Gaming Trends

As I look back at what I have learned from this semester I see that the knowledge I have come across is very useful. Gaming is something that is apart of a majority of any persons life. Gaming as an educational venue is unique yet very useful when dealing with the kids of our generation today. Looking back on Jane McGonigals book you see how gaming has affected our daily thoughts and processes. And how affective it can be for a community sense when dealing with a classroom. "Fix #9: More Fun With Strangers, Compared with games, reality is and isolating. Games help us band together and create powerful communities from scratch." (McGonigal, pg. 172) It allows for a connection with other peers that we may not ever develop through our real life activities. All gaming is a virtual world of only fake rewards there is no real life positives that come from gaming. however they show you rules and such things that can translate from gaming or virtual worlds to real life activities. "All games take place in some kind of virtual world—and not solely a Second Life-style, massively multiplayer online environment. Even physical games are played in a synthetic world structured by specific rules, feedback mechanisms, and requisite tools to support them." (Clark Aldrich) Also in Anne Derryberry slide show she discusses how gaming and electronic based learning is only in the beginning stages which leads me to believe what has yet to be explored. Gaming and virtual worlds are almost an addicting thing as humans we want to be involved constantly. I know from my experience with settlers online I was not intrigued early in the semester as I began to be deeply connected to the game and the experience I began to constantly think to check the progression of the settlement. I was constantly making sure every time I got on my computer one of the things I did every time was check the settlers site and do as much as I could possibly in the time I had available at that time.

A classroom in 2030 is definitely not going to be what it is today. I believe that what we look at as an unbelievable future of computers and tablets is what it is going to be. From this semester we learned different gaming and virtual world avenues can be used positively in the classroom. But I believe that this will be the future of education. I feel all course work will be based in a virtual world setting that can cover all learning aspects such as visual and auditory. I think what we look at as gaming and tablets such as ipads or kindles and such are going to be used instead of actual textbooks. Which I feel will be beneficial for students. However it will put a financial stress on school districts it is something that will be the norm of education. I hope to see the progressive change in education as technology and gaming take over and help improve the educational experience for students. And improve scores and learning for these students as well.




Aldrich, Clark. "Virtual Worlds, Simulations, and Games for Education: A Unifying View." ClarkChart. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013.

Derryberry, Anne. "Game-based Learning in Higher Education 2012." Game-based Learning in Higher Education 2012. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013.

 McGonigal, Jane. Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. New York: Penguin, 2011. Print.

Virtual Worlds

Video games and virtual worlds are the future of education because of the way it influences youth to be engaged at a high level. Like in this study, “97% of American’s youth aged 12-17 are engaged in video games daily,” (Caroll, et. al., p. 58) With that many active minds intrigued in gaming it allows for teachers to use it to their advantage by using virtual worlds. And by doing so you can use them to get to higher levels. "Educational games and simulations can engage students in higher-level cognitive thinking, such as interpreting, analyzing, discovering, evaluating, acting, and problem solving. Recent technical advances in multiplayer, user-created virtual worlds have significantly expanded the capabilities of user interaction and development within these simulated worlds." ( Antonacci p. 115) By having students intrigued mentally is the important thing in the classroom and by having virtual worlds it allows you to do so. The possibilities are endless of the things thay you can do with virtual worlds. My interest is in history so if I were to put together a lesson as an instructor I would put together certain time periods of virtual worlds and have my students build and discover different events through a virtual world. An example would be to sail west and find America. Obviously the material would fit the age group that I would be engaged with. But it would be interesting to use a virtual world where all students have to build their boat and find their resources to find the new land. And by doing so I would give credit to who found it first or who put together the best boat and such things during the activity. "This ability to develop and interact with your own simulated world offers many new and exciting educational possibilities." (Antonacci p. 116) I am very intrigued in gaming and virtual worlds myself so to be able to incorporate it with students and education is not only neat but something of the future."an overwhelmingly amount of american teenagers play video games daily and incorporating this type of learning technology into the class-room can have many educational benefits" (griffiths, 2002).

Fix: 14

Looking at my experiences with Settlers I have began to realize that I have in some way ran a small country for this short while that we have been playing this game for our class. Taking a long view at my experience I have come to realize that I have mass produced material, provided food and water, provided jobs for my settlers, provided homes as well as provided a fully armed military. So for me this is something I may never experience in my life outside of my virtual realm on my computer screen. However, it is interesting to me that when I look at it I have come so far from the point at which you begin If i remember correctly it is three or four buildings and only 20-30 settlers. Now I have established over a 150 buildings (business, homes) and 200 plus settlers. By looking at others in my guild and friends list and viewing their settlement it is neat to see I am only cracking the shell that I have not completed the full experience. Also I have come to realize the importance of maintaining a routine when checking my settlement. Usually by looking at how my economy is running, seeing how my settlers are doing as I have them function, and also to see where my military status is and if I am capable of defeating a bandit camp at that time. "World and population-management simulations that give a single player the ability to shape the course of events on earth in dramatic ways, over lifetimes or longer" (p. 297 McGonigal). By doing so I am able to use ecosystems thinking by applying this experience and how it has helped shape my own beliefs in my daily life and how I look and prioritize my duties on a daily basis. The same way I approach my settlement on a daily basis. You do not realize how something little can affect a whole project. Like in the Settlers experience by not logging on for long periods you see production becomes slower or you lose goods or do not have enough goods in order to produce at a high rate in order for your settlement to be productive which slows down your progress to complete the quest as they appear on the task bar. So even though they are not connected you need everything to be working in order for all your functions in the game to continue to go according to plan so that you are able to continue to level up. For my pilot experimentation I was lucky to have befriended a member in my guild that guided me on the right track to progress positively through my experience with Settlers online. I would confide in him for thoughts and answers to my questions as I started out my settlement so I did not have a hard trial and error period. It was more confusing for me at first with not ever playing any game online like the Settlers experience. Now that I have been playing for a while now since the course began my experience with online games has grown and I actually have come to enjoy the time. "The game is fun and rewarding to play, but it's meant accomplish more than just relieving boredom or making us happy." (p. 299 McGonigal) From this game it has become more then just something I have to do for the class but I look at it as a daily challenge for myself. The skills I have learned from this gaming experience are those that I have explained through out this post. How I have grown to like using the gaming experience online. As well as how the skills taught to you in this experience can help your real life functions. Even though we are gaming in what I would call a large scale due to the fact you are managing people, products, business and housing. you can use these skills from the game and apply them in a whatever line of work you may be in or whatever challenge you may face in your personal or academic life.

The three most memorable concepts of McGonigals book are the three chapters (7-9) I could most relate to as well as apply the message McGonigal is giving in these chapters. Chapter 7 discusses the benefits of alternate realities. In chapter 7, "Fix #7: wholehearted Participation, Compared with games, reality is hard to get into. Games motivate us to participate more fully in whatever we're doing." (p. 124 McGonigal) For my experience with settlers I would say the first 3-4 weeks I was not giving the wholehearted participation approach but however once I began giving that approach I was able to get the results not only needed for the class but for my own enjoyment as well I found myself motivated to play more then the 2 hours required per week by the class. In chapter 8 leveling up in life. I connected to the concept that was discussed about the Nike+ running system. I use this system when running and I saw the same results that are discussed in the McGonigal book when you have feedback on your progress whether it be good, bad or indifferent it challenges you to do better to compete with others as well who may have run that route faster then you. And by checking your profile you see the progress of yourself as well as others. But the Nike+ motivates you to do better which is an amazing feature and it is something that I will use in my future endeavors in the classroom teaching. In chapter 9 Fun with strangers, discusses the relationships built from online gaming experience. For me this sums up my experience with Settlers because I have built relationships with people I may never meet face to face in life but we have become friends and confide in each other through our gaming experience. "The comfort of strangers can be a short game or long game, depending on how willing players are to overcome their hesitations about reaching out to strangers, and depending on how tightly they can learn to stick together in the crowd." (p. 171 McGonigal)

Fix: 13

The collaborative practices are essential in the Settlers experience. However, through time spent on the game I have come to realize the reality of establishing a settlement is possible without help from others however it would make the experience harder then what it really needs to be. Being able to trade and have gifts sent to you by others definitely helps speed the process of the settlers experience so that you can expand your land, your people and your production. Also, by confiding in others who have experience above whats yours may be they begin to show in this gaming experience we all have a shared concentration for the Settlers experience and the continued want to grow and level up. 

"Gamer culture is moving insistently in the direction of more shared intentionality in co-op mode, gamers work together to defeat an AI opponent and to increase each others scores, rather than competing against each other" (p. 272 Mcgonigal). Where our only opponent in the game are the bandit camps without the help of the people I have met through my guild I would not have been able to reach the level at which I am at right now. I was fortunate to have had the guidance of a level 42 player to help bring me up to speed with Settlers gaming experience and since we have a shared intentionality of the game it has helped me grow as a player in this game. For my experience he has helped me improve my productivity with my goods. Since it kind of takes a certain process in order to have everything functioning properly and all goods being produced properly so you can use them and grow the population and production. He guided me by telling me as I leveled up on what was necessary to have at that time and what was not. By doing so I was able to achieve all my production goals and I was able to begin trading and have the means to do so. He also gifted me with some materials so that I was able to build certain buildings so I could be productive.

Fix: 11-12

"Compared with games, reality is unsustainable. The gratifications we get from playing games are an infinitely renewable resource" (p. 244 McGonigal). I think from playing the Settlers game we experience all that is discussed in this fix: 11-12. In the experience of settlers we experience the sustainable engagement economy because we are not competing against each other we are working to complete a task of building our settlement to its fullest capability. It challenges you but at the same time allows for the complete with yourself and have the feeling of gratitude when you complete a task or quest or mission. "What the world needs now are more epic wins: opportunities for ordinary people to do extraordinary things--like change or save someone's life--every day" (p. 247 McGonogal). As i continue with my settlers experience I have hit a road block finally in my success that was never ending for a short while. This game has continued to grow on me the more in depth I get into it. So it leaves me to wonder what is left for me to do and from befriending others who are leveled higher then I am I see that there is so much more left for me to do and expand and grow my settlement. It just leaves me wondering what more I can grow or do for my settlement. I think the social participation is in our case necessary since this is a mandatory assignment for our class we have to socialize through our blog. However, through interaction with peers online I have began to realize how important the social aspect of settlers has become for the growth of my own settlement. Through social participation in the masses (personal guild) from my experience with the guild it has helped me tremendously in my growth of my settlement whether its the transfer of goods or through talks with those who are in my guild and want to see my settlement grow. So through the social aspect of the game the experience has improved tremendously.

The crowd sourcing project I found is 6 Companies crowdsourcing our education . Through this site it describes the ways the users are the primary source of the product and the result. It describes the way education is accepting the way this phenomenon is helping the success of education because it allows everyone to put their thoughts and concerns into the project. By having multiple people working on a project it allows for positive functioning and allows for continued growth.

Fix: 9-10

In my experience with settlers it has been an interesting one. I have become friends with one player from my guild at which every time he and I are online together we start a conversation whether it is about the settlers experience or life in general. It has been interesting seeing someone who plays the game not because they have to but because of the fun challenge the game provides. My sense of community has come from not only this experience but as well as others in our guild we have teamed up so to speak to make sure we all successful and continue to progress. I think this connects perfectly with the reading from this week. "Fix #9: More Fun With Strangers, Compared with games, reality is and isolating. Games help us band together and create powerful communities from scratch." (McGonigal, pg. 172) This explains perfectly the commodore we have built in our guild. Since I am one of the last to join the guild it is interesting how quickly we have band together to make sure we are all progressing whether its giving goods to each other or buffing buildings constantly we are working and asking for help to continue to progress. In my experience with happiness hacks would be with those in my guild like I explained before where they just look at your settlement and see whether you need a building buff or if your running low on a good they will provide it for you if they have the means to do so. I as well return the favor because it is only right since the game is not a competition we look at as being neighbors and lending a hand so to speak. In McGonigal reading she states, "Researchers have shown that sharing the same space for even just a few minutes a day with kind and friendly strangers makes us more optimistic, improves our self-esteem, makes us feel safer and more connected to our environment, and generally helps us enjoy life more." (pg 190) From my experience so far these thoughts as described in the quote are what I feel as I continue to work with those in my guild as well as communicate with others through discussion on the live chat. It opens our eyes to see what interest others have as well as meeting people who are willing to just lend a helping hand.

Fix 7-8

Since beginning play in the settlers online game I have grown interest tremendously over the past two weeks. I have found myself in my spare time logging on and seeing what quest I can work on in that short time I am going to be on. I think once I past level 10 and started seeing the true progress of the settlement I became more intrigued in the progress of the settlement. I was discouraged at first because I was not seeing the progress that I did want to see from the time I was putting into the game. Mcgonigal states in the book, "To participate wholeheartedly in something means to be self motivated and self directed, intensely interested and genuinely enthusiastic." (pg. 124) Now that I am at level 25 I want to keep progressing my settlement and claim all the sectors available. And essentially level as high as possible I have become attached to the game due to the success I have been having. And I think that is what drove me away from the game early because of the slow flow at first to level it was almost tedious as to when you'll level up but now it seems I am cruising with the progress I am having. However, from reading the forum I have come to see it slows down again of how fast the success of leveling up is going to be. The most meaningful rewards have been the success of my army in the game. And how I have dominated in the sense of claiming sectors and defeating the bandit leaders in those areas. From the book in chapter 8 I would like to state I feel differently about Fix #8. "Fix #8: Meaningful Rewards When We Need Them Most, Compared with games, reality ispointless and unrewarding. Games help us feel more rewarded for making our best effort." (pg 148) Although I enjoy games I do not find them more rewarding then my own personal success away from my multimedia life. I enjoy personal successes above any multimedia gain. Although success in games gives me joy I do not over look personal successes away from interactive games.