Through coverage of the market, research and up-to-date analysis, Games and Learning reports on the opportunities and challenges facing those seeking to unlock the educational power of games.

Reference, Facts, News - Free and Family-friendly Resources - Refdesk.com Gaming in education: 'We don’t need no stinking badges' Educators and game designers say gamification is not about adding games to classes, but designing classes as games When video game designer and writer Lee Sheldon designed a physical fitness class called “Skeleton Chase,” he didn’t ask any students to climb into a sewer drain. Yet, one student, who saw it as the best means to attain his goal, did so, anyway. Sheldon showed a photograph of the student climbing into the tunnel to a small gathering of politicians, educators, and industry leaders May 16 on Capitol Hill. Sheldon was one of a handful of game designers to speak about gaming in education as part of the launch of Excelsior College’s new Center for Game and Simulation-Based Learning. Nearly 60 percent of Americans play video games, according to the Entertainment Software Association. At Friday’s event, Sheldon stressed that gaming in education does not mean simply adding video games into a classroom. “It’s not a game added to a class,” Sheldon said.

Gamification, personalization and continued education are trending in edtech | TechCrunch I’ve spent most of my life in and around schools. First as a student, then as a teacher and lately as an innovator building tools and launching programs. As Nelson Mandela said, “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Despite its importance, education seems to have been missed by the Internet revolution. Luckily, that is changing. There are only 11 education-focused firms listed on the U.S. stock market with a market cap of over $1 billion. Using CrunchBase, I took a look at $5.5 billion invested in 450 edtech companies over the last three years. When thinking about the edtech landscape, I frame solutions by the life cycle of a learner: early childhood, primary and secondary school, higher ed and continuing education. But before we can talk about the future, let’s review the past… …and the current edtech landscape. Early childhood Eighty-five percent of brain development occurs before the age of three. Primary/secondary school University Conclusion

PowerUp Game Story If any one out there is listening, Planet Helios is being destroyed and we need your help! Hundreds of years ago the nations of our planet realized that the side effects from burning fossil fuels for energy were damaging the atmosphere and changing the climate. They joined together to develop and build technologies to create electricity from available renewable energy resources like wind, sun and water power. But a few generations later energy was plentiful, clean and cheap and conservation was no longer in fashion. Now the damage has been re–done, and then some! Play PowerUp today and prove it's NOT too late! Making Games: The Ultimate Project-Based Learning Gamestar Mechanic Part 6 of MindShift’s Guide to Games and Learning. As game-based learning increases in popularity, it’s easy to get pigeon-holed into one particular way of thinking about it or one way of employing it. This is true regardless of how teachers feel about gaming in the classroom, whether they’re for or against it. One common objection to game-based learning is that students will sit in front of screens being taught at. In previous posts in this series, I’ve argued that because games involve systems thinking, they contextualize learning. “Games are just simulators with an internal incentive structure (often dopamine based). However, virtual simulations of hands-on experience are not the same as tangibly engaging with the world. Fortunately, few people are calling for games to replace school as we know it. Just as there are many apps and platforms designed to teach kids coding, there are also many apps and platforms that make it easy for kids to design their own games.

Station Spacewalk Game <center><div class="site_errors"><div class="floatType_site_error_top"></div><div class="floatType_site_error"><table summary="layout table"><tr><td bgcolor="#000000"><font color="#ffffff"><h2><img src="/templateimages/redesign/modules/overlay/site_error.gif" title="Site Error" alt="Site Error"/>There's a problem with your browser or settings. </h2></font><font color="#ffffff"><p>Your browser or your browser's settings are not supported. To get the best experience possible, please download a compatible browser. If you know your browser is up to date, you should check to ensure that javascript is enabled. </p></font><p><a target="_blank" href="/home/How_to_enable_Javascript.html">&rsaquo; Learn How</a></p></td></tr></table></div><div class="floatType_site_error_bottom"></div></div></center> Follow this link to skip to the main content NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Charles F. Lori B. Multimedia Images Videos Podcasts Interactive Features 3D Resources RSS Feeds Blogs Gameplay

Scratch 2.0 WeDo extension is now in beta! - Discuss Scratch Today's update to Scratch adds support for the LEGO WeDo - a first for Scratch 2.0! LEGO WeDo is a robotics kit that you can use to connect your Scratch projects to the physical world. If you have a LEGO WeDo, you can add the WeDo extension by clicking the more blocks palette, and then select “add an extension.” Select LEGO WeDo and follow the instructions to install the plugin. What are Scratch Extensions? The WeDo extension is just the first of its kind: It will soon be possible to connect other kinds of hardware to Scratch. I want to make a Scratch extension so I can… (program my 200 foot tall My Little Pony robot / monitor my pet Nar-Nar’s temperature / whatever else you can imagine ) You can find more information about Scratch extensions on the wiki page. Scratch On!

National 4-H Curriculum New Curriculum: What's On Your Plate?: Exploring Food Science The latest National 4-H Curriculum title examines food science with a collection of hands-on experiments-you-can-eat. Learn More > National 4-H Curriculum focuses on 4-H’s three primary mission mandates: science, healthy living, and citizenship. State 4-H programs within the Cooperative Extension System, 4-H National Headquarters at USDA, and National 4-H Council provide leadership for the development of National 4-H Curriculum. Curriculum Titles View All Titles Research: Online Gaming Expands the Social Life of Gamers Gaming Research | News Research: Online Gaming Expands the Social Life of Gamers By Dian Schaffhauser04/10/14 People who play massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) may notprefer the company of avatars to live humans after all. Researchers from North Carolina State University and Canada's York University and University of Ontario Institute of Technology found that online social behavior doesn't replace offline social behavior in the gaming community. "Gamers aren't the antisocial basement-dwellers we see in pop culture stereotypes; they're highly social people," said Nick Taylor, lead author of "Public Displays of Play: Studying Online Games in Physical Settings" and an assistant professor of communication at North Carolina State. Taylor and his fellow researchers examined the online and offline behavior of gamers with an emphasis on how they communicated with each other. In fact, he added, a player could be "ruthless in a game and still socialize normally offline." About the Author

50 Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom Many critics of Twitter believe that the 140-character microblog offered by the ubiquitous social network can do little for the education industry. They are wrong. K-12 teachers have taken advantage of Twitter’s format to keep their classes engaged and up-to-date on the latest technologies. 1. One of the simplest ways that teachers can use Twitter in the classroom involves setting up a feed dedicated exclusively to due dates, tests or quizzes. 2. Subscribe to different mainstream and independent news feeds with different biases as a way to compare and contrast how different perspectives interpret current events and issues. 3. Set up an interesting assignment requesting that students set up Twitter for education lists following feeds relevant to their career goals and keep a daily journal on any trends that crop up along the way. The modern-day classroom has to account for a variety of learning styles in... Making ESL students feel welcome at their new school is vital to their success... 4.

The Augmented Web: Simplifying Augmented Reality In Education The Augmented Web: Simplifying Augmented Reality In Education by Maria Politis, Head of Content and Community at buildAR If you spend time on twitter looking at the #augmentedreality and #edutech hashtags you will know that there is quite a lot of discussion going on about Augmented Reality, and how it can be used as an educational tool. And with good reason. The web is full of innovative examples of how Augmented Reality is used in classrooms around the world every day. The ability to overlay digital content and information onto the real world, using triggers like images and locations opens up a world of rich learning opportunities. There is a wide range of Augmented Reality applications for the classroom currently available and real, practical uses of the technology are easy to find. Misunderstanding The Complexity Yet there still seems to be a widespread belief that Augmented Reality is difficult to implement. How Does Browser-Based Augmented Reality Work? Want To Learn More?