In any community, each citizen has some sort of role, and hopefully some sense of responsibility. This is in fact one of the basic ideas behind the focus on Civics as pertains to Globaloria. As our classes and our students work to create civics based games, we have the larger goal that they (as well as the end users of the games) will learn to think about their role in the community, the state, the country, and the world.
However, we can also scale back and consider the Globaloria community a place where roles are important. We are all working independently in our individual schools and teams trying to create our games. In some cases, we are even in competition with one another as we enter the contests for Civics and STEM games. But when it comes down to it, the community as a whole only truly thrives when we (Students, Teachers, Mentors, Interns, World Wide Workshop Staff, Administrators, Researchers, etc.) step into our role and not only do our best to complete our piece of the pie, but also share our successes with those who can benefit from them.
Students - Have you found a skill that you are comfortable with (i.e. Art or Coding in Flash)? If so, how are you using that skill to help those in your Globaloria Community?
Teachers - What are we doing to not only help our students, but to make sure that as we gain knowledge, it is shared with those around us?
The tools for these interactions are readily available to us with our blogs and the wikis.
In order for our community as a whole to grow and move to "the next level", we must be willing to learn from each other and stand on the shoulders of the giants who have had success in various areas. Borrow good code, and try to understand it. Then share it with others. Ask for help in areas where you need it, then don't be shy about sharing your strengths with those who may benefit from your assistance.
It is our civic responsibility to the Globaloria community to find our roles and maximize our strengths within those roles. What can you do to achieve this?
Within the next week, try to reflect on your role and examples of sharing strengths in the community. Write a blog post of your own in which you discuss your reflections.
Till next time.....
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Incorporating Research to Enrich the Content of Your Game
Hello Globaloria community!
As we are all finding out, designing and developing a video game can be a very challenging experience. And, when we are successful, it will be a very rewarding experience as well. In order for our Globaloria games to truly be a success, they must be challenging and rewarding for the players as well. A key element to a successful Globaloria game is that it is also an educationally rich experience for the player.
Therefore, it is very important that the content of the game presents factually accurate information as part of the challenge and learning process of the game.
Ask yourself the following questions:
*What is my game topic, and what do I want the player to learn as they play the game?
*Who is my main character? What is he/she trying to accomplish?
*How can I incorporate the learning content (what I want the player to learn) into the challenges of the game play? How can I make this interesting for the player?
Research your proposed learning content for your game on the web. Try to find a variety of sites that give accurate information about your topic. Then write your blogpost discussing the questions above. Tell how you plan to use your research to enrich your game experience.
For example, If you were making a game based around Dante's "Inferno", you might link to the Wikipedia page and other sources to show where you would find information.
Then write about how you will use the information in your game. For example: The Inferno uses the idea of 9 circles of suffering to depict Hell. Our hero could have to travel through these 9 circles and learn how to pass obstacles used in the actual story in order to beat the game. In the process, they would be introduced to, and learn about a famous literary work.
Good Luck! I look forward to reading your research.
When you are finished, make sure you read someone else's post and comment on it!
As we are all finding out, designing and developing a video game can be a very challenging experience. And, when we are successful, it will be a very rewarding experience as well. In order for our Globaloria games to truly be a success, they must be challenging and rewarding for the players as well. A key element to a successful Globaloria game is that it is also an educationally rich experience for the player.
Therefore, it is very important that the content of the game presents factually accurate information as part of the challenge and learning process of the game.
Ask yourself the following questions:
*What is my game topic, and what do I want the player to learn as they play the game?
*Who is my main character? What is he/she trying to accomplish?
*How can I incorporate the learning content (what I want the player to learn) into the challenges of the game play? How can I make this interesting for the player?
Research your proposed learning content for your game on the web. Try to find a variety of sites that give accurate information about your topic. Then write your blogpost discussing the questions above. Tell how you plan to use your research to enrich your game experience.
For example, If you were making a game based around Dante's "Inferno", you might link to the Wikipedia page and other sources to show where you would find information.
Then write about how you will use the information in your game. For example: The Inferno uses the idea of 9 circles of suffering to depict Hell. Our hero could have to travel through these 9 circles and learn how to pass obstacles used in the actual story in order to beat the game. In the process, they would be introduced to, and learn about a famous literary work.
Good Luck! I look forward to reading your research.
When you are finished, make sure you read someone else's post and comment on it!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
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