DEJ #1 for Game Design and Learning

"What makes video games good for learning has little or nothing to do directly
with the fact that they are games."

I can see where the author is coming from in this quote. It may not really have anything to do with the fact that they are games, but that it is a way for the students to learn to work more independently, it is another method of teaching, and many times it is considered a treat or prize. Kids do not come to school and sit in front of a television or computer all day, if that were the case then trying to "teach" through video games would not be a real treat or would be routine. The treat in that case would be if the teacher were to actually teach.

"So the video games in which I am interested, the ones that I think are most
interesting for learning, are digital simulations of worlds that are “played” in the sense
that a player has a surrogate or surrogates through which the player can act within and on
the simulation and that have “win states” (reachable goals that the player has discovered
or formed through his or her surrogate)."

I had to use that quote because once upon a time when I didn't have a child, school, work, house, and all of the other things that life has to offer, I loved to play The Sims. It was nice to be able to make the avatar be whoever you wanted, build the house that you wanted, and have the relationships that you wanted. It was a fun way to pretend and have some control over things. I liked the goals of the game and trying to make my little avatar succeed and meet those goals. I think a game based on the same situation would maybe interest some kids if there were some type of learning basis in the game as well.

"The view of the mind I have sketched argues, as far as I am concerned, that the
mind works rather like a video game. For humans, effective thinking is more like
running a simulation in our heads within which we have a surrogate actor than it is about
forming abstract generalizations cut off from experiential realities."

He seemed to hit the nail on the head. I never would have thought of our mind as a video game but after reading this I could see how how this is true. I often try to think of outcomes for every possible scenario if I am trying to make a big decision. I think that it is something that many of us do.

Reference:
Gee, J. P., & Morgridge, T. (n.d.). Why Are Video Games Good For Learning?. In http://www.academiccolab.org. Retrieved January 27, 2012, from http://www.academiccolab.org/resources/documents/MacArthur.pdf


Link:

http://www.wv.gov/education/Pages/classroomsimulationgames.aspx

This is a simulation game that we used for one of our classes at Fairmont State. It is a teacher simulation game and gives you a classroom of students along with a variety of different scenarios. Your job is to keep your students learning in a safe, healthy environment. I thought it was fun, but you have to be on your "A" game just like in a real classroom.