Navta Associates

MovingLearningGamesForward, by Eric Klopfer, Scot Osterweil, and Katie Salen With contributions by Jason Haas, Jennifer Groff and Dan Roy, is one of the most useful reports about games in education that I’ve read in a long time.  This is an Education Arcade paper, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The report intelligently answers questions regarding the use of video games in education, and provides numerous resources for continued investigation. “Educational games” are placed in rich context, including historical background and recommendations for implementation in the “classroom”. Very much a must-read for anyone even vaguely interested in this timely debate.

Dreambox Learning has released a new online K-2 math learning product. It’s the wave of the future–adaptive math lessons that are fun and provide instant feedback. The graphics are pleasing and grade-appropriate. Learners proceed at their own pace, with plenty of help if they need it. Check it out!

The Game Education Summit is the only conference where the video game industry and academics from around the world can come together to have meaningful conversations about the future of game development.

The Game Education Summit has a steady focus on the various stages of development of game education programs as well as the latest research in game studies. The aim of the conference is to bring together people from various academic institutions along with video game industry professionals who are interested in finding solutions to the critical shortage of skilled professionals entering the video game industry.

Very interesting, well-written, and inspiring blog entry about “the state of gaming”. Check it out!

Click here.

There is a new game development engine, Dinoworms, which provides a toolbox that anyone can use to create games. There are a few other similar tools available, and I haven’t spent a lot of time investigating this one yet. Upon first glance, and poking through the online demos, it looks worthwhile. This product was designed specifically for the education market, to help teachers create educational games to inspire and foster learning in their students.

It’s not often that an an old classic can be successfully resurrected. The folks at Sesame Street have done a terrific job with the all-new Electric Company. Check out their site, become a fan on Facebook, watch clips on YouTube, and visit the Parents/Educators website.

This is a great resource to help young kids get interested in reading, enjoy!

Illusion Labs has created two games that can be played on a big multi-touch screen. The games are available on the iPhone, but have now been converted to a larger format. The price tag on multitouch screens will keep them out of the consumer market, but who knows for how long?!

Playing games on a huge multitouch screen might just be the ticket for gamers like myself who find the buttons on most gaming remotes to be baffling. Who can remember what the X button is supposed to do, especially when it’s different from game to game?!

Q4 Technologies is marketing some really neat products! The WowWee Robot and GoRobo software can pair up to provide kids with an incredibly fun learning experience. Kids learn design, programming, and sequencing, among other skills. The robot designs are relatively gender-neutral, so girls and boys can share in this experience equally.

Wish I had one!

To continue some ideas from my last entry about having fun with Little Big Planet, I’ve realized that I’ve enjoyed my foray into PS3 gaming, but am definitely not hooked (yet).

In fact, I’m much more hooked on Wurdle, an app on my iPhone. Maybe because it’s more accessible, can be played for short bursts of time, and has words in it. Some of us truly enjoy word games and puzzles, and nothing can quite compete.

I discovered Bananagrams during the holidays, and we put a 2000-piece jigsaw puzzle on the dining room table. Sounds old-fashioned, I know, but I just couldn’t stay away. I’m an avid crossword-puzzle solver, and living in Pittsburgh I’m in heaven because the Post-Gazette and NYT publish different versions of the NYT crossword puzzle, so I have TWO of the best crosswords on the planet to solve per day.

There are puzzle-solving elements of Little Big Planet, and those parts are enjoyable, but still haven’t managed to make an addict out of me.

This is potentially one of my new areas for study–the relationship (or lack thereof) among word games, puzzles, and video games. Any fellow puzzle-solvers out there who can shed some light on this?

p.s.–here is a great video about the family who invented, marketed, and owns Bananagrams

I finally purchased my first video game just for me. It’s tough to get gaming time in my household, with two pre-teen boys and an adult male already in competition for playtime (kids are only allowed on weekends, but who has time during the week nights, anyway?!) At any rate, I’ve now played Little Big Planet a few times, and I’m fascinated mostly by the graphics and the cute and customizable sack people.

It is quite entertaining for everyone else in the house when I sit down to game, because apparently it doesn’t really help to move the controller up, down, and sideways while playing. Why move your hands or arms when the thumbs will suffice? Well, my method works for me, and it’s not all bad to be the center of attention–even if their sentiment is more “amused pity” than anything else.

They watched for a while, we played together a bit, then my 13-yr-old commandeered the game, mastered the full-on level editor that comes with Little Big Planet, and created his own graphics and levels.

It would be a stretch to say that this game has significant educational value. It makes sense that my more artistically inclined son was the one to get interested in creating his own levels, layering rich textures and colors, and approaching the gaming space with a designer’s sensibility. He was the one of the two who spent hours earlier in the school year working on his creations in “Programming with Alice” (see an earlier blog entry for more info on Alice), even above and beyond what his teacher required. Maybe he has an interest in programming? Given his lack of interest in hard math, and preference for the artistic side, it seems highly unlikely that he would be interested in actual coding.

I would summarize the experience he has gained by creating Little Big Planet levels on a par with reading a really good book–one that opens your eyes to wonderful new ideas,  broadens your perspective, and may spark an interest in some future endeavor.