As this busy semester comes to a close, I decided to do a "brain dump" of everything I've been reflecting on lately. Okay, here goes!
My students (the boys in particular) are currently OBSESSED with Minecraft...which I've never played before. The YouTube video below helped give me some context for this sandbox game.
My girls, on the other hand, can't get enough of the movie Frozen! Apparently, they play "frozen" at recess, which leaves me wondering how many have actually experienced snow and cold weather...
I've seen movies on two consecutive weekends- first, Divergent and recently Captain America: The Winter Soldier. While I enjoyed both, I think I'm in the mood for something less violent- romantic comedy, anyone?
My Jane McGonigal reading has been abandoned for another book, which has nothing to do with this class. If you enjoy memoirs, check out A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table. The author owns a wood-fire pizza restaurant in Seattle called Delancey and writes a blog called Orangette. I'm loving it so far!
I've recently decided that I need to learn how to code. It would make website work SO much easier! I'm looking at Codecademy as an option. Any other ideas?
This has been a fabulous class! I've enjoyed getting to know all of you and look forward to hearing about your final design projects.
As a technology resource teacher, I receive daily e-mails that promote new products, programs, and systems for educational technology. Since I hate clutter in my e-mail inbox, I usually quickly skim and delete what I don't foresee using. I tend to keep most e-mails from Tech & Learning, which come daily. Because of our recent unit on gamification in the classroom, this article about Classcraft caught my attention.
After briefly reading the article and browsing the website, I learned that "Classcraft is a free online educational role-playing game that teachers and students play together in the classroom." This section of the website explains more about the game and how to play it. From my understanding, this seems loosely based on the ever-popular World of Warcraft.
While this is probably too advanced for me to use with my elementary students, I immediately thought of Charles Souza's Knowledge Quest game for middle schoolers. I'd be interested to hear the opinions of any middle or high-school teachers- would your students be motivated by Classcraft? Why, or why not?
Today I took an unexpected trip to the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum, located in the shadow of the Space Needle. The weather was rainy and terrible, but the bright colors and beautiful pieces definitely made up for it. Although the tickets were a little pricey at $21, I was willing to pay to be inside on this rainy day.
The exhibit began with a QR code to scan with any mobile device, which pointed to an audio tour to accompany each individual gallery. I initially scanned it, but opted not to listen during the visit since I didn't bring my headphones.
My boyfriend and I went through the museum with my close friend, who had visited before. She was able to point out her favorite pieces and guide us through the experience. I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about Dale Chihuly, the artist, as there were biographical stories of his experiences as an artist throughout the museum. Another positive contribution to our experience was the free photos taken by the photographers stationed in the different galleries. I was initially skeptical of this, as the similar service at tourist attractions in Hawaii costs money. However, we were handed a card with a code to scan and were able to e-mail the picture to ourselves and our families for free!
If you ever visit Seattle, I'd suggest purchasing the package that allows visitors admission into both the Space Needle and the Chihuly Glass Museum for a price of $34, as they are located right next to each other.
I'm currently visiting my parents in Seattle with my boyfriend for Spring Break. Although we've been avoiding the rain as much as possible, we decided to take the ferry to Poulsbo today, which is a quaint Scandinavian town across the Puget Sound. I apparently fell asleep on the way back and when I woke up, we were in Port Gamble, another small town. There are only about ten buildings that make up Port Gamble, which was built to imitate a similar town on the East Coast. To my surprise, the General Store had a small museum on the second floor. I normally would have moved straight past it to the coffee stand, but decided to take another look- thanks to this class!
The history of Port Gamble
Things I noticed:
I wasn't fully sure of what the museum was showcasing, but it soon became obvious when most of the display looked like the one below:
There were lots of signs instructing patrons to not touch the displays...clearly been a problem in the past.
I originally thought that all the artifacts were unique to Port Gamble, but then I saw some bugs from the Philippines...hmm...
A small donation box sat near the entrance of the museum section.
While the displays were largely underwhelming, the view from the second floor was fantastic!
Overall, my experience in the Port Gamble Museum was short, lasting little more than 10 minutes. It was, though, very interesting to see the attempt of a small community to showcase artifacts. If you're ever in Washington state, I'd highly recommend taking the ferry out of Downtown Seattle. (Sidenote- I forgot to take a picture, but I noticed QR codes that highlighted attractions at each ferry stop!) I'm really enjoying my time relaxing with family, but am looking forward to some warm weather soon.
Confession- I’m not a gamer. I never have been, and probably never will
be.
While I’m a digital native who grew up with a computer and
video game consoles at my access, I never had an interest in gaming as a
hobby.I had an old-school GameBoy
(think thick, black, and pixelated screen) that my cousin gave me as a
hand-me-down, but I only used it to play Tetris on occasion.Call it sibling rivalry, but my brother
always commandeered our Nintendo 64 and Game Cube, never really giving me a
chance to play. Taking this class, however, has given me a new appreciation for
gaming and its place in education.
Because I teach K-6 computer classes and am a technology
resource teacher, I’m always reading articles about gaming in education.When I began my position two years ago, I
wanted to change the norm of the classes from kids playing archaic CD-ROM games
to a more skills-based focus that integrated learning technology into the
general classroom.Early on, though, I
realized that educational games still have a purpose in my class.My job, then, is to develop a curriculum that
balances games with skills.
The guest speakers and tools we’ve experienced this semester
have really cemented the importance of gaming in my position.Design thinking, augmented reality, QR codes,
coding, and mobile learning are all applicable topics for me to consider as I
work to improve my curriculum for next year.I’m looking forward to our game design project, as our topic is very
applicable for my students.
Below are some links to (surprise) some TED-Talks that have helped shape my current views on gaming and its place in our society.
Jane McGonigal- "The game that can give you 10 extra years of life"
Continuing on my trek through Jane McGonigal's Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World, I spent some time reading the chapter entitled, "Fun Failure and Better Odds of Success." McGonigal begins by putting it out there that "no one likes to fail"--myself included. Call me crazy, but I've started equating feeling out of control in my life to a form of failure (more on how I'm recovering from that in my previous post). Gamers, however, spend nearly 80 percent of their time "failing" within the context of their playing, yet still come back for more of the same. And according to McGonigal, they actually enjoy their failure.
Now, I'm not a gamer, so I have a REALLY difficult time understanding why anyone would enjoy failure. But McGonigal suggests that this concept of "fun failure" is fundamental in the history of video game research. In fact, it supports the idea that well-designed video games help gamers develop a unique mental toughness. According to McGonigal, it's as simple as showing gamers their personal power in a game and giving them something that exhibits a little emotion. When failure is interesting, she says, gamers keep trying and remain hopeful for success.
McGonigal champions this "hope for success" as a fix for our broken reality. By preserving the opportunity for success, the fun will last forever! If this is really the case, maybe I need to start playing games...hmmm...
Here are some insightful TED Talks on the subject of failure. Sidenote- I've noticed I have a new obsession with TED Talks...
Kathryn Schultz, "On Being Wrong"
Eddie Obeng "Smart Failure for a Fast-Changing World"
In addition to my course work and regular responsibilities, I'm trying to keep up with reading Jane McGonigal's Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. During a recent quiet moment, I opened my Kindle app to read some more motivation from McGonigal. In this particular section, she discussed intrinsic motivation, or what keeps gamers gaming.
While McGonigal made many interesting connections between gaming and happiness, I found myself drawn to the part where she answers the question of which intrinsic rewards are most essential to human satisfaction. She concludes that humans need to experience satisfying work, the experience of success, social connection, and meaning in a larger context in order to be happy. Gaming, then, meets all of these, resulting in overall happiness for those who choose to experience it.
At one point, McGonigal quotes writer Elizabeth Gilbert, who says, "Happiness is the consequence of personal effort...You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings." This quote struck me, as lately I've forgotten about the blessings in my life that make me happy. So this week, I'm committing to make a conscious effort to invest in what is truly valuable to me-- friends, faith, family, relationships, education, and relaxation. While this personal reflection may not have been McGonigal's intention, it was refreshing to me at this point in the semester.
In case you'd like to hear more about happiness, here are some of my favorite TED Talks on the topic:
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (thanks to this class...)-
Is it just me, or has going to the movies become almost unaffordable? Regardless of the cost, my boyfriend and I decided to head to the movies at Ward to wind down after a busy weekend.
Before the experience...
After looking at the Flixster app on my phone, we decided to see Hayao Miyazaki's The Wind Rises- partly because of the content, partly because of the convenient showing time. See the trailer for this movie below:
During the experience...
When we arrived and finally found parking in the back lot, I placed bags of arare and furikake for our popcorn into my purse- shhhh, don't tell! It was on sale at Longs for $1.50, compared to the small bag that is sold at the theater for over $4.00.
After waiting in a very long line to purchase tickets, we made it up to the ticket window. We attempted to use movie passes, but were denied because it was a new release. We decided to just go for it and pay $11.50 each (yikes!) to see the movie.
What's a movie without popcorn, right? We paid another $13 for a large popcorn and soda. Since we were already running behind, we separated the popcorn into boxes prior to heading into the theater.
It's been awhile since I've seen a Miyazaki film, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I was particularly interested with how emotions were depicted in the cartoon-like characters. There were many silent scenes during the movie, as compared to the busy storylines of American movies.
Overall, I'm thankful that we can afford to head to the movies on a whim like this. However, I often wonder why prices at the theater are so high. I wouldn't consider myself to be particularly cheap, but I do struggle to spend that much cash on one leisure activity. Any thoughts? Am I alone on this?
Have you ever heard the same thing from multiple people in a short time period? Then when that happens, does what they're saying begin to become engrained in your thoughts? That's currently how I'm feeling about the design thinking model.
My first experience with design thinking took place in November 2012, when our all-school technology team was tasked with the job of picking a tablet tool to deploy school-wide. We researched extensively, heard from subject-matter experts, voiced our own opinions, and talked to teachers. Finally, it was time for us to tackle the question of which tool we would purchase. I recall going through an abbreviated design thinking process, which involved lots of sticky notes.
Now that I've experienced the full, iterative process, I realized that we skipped some key points. First, our point of view statement was very limited to the tool we would choose, not necessarily what was best for students- big problem! Next, there was a lot of criticism among our group during the Ideate phase. I recall being nervous to "dream big," which should've been remedied early on in the process. Finally, we never prototyped our ideas. This is a hugely important aspect of design thinking, which we missed out on.
My next interaction with design thinking occurred earlier this semester when my ETEC 613 group sat down to brainstorm a topic for our module. Our first idea involved using the design thinking process in conjunction with building robots. We got as far as writing an extensive hierarchy, then realized that it would be WAY too difficult to develop. Although I wish that we could've carried the project through to the end, I'm glad that we honed our module to be more manageable.
Last night's workshop was the only time I've actually successfully completed a design thinking task. While I initially had a difficult time getting into the ideating and prototyping, I ended up learning a lot and enjoying myself during the process. It was freeing to be in an environment where "anything goes" as far as dreaming big. As was mentioned in our debrief, I often find myself critiquing my own ideas before actually prototyping and seeing their potential.
I left last night's class excited about our workshop, but unsure about using this in my particular classroom setting. As a resource teacher, I only have 40-minute blocks with each class. After experiencing the entire design thinking process, I see how important it is to complete everything in one setting. I could possibly use this model with upper grades, as I sometimes see them for special projects or extended periods. Still thinking on that, though...
I'd love to use design thinking with my faculty, but am not sure what need we would attempt to design for. My principal will love hearing about my experience, so I'm excited to share with her at our weekly meeting. Perhaps we could use this as a beginning-of-the-year workshop topic? Who knows...the possibilities are endless!
Since pictures are usually worth more than words, I thought I'd share some photos of my visit to Miraikan, Japan's National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation. While planning our trip to Japan last summer, my boyfriend and I knew that we wanted to attend at least one museum. I was really hoping to go to the Edo-Tokyo Museum in Sumida, but we never actually made it there. After spending nearly a week walking around Tokyo in July, we were ready for some relief inside an air-conditioned building towards the end of our trip. We did a little research and chose to visit the Miraikan due to its convenient location in Odiba and its focus on technology and innovation. Since I'm a technology resource teacher and my boyfriend is a network engineer, we knew that we would both be interested in the content of this museum.
Taking ETEC 643 this semester has given me a new lens to view my past informal learning experiences through. I've also been reflecting on the complications and challenges that informal learning in a foreign country can bring. We definitely experienced some barriers with language and accessing content during our time at the Miraikan. Those hiccups aside, I'm so glad that we took time to visit this museum, as I would've regretted it later. Below are some of our favorite "experience-ology" moments during our museum visit.
A display outside the museum
An engaging "hook" before entering the museum-
movements created music notes on the screen!
Neat characters on a display...wish I could read them!
A geo-globe of our planet that shows live weather patterns
My boyfriend taking part in one of the interactive exhibits
Me, writing on a "sound board"
How we were able to understand the content of the exhibits...
Prior to our class visit last week, I have only been to the Waikiki Aquarium once. My previous visit occurred nearly five years and was a perk of attending a family friend's wedding reception that was held at the venue. While there haven't been any major changes in the years between my visits, I headed into this recent site visit with a fresh perspective for learning in informal environments.
Before the visit...
Aside from our brief class discussions about the upcoming site visit, I did very little to prepare prior to going to the Waikiki Aquarium. Usually when I plan such excursions on my own, I visit the venue's website to research prices, hours, and parking information. This time, however, I just tried my best to remember my last visit and anything that stuck out to me during that time. Surprisingly, the jellyfish tank is the only significant memory I have of that first visit.
During the visit...
Knowing that parking along Kapiolani Park can be limited, I arrived early for our site visit. After walking to Starbucks for an iced coffee, I walked back to the aquarium and waited with our group. We then broke into groups and began our visit.
My group initially asked for a paper map of the aquarium, which the aquarium doesn't provide. We were pointed in the direction of the exhibit entrance, but opted to start with the outside exhibits instead. One of the museum volunteers showed us some of the hands-on exhibits, where we were able to touch sea urchins, sea anemones, and hermit crabs. We also saw the monk seal in the same area. I found the outdoor exhibits to be the most interesting, as there were actual objects to touch.
As we headed into the indoor exhibits, I noticed that not much had changed since my previous visit. Each exhibit seemed to be different in the way that it provided information to visitors. Several sections had touch-screens, but some simply showed picture slideshows while others required visitors to actually push on the screen to gain information. The glass barriers around the tanks made it difficult for me to engage in the surroundings, although I realize that they are necessary. I enjoyed seeing the one tank that was somewhat open in attempt to simulate the tropical environment.
I was drawn again to the jellyfish tank and the beauty of these fascinating sea creatures.
Jellyfish tank
Overall, I enjoyed my second experience at the Waikiki Aquarium. Visiting as part of this informal learning environments class gave me a unique perspective as I went throughout my visit. While there are exhibits that could be improved through more unifying technology, the aquarium gives visitors a taste of the sea life present in our islands.
As I was browsing my Feedly reader this morning, I came across an interesting article about crowdsourced maps at the Sochi Olympics. OpenStreetMap (OSM) is an open map of the world that is contributed to and maintained by users. The company emphasizes local knowledge, with users verifying the accuracy of the map with their own devices. OpenStreetMap also draws a diverse group of contributors and is free to use with the proper credit given.
The title of the article caught my eye, as it stated that this crowdsourced map is "trouncing Google Maps" at the Sochi Olympics. While author Greg Miller points out the navigation advantages with Google Maps, he supports the power of OSM with its users. Currently, 1.5 million OSM users have registered to edit maps. With the level of map detail left up to the users, some locations are shown down to the level of the plants that exist.
Maps around the Olympics sites in Sochi have changed drastically in the past few days. Check out this amazing crowdsourced resource here!
While I don't watch very much TV, I do enjoy listening to TED Talks. Jane McGonigal's "Gaming Can Make a Better World" talk from 2010 has been a recent favorite of mine. As an educator, I'm fascinated by the possibilities of gamification within the classroom. McGonigal's enthusiasm is refreshing, so take twenty minutes to watch it...now!
I recently purchased McGonigal's book, Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. Although I'm not very far into the book, I can sense her enthusiasm in her writing. So far, her definition of a game is what has stuck with me the most. She states,
"Playing a game is the voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles."
After listening to Charles Souza's experiences with using Knowledge Quest in his classroom, I am pondering the implications of gamification in my own locus of control. As a K-6 computer teacher, I have many options for incorporating a gaming mentality and am seriously considering doing so next year. I'll keep blogging as I read McGonigal's book!
As we listened to Charles Souza share about his former classroom, I recalled my own experiences as a sixth-grader in Kirkland, Washington. Unlike his one-to-one Netbook setting, our classroom technology consisted of two student Compaq desktop computers and an overhead projector. We did, however, participate in a simplistic, yet similar form of gamification to the one that Souza employed.
It was well-known at our school that sixth-grade students participated in the "community" set up by the teachers. We each had jobs, which we had to apply and be selected for at the beginning of the year. I was the secretary, seemingly because of my neat handwriting. Our community had money, which we designed, printed, and distributed ourselves. We also owned properties, which were constructed of milk cartons and set on a designated table designed like a mini city. I also remember holding "market days," where we brought in products to sell to other students at our school.
Although I don't remember many details of the community system, I do remember being rewarded money for certain tasks throughout the day. I also remember hoarding my community money, as I was easily motivated and competitive in school. Finally, I remember the excitement of my younger brother as he watched me, anxious to have his own community experience two years later.
Now a teacher myself, I realize the value of creating such motivating situations for my students. Listening to Charles Souza share his experiences led me to consider using a similar format in my K-6 computer classes. Hmmm...something to think about!
Shopping at Costco is a necessary evil. I love purchasing large quantities of items that I use often, but hate fighting the crowds just to do grocery shopping. Although I live less than three miles from the Iwilei Costco location, I will sometimes drive to Hawaii Kai just to avoid the craziness. My feelings about this location were confirmed by a relative who works on the corporate side of Costco. He told me that the Iwilei location is one of the busiest out of all locations.
Regardless, sometimes I have no choice but to do my shopping with the masses. This past Sunday was one of those times. My boyfriend and I put our game faces on and headed into what I knew would be a stressful situation. Our reward, we decided, would be a cheap dinner at their food counter.
Arrival
We pulled into the parking lot at around 4:45 pm, roughly an hour before closing time. As soon as we got there, I knew that it was going to be a battle. We finally found a spot on the far side of the lot and headed into the warehouse.
Experience
After showing our Costco card to the employee at the front, we headed inside. We immediately saw people pushing carts in haphazard ways and grabbing items. One customer had close to 50 pineapples stacked in their cart.
We headed to the snacks in the middle, where my boyfriend guided the cart through the aisle as I found what we needed. We continued this system, particularly when in the refrigerated foods section. I noticed a crowd of nearly 40 people gathered around the rotisserie chickens, waiting for the last batch to finish.
As usual, several items not included on our list ended up in the cart. Our best deal- a set of eight ceramic bowls for only $14.99! Another favorite of ours is the shredded Korean nori that comes in a big bag- it's the best on popcorn! I stocked up on that during this trip.
Post-Experience
Although we waited in a long line to check out, we had pleasant conversation with the person who rang us up. He mentioned that the bowls were one of their best deals right now. After paying, we headed out to our car.
We quickly loaded up our purchases, then headed to the food counter for dinner. My new favorite is the barbecue beef sandwich with coleslaw- yum! Of course, the $1.50 hot dog is also a favorite.
Because of my experience with Costco and the stress it brings, I thought this rare trip to the busiest one deserved a dedicated blog post. Does anyone else experience the same anxiety when going to Costco? Any tips for making it less traumatic? :)
I must confess that while I do love to run and exercise, I also like to try new foods. Such was the case last Saturday when I really wanted to eat some sort of ice cream. My boyfriend suggested that we go to Samurai in Kalihi.
Pre-Visit
Before heading out to the establishment, we wentto Google to find the hours and exact location. We were initially confused, as the Google Earth view didn't show any sign of the business. We visited Yelp to see actual photos, then headed on our way into the heart of Kalihi.
Arrival
Once we found our way to Umi Street, we discovered that all of the stalls in front of Samurai were full. Figuring that a busy shop is a sign of good food, we circled the block again. We easily found street parking near the Nissan dealership nearby and walked down the block to the shop.
The shop itself is located on the ground level of a two-story building and is painted in bright florescent colors. Patrons order their treats from a walk-up window with a serving counter. There are a few benches lining the outskirts of the property where customers can sit and eat. When we arrived, there were several families in line and several others sitting on benches.
Experience
Although the location of Samurai isn't the nicest, the workers were very friendly and helpful as we made our choices. I noticed that there were several workers behind the counter who dispensed the ice cream and prepared the other snacks. I also noticed that they were a little behind on orders, as it was a Saturday afternoon and busy with families.
Shortly after our arrival, I made the connection that Samurai makes the Hawaiian Frost cups that my students often bring to school to celebrate birthdays. Because I find those difficult to eat, I opted for their swirled chocolate and haupia soft serve in a small cup. My boyfriend tried their classic strawberry and vanilla swirled soft serve. Samurai is also known for their fresh popcorn with furikake, so we bought a bag to take home.
We found a bench to sit on while we enjoyed our ice cream. We, of course, photographed our ice cream:
Post-Experience
We both really enjoyed our experience at Samurai. Their soft serve is unique, as it is more dense than others that I've tried. Although I probably wouldn't visit this location at night, we will definitely be returning soon!
After last week's class, I was intrigued by the Starbucks experience video. I would consider myself a regular at Starbucks, usually drinking 2-3 iced coffees there every week. My Gold Card membership is always renewed early in the year, and my spirits are lifted when I see their red cups at Christmas time. I'm originally from Seattle, so my fondness for coffee seems fitting.
The TEDx Talk below gave me more insight as to the history of coffee growing, as well as more details about the actual roasting process of coffee beans. While the speaker, Asher Yaron, is passionate about local, organic, and sustainable coffee, I found myself thinking more about how coffee is consumed in our culture- specifically at Starbucks.
Yaron mentions that early coffee drinking was a religious and cultural experience. While I'd argue that drinking Starbucks coffee isn't necessarily earth-shattering, we know that their business model strives to create a certain feel for customers. But do I, the customer, truly feel this experience each and every time I go to Starbucks? Not always...
Perhaps the most memorable Starbucks experience I had was during my trip to Tokyo this summer. While I couldn't speak the language, I was still able to order my usual drink. I felt valued as a customer, as the baristas and cashiers greeted me warmly and did their best to help me order. I even came away with a unique Starbucks card!
Overall, last week's class really helped me assess my experiences in businesses and begin to set the stage for learning this semester.
