Subject: [IFETS-Discuss] Creating interactive content
mharrsch@oregon.uoregon.edu
Date: Tue 27 Jun 2000 - 02:31:26 MEST
From: mharrsch@oregon.uoregon.edu Subject: [IFETS-Discuss] Creating interactive content Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2000 17:31:26 -0700
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Nancy Fire wrote: "...if the learner is engaged with the content in a
simulation, real world application of problem solving, case study, or the
like, he is apt to increase his understanding of the content."
I personally feel that much educational software, in its attempt to be
"engaging" is simply using multimedia (or web links) to state a simple story
problem rather than providing a "real world application of problem solving".
For example, check out one of the sample "Math Mysteries" from Tom Snyder's
software series:
http://www.teachtsp2.com/mathmysteries/try/try.htm
Although this exercise is using Quicktime video and a colorful character, it
is essentially simply stating the facts for a typical story problem I would
have found in my math textbook in 1958 (oops! my age is showing). In my
opinion this is not an education revolution.
However, if the student is told the ship has struck an iceberg and will sink
in 15 minutes and it is their duty to get the passengers to the lifeboats
before it sinks, - now that would be a "real world application of problem
solving." The student would be told to look around to find the tools they
need to solve the problem such as a ship's schematic, a passenger manifest,
etc. which are described in the crew's orientation session when the student
comes aboard (and can be replayed if needed). These items contain
information about the weight capacity of the lifeboats, the weight of an
average adult man, adult woman, and child, a passenger manifest showing the
passengers' gender and sex, the locations of each passenger and the
locations of the lifeboats, etc. (I think you get the picture). For
replayability, the passengers number, demographics, and locations and the
locations and capacity of the lifeboats are changed each time the problem is
replayed. A clock is visible for the student to keep track of the time
remaining and a log book is provided so the student can record the amount of
time it took to solve the problem each time the scenario is attempted. If
the problem is not solved in the amount of time allotted a dramatic rush of
water and the sounds of a sinking ship breaking apart signal to the student
that they have not succeeded. Difficulty level could be controlled by
increasing or decreasing the amount of time allotted, increasing or
decreasing the number of variables, etc. Although this example also
provides the information the student needs to solve the problem, the
difference between this example and Snyder's example is that it provides a
goal for the student to achieve (other than a simple check to see if they
got the answer "right" - I've ranted on this list before about the problem
of assessing everything as "right" or "wrong"), a constraint (in this case
time) which could be adjustable, replayability, and a "discovery" aspect to
the problem solving exercise. If we were to introduce adaptive programming,
the computer could track how long it takes a student to solve the exercise
(or fail) then recreate the scenario with either longer or shorter time
constraints and more or less variables. The purpose of the log book is to
provide the opportunity for students with a taste for competition to record
and try to better their times. Studies have shown that boys in particular
appreciate the exhilaration of competition even if it is only with
themselves and repetition of an exercise gives students the chance to learn
from previous experiences and reinforce the concepts they are attempting to
employ.
I think commercial strategy software provides a good model to consider when
formulating these types of learning environments. For example, in Sierra's
Caesar III, the player is given an assignment by the emperor to develop a
new province and achieve certain levels of prosperity, culture, favorability
(with the emperor and the province's population), etc. The player is
provided with a beginning stipend to spend on improvements, each improvement
costing a certain number of denarii. Each improvement requires a certain
number of workers and workers must be attracted by building housing and
offering a competitive wage. Housing requires fire and police protection
and the services of an engineer if they are to be prevented from collapsing.
The growing population also requires medical care, education, spiritual
development and entertainment if the player hopes to avoid civic unrest.
The player is offered a selection of cities with which to negotiate trade
agreements, each one buying and selling different products and resources.
Each province has its own natural resources which the player must discover.
Of course the stipend is only seed money so to reach the goals established
by the emperor the player must improve his province by planning, trade,
development of resources, etc. while defending the province against invading
armies, civic riot, wild animals, the anger of different deities, etc. As a
player completes each assignment, he is promoted and given a more difficult
province with higher achievement levels. Again, we see the pattern of
providing a defined goal(s), a constraint (in this case money instead of
time), replayability, an aspect of "discovery", and an adjustable difficulty
level controlled by the goals, the number of variables, etc.
Hundreds of thousands of copies of this game have been sold to people who
willingly spend hours attempting to succeed and be promoted to the highest
echelons of Roman society all the while learning about resource management,
social structures, defense strategies, ancient Roman religion, etc.
Mary Harrsch
Network & Information Systems Manager
College of Education
University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403
(541) 346-3554
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~mharrsch/
Commentary Section Editor
The Technology Source
http://horizon.unc.edu/ts/
A free refereed web periodical that features
articles on methods and efforts to infuse technology
into educational organizations.
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