to make adjustments to the game based on that feedback. Then, I'll continue with the next levels of the game.

How to test Marble Factory:

          1. Try the Marble Factory Discovery Level:

https://gameblox.org/play/7049/

          2. Play the real game, Marble Factory Game 1: 

This game can be played by one or two players (cooperating, not competing).

https://gameblox.org/play/7137/

          3. Most important! Give me feedback on your experience playing. Fill in this Google Form:
 https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1zBELr5GEAkeBV485zIU_VmzbFWpgVhsKJ0OZpd0PHfU/viewform

Please note: Due to limitations in the MIT Gameblox language, the games don't work on touchscreens yet. You'll need a mouse and keyboard to play.

What is this supposed to teach?
Because I always tried to help my young math students become logical thinkers, these are my learning objectives for this game:
1. Observation of attributes, similarities and differences of things (in this case some marbles) then, in the next game moving on to the attributes, similarities and differences of numbers.
2. Introduction to set theory including cardinality, intersections and empty sets.
3. Gaining clarity in the logic terms: and, or, both, neither, not.

I'm moving from Gameblox (MIT's game editor) to HTML5 for future iterations. And, that's where I'll be making changes based on your feedback.

In their final form, these games will be playable by two people, playing cooperatively.  The player's conversation about planning and strategy will provide powerful reinforcement for real learning.

Thanks for your interest and for testing Marble Factory!

Marcia
The Logical Woman