Journal #6 - internet & information

How has the internet changed the way we view information and information access?
I think information is much more readily available with the internet. I’ve also noticed that students are much more likely to look up something they don’t know or don’t understand in an internet search rather than looking up things in a textbook. Another interesting trend is that students will often look up things on their handheld devices during a lecture or video. Since they have no problem multi-tasking, they listen and start internet searches. Or if a website is cited during the presentation, they will often go online and check it out while listening. I absolutely LOVE this concept. As students become better adept at multitasking, they can seek out more information about the subject, becoming immersed, which has been touted as a great way to learn. As websites are becoming more popular, more companies (profit and not-for-profit) has put websites online. Also, people began working together to get information out there – Wikipedia is a great example. Therefore, everyday, the amount of information available online is growing exponentially. The question thereby becomes: how accurate is this information? - which brings up the next discussion question.

How has the internet changed access to ‘literature,’ research, and quality ‘text’ as well as censorship and editing ?

Unfortunately, one of the side effects, in my opinion, of the massive amount of online information, is the majority of reader’s readily acceptance that the information is completely correct. Granted, most information comes from reputable sources and is extremely accurate or corrected in a timely manner. I read an article, awhile ago, that compared the amount of errors in a current set of encyclopedias and the amount of errors on Wikipedia. There were actually less errors on Wikipedia because the information was edited by some many people every day. More recently, I read an article about how an online news source (not reputable) reported the death of a semi-famous person. A more reputable news source put the information on their website and it just snowballed from there. The death was added to the semi-famous person’s page on Wikipedia, but was removed within an hour because the information could not be legitimized. Later that day, the semi-famous person, who found out about the reported death, made an announcement the he was very much alive. Here is a great example of how serious Wikipedia takes the information they display.

Unfortunately, a lot of students reading online information have lost their ability to legitimately question the source, just because it is online. Although, maybe that isn’t an entirely fair statement since a line out of textbook is taken as gospel by students as well. Perhaps questioning the accuracy of information isn’t relative to if it is printed on paper or on the internet, but rather that we are not teaching students to always question and legitimize ALL information.

#5 Journal Entry - Mobile Devices

- How indispensable are mobile computing devices in your life? Are they an "extension" of who you are?

I go no where without my cell phone. I may not use it often, but it is a huge comfort to know that I can always call for help if (when) I need it. Also, the school where I teach doesn't have an intercom system. If I need assistance, I pull out my cell phone and call the office or person I need. Another comfort is that my school has an emergency system set up to send a text message if there is an emergency on campus. Our campus is so large, that a text message would definitely spread the word much faster than word of mouth or email. Email wouldn't work for me when I'm in class anyway, because I'm rarely logged in and reading emails during class. I plan on buying an iphone soon. I imagine that my cell phone will become much more than just a phone for me at that point, but right now, with my old little cell phone, it gives me the ability to call for help, in matters great or small, whenever and wherever I need it.



- How can mobile computing devices be used in disadvantaged or underdeveloped environments?

I have a friend from Haiti and another from Jamaica. Neither friend comes from very good areas of either country. My friend from Haiti has told me how the electricty never runs 24 hours in a day, so you couldn't plan on getting online at a certain time nor plan on having refrigerated food, unless you had a generator. My friend from Jamaica was so poor, that he, nor anyone in his neighborhood, could afford a computer. And yet both of these friends have told me how so many people have 3G phones. That's how they get online and stay connected in areas where people can't afford a computer or afford the generator to make the electricity to run the computer. When Haiti suffered the recent, terrible, earthquakes, my friend immediately started calling his friends and family. One family member he couldn't reach, but knew he was ok, because the family member had posted something to facebook. I asked my friend how he could post something online when there certainly wasn't electricity. My friend enlightened me about how most people had 3G phones because it was the only way they could have access to the internet. I was simply amazed. 3G phones are a relatively cheap, easy way for poor or underdeveloped areas to have access to the internet and to stay in touch with each other. My friend from Jamaica confirmed it. His friends and relatives all had 3G phones for the same reason - no one could afford a computer.

Journal #4 games in education

Do all human beings enjoy playing digital games? - In what ways can gaming or multi-user virtual environments (MUVEs) contribute to the learning experience? - Do games and MUVEs benefit certain students or groups more than others?

Do all human beings enjoy playing digital games? That's a tough question. For one thing, I would ask: do all humans enjoy playing games? Games are technically work and problem-solving, yet somehow they are enjoyable too. Maybe not every game...it seems certain types of games appeal more to certain types of people. But, for the most part, I think it is in our nature to love games. For that reason, I would claim that all human beings could enjoy playing digital games. For those people who aren't comfortable with technology, they wouldn't enjoy playing these games, at first. But I think if they became comfortable enough with technology, they would be able to enjoy playing digital games. This is why I use the disclaimer of "could" enjoy digital games.

In what ways can gaming or multi-user virtual environments (MUVEs) contribute to the learning experience? Games are problem-solving at their core. By using environments where multiple people are working at solving the problem, you can get complex interactions coming out of the group. Also, the problems within the game can be much more intricate, which could enhance the game and satisfaction of solving the problem (a.k.a. winning). You learn team-building skills as well, because you are coordinating a team effort to solve the problems the game throws at you. Even if you are not on the same team, you can share advice and talk over problems with people who play the game, either in world or in the 'real' world. This, again, would enhance personal relationships and build a sense of community. Also, speaking from the point of view of a learner, a lesson may seem unmanageable or unlearnable, but having a helping hand of a peer-learner who is going through the same situation can be quite comforting and helpful. The task doesn't seem so daunting and learners are less likely to give up, in my opinion.

Do games and MUVEs benefit certain students or groups more than others? I would say yes based solely on the learner's comfort level with technology. Therefore, older students, let say in their 60's, for example, may not be very comfortable moving around in a virtual world. They may have trouble manipulating their environment or even understanding the concept. Now, I'm not saying that all people in their 60's would have this problem - some would be very comfortable in this environment. But anyone, of any age, race, gender, whatever, is going to have trouble with digital games and MUVEs if they are not comfortable with technology. If they are tripped up on technology, they are not able to learn the lesson because they are too busy trying to learn the technology.

Journal #3 - online information

- How do we shape our ability to critically evaluate the credibility of information available online?
- How do we represent ourselves online?

How do we represent ourselves online and muddle through the truths and non-truths of other online identities? Excellent question!

I begin with myself. How I portray myself online is pretty much how I am in real life...well, the way I am now in real life. I have to agree with some of our reading assignment that identity is fluid and ever-changing. So my identity now, may not be the same in the future...for example, this post may last much longer than my opinion of my online identity. I can freely admit that in chats and IM's of the past I have outright lied to my fellow chatters, on purpose, because I knew I'd never meet them face-to-face, and so, why not be somebody else. Oddly enough, now I don't care how I am perceived and pretty much say whatever I want. For this reason, I think how we want to be perceived shapes what and how we say things online. And that is probably where the un-truths come into the picture. The speaker wants to be perceived as this or that, so he/she may tell half-truths or non-truths ("touch-ups" according to our reading) to get you thinking those thoughts. When you are chatting away with someone, or reading their blog, how do you sort through what they are really saying and what they want you to think??? I guess the real question is do you really care? If you are vested in what this person is telling you, then it makes a difference to find out the truths vs. the non-truths. Online, this may be a bit more of a challenge since there is no body language to cross-reference with the information the speaker is stating. But, I don't think the absence of body language is necessarily a bad thing. Without emotion and without facial and body miscues, lies and un-truths may be easier to spot. Sometimes, while reading a tall tale, the reader just has a "gut feeling" that the author may be stretching the truth. I would say that the reader's subconscious, without the distraction of the person standing in front of them, is putting together bits of information that are starting not to add up. When 2 + 2 = 5, alarms start to go off and your subconscious starts to grab your attention until your conscious can put the pieces together for itself. Therefore, I would have to say that there is no clear-cut recipe to figuring out online myths and reality. If it matters to you, if you are vested in the truth, then listen to (well, read carefully) the facts and see if they add up. Otherwise, it is best to take things "with a grain of salt" so to say.

Journal #2 - How do we define who we are, and shape or reaffirm our identity using social networks?

After reading the material, I began to realize exactly how much we confuse children - teenagers, especially. Dannah boyd really spells it out with several contradictions that we set up for teenagers. For example, we "sell sex to teens but prohibit them from having it; we tell teens to grow up but restrict them from the vices and freedoms of adult society." She's right, this is hypocrisy! It's no wonder that teenagers are so confused! I begin to understand the importance of them having their own "space" to figure out who they are. They need social interactions to figure out the cultural importances, rules, morals, faux pas, and so on that they are expected to not only understand, but to manipulate without fail. For this reason, teenagers set up profiles online to help them express themselves and understand the world they live in. By viewing others profiles, they can compare the similarities and differences. Soon a culture exists - one that is truly theirs. And then a cultural norm exists, where things are socially excepted or rejected, making it an organic, evolving thing. This allows them to experiment and evolve as individuals. They can try out different perspectives. They can be whoever they want to be. And if they try out a false identity, they often can't keep it up because their peers soon detect it. But that's ok, because they find who they are not. For example, as stated in the reading, a boy pretending to be a girl couldn't keep the conversation going along without being caught. This reaffirms to the boy that he is indeed male. This suggests that the more social interactions online that teen encounters, will actually help the teen understand their true identity. The acceptance or rejection of behaviors (a.k.a. being "cool" or being a “dork”) helps develop a cultural norm that teaches teens to live with society - maybe not accept everything, but at least learn to live within it. So, online identities help these teens understand their limitations...well, at the very least complain to sympathetic listeners, who understand completely since they are teens too. This interaction helps confirm who the individual really is.

Also, in an online environment, teens can discuss topics that may not be socially acceptable in face-to-face conversations. Race is a good example. In AsianAvenue, BlackPlanet, or MiGente, they can discuss racial issues with some degree anonymity. Some of the racial slang or issues (maybe even questions about races) may not be socially acceptable as a conversation in a school yard or classroom. But here, online, these teens can talk openly and freely discuss sensitive issues like race without worry. In a sense, it also helps reaffirm their identity, because they are finding out what it means to be Black or Hispanic or Asian or whatever race. Therefore, discussing races or problems or issues in this manner gives teens the views and opinions of others of the same race. The norms of this culture are different, based upon the race, and what is “cool” in a race-oriented website may be very different from a teen-oriented website. The individual can contrast and hopefully resolve the two opposing viewpoints within their own thoughts and opinions, consequently reaffirming the individual’s identity.

In conclusion, I have to agree that social networking sites helps teens find the answers to the confusion that society places upon them. By interacting with other teens, with peers within their own race or culture, helps the individual to understand his or her own ideas and thoughts. By seeing the constraints placed by their peers about accepted and rejected ideas and behaviors, the individual can modify their own thoughts and behaviors to live within that society. Exploring, trial and error, and lurking are all great ways that individuals can discover their true identity on social networking sites. And the small degree of anonymity provided by the Internet makes this form of discovery more accessible than facing your peers in a ‘real-life’ situation.

Journal #1 - How do we perceive ourselves (and others) in the real and digital worlds in which we live?

At first, I argued the importance of perception. What does it matter how you are perceived because it doesn't change who you really are?!? But the more I pondered this question, along with the reading assignment, and a conversation with my students, my opinion shifted and now I think perception of yourself does change who you are.

As I was considering this question, I began to come around to the influence of perception. Let me give you an example of my line of thought. If you are perceived by a particular person as someone who is always cheerful and always joking, then when you make a comment to that person they automatically take what you are saying as cheerful and joking. In other words, how you mean things and how you are perceived shapes the entire conversation (contact) with that person. Therefore, what you say is completely open to interpretation and that interpretation is completely based on how people see you. It's amazing that how you are perceived carries such weight! And I hadn't really put together how important perception is, until now.

Ok, so now I can understand the importance of perception - especially in face-to-face interactions. But what about the importance of escaping perception that people do online? For example, in the reading there was a girl, Clarissa, that used her online role-playing identity to be a boy during the day and a girl at night. There wasn't an opportunity for her to explore different gender identities in face-to-face interactions because she couldn't change how she was perceived. But online, she was able to change how she was perceived and could therefore "experiment" with being a boy and the perceptions that go along with being a boy.

Another example of changes in online perception came with how adults were perceived by some teenagers. In the reading, the authors suggest that interactions online can widen the circle of contact with adults for teens - specifically that they could interact with adults that aren't family or friends of the family or educators. To me that is saying that they could interact with adults who didn't know who the teenagers were and therefore didn't have any particular perception of them (i.e., that they were a "trouble-maker" or a "class clown" or some other label). When teens contacted these adults, they were sort of "blank slates" and therefore the adults couldn't judge them from perceptions, but only judge them from those specific interactions. I think this is what really makes teens want to talk to these adults, the lack of judgment and previous perceptions.

But please don’t think this only applies to teens. Very often you get adults who pose as children online…sometimes for the wrong reasons, but sometimes because they view being a child as having freedom from responsibilities. In the “real” world, most adults have many responsibilities, like holding a job, paying bills, raising kids, being politically correct, being environmentally responsible, understanding complex political issues, and so on. Perhaps, by becoming a kid online, they want to change how they are perceived (i.e., from a responsible adult to a kid without responsibilities). This is something that would be impossible in a face-to-face setting, but is completely possible (and often done) in the online setting.

While reading this article, I was thinking about Clarissa (see above) and asked my students about “Faraway Lands” since I hadn’t heard about it before reading this article. My students didn’t really know anything about it, so I started giving a brief description based on the reading. Before I could describe too much, a young lady exclaimed that it sounded like World of Warcraft. She went on to explain that she has been playing W.O.W. for years as a few different characters including a male elf character and a male wizard/mage character. Another teen chimed in that he played a few different ones as well. When I asked about the change in genders, he said that he did have one character that was female, but she was a very good warrior that could “kick some a**” and just happened to be “hot” too. Well, the rest of classroom started relating their W.O.W. experiences and soon I began to realize that these teens were trying on identities not only inside role-playing games, but in various online media. For example, one girl had a MySpace profile as a boy and another girl had an email account set as a boy which linked to several online gaming and social profiles, including a blog. All of this really made me sit back and wonder about perception. I hadn’t realized how much perception defines someone and how much escapism online identities provide. I guess I hadn’t really thought about it before now. I understand teenagers wanting to explore their own identity by trying on different online identities – I mean, figuring out who you are is what makes the teen years so darn confusing. But, now I understand that everyone – all genders, ages, races, in short, EVERYONE – needs to escape how they are perceived from time to time because that perception can sometimes be a stone around the neck. In face-to-face interactions, you can rarely escape from that burden. Online, though, you can escape it with just a few clicks. Now, I finally see the appeal.

Instructional Design Project Report #4

Theoretical framework:For Natural Selection – This task is experiential in nature, so constructivist theory is more compatible. Students are actively taking new information and applying it to the task of trying to get their species to live a million years. Therefore, they are active participants in this simulation where by applying their knowledge allows meaningful learning to take place.

For Blood Typing – The instructional design task is clearly defined performance objectives (i.e., blood transfusion and blood typing), so behavioral theory with its principles of practice and reinforcement (i.e., patients die unless treated properly) are more compatible. The positive reinforcement is that the patient gets better with the correct transfusion blood types. The negative reinforcement is that the patient’s condition worsens, and the patient may die, unless treated with the correct blood type.

The context and need for the instruction:
The immediate need (felt and anticipated) is to incorporate lessons that use technology while addressing various learning styles, levels of motivation, and academic levels. Educational games and simulations are new vehicles for education by providing a form of assessment, problem-based learning, a fail-safe environment, and a highly motivational learning environment.

Interviews with students led to complaints about “boring” lessons. Students also said they had a hard time applying the lessons on tests when they had no other form of practice. This illustrated a gap in mastering biology lessons because students had no practice of applying lessons before taking their tests. Also during the interview, students were asked their opinion of gaming. Most students considered themselves gamers. When asked if they would like some of the biology lessons to incorporate gaming, 100% of the students replied positively.

By implementing an intermediary lesson that incorporated technology, the lesson must use technology that is already found in the classroom (like computers and the internet, for example) and it must be able to be accessed by more than one person at a time. There must not be any financial cost to the implementation of the new lessons. Lessons, games, and simulations must be challenging enough to engage the student, but not too difficult to encourage quitting. Each lesson, game, or simulation implemented must follow the biology curriculum.

Your goals:Overall Goal - By incorporating technology, in the form of games and simulations, into biology lessons, I will create curriculum that students consider highly motivating, but that will also, at the same time, improve student content knowledge, build student conceptual knowledge, and increase student problem-solving skills.

Specific Student Learning Goal For Natural Selection – Students will play the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about natural selection and evolution. Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.15.3 (which states: Describe how biological diversity is increased by the origin of new species and how it is decreased by the natural process of extinction (FLDOE 2009)) by playing the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years?” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.

Specific Student Learning Goal for Blood Typing – Students will play “The Blood Typing Game,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about the genotypes that make up the blood phenotypes. Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.1 (which states: Use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to analyze patterns of inheritance (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.2 (which states: Discuss observed inheritance patterns caused by various modes of inheritance, including dominant, recessive, codominant, sex-linked, polygenic, and multiple alleles (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.34 (which states: Describe the composition and physiology of blood, including that of the plasma and the formed elements (FLDOE 2009)), and Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.35 (which states: Describe the steps in hemostasis, including the mechanism of coagulation. Include the basis for blood typing and transfusion reactions (FLDOE 2009)) by playing “The Blood Typing Game” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.

Your objectives:
Specific Instructional Objectives for Natural Selection:
- Students will explore how several varieties of a species can, through natural selection, evolve into one new species with the most successful and heritable traits to help students comprehend and apply Natural Selection and Evolution.

- Given the information, students will conclude that Natural Selection is a primary mechanism leading to evolutionary change (i.e., survival of the fittest / those with the traits to live pass those traits on to their offspring). This will allow them to apply, analyze, and synthesize their own species to try to succeed, evolutionarily speaking.

- Students will identify the natural processes in the environment and interactions with other species may cause extinction (i.e., disease, climate change, predation, and so on) so that they can evaluate the situation and possibly synthesize their own preventions of extinction for their species.

Specific Instructional Objectives for Blood Typing:
- Students will analyze the genotypes involved in phenotypic blood types (i.e., AO genotype results in Type A phenotype, and so on) so students can determine where blood types originate.

- Students will recognize characteristics (traits) that offspring inherit from parents (i.e., inheriting an O from Mom and a B from Dad results in a BO genotype and Type B phenotype, and so on) so that students can deduct where the genes for each blood type originates.

- Students will identify that blood cells have characteristic structures and functions that make them distinctive (i.e., antigen A, antigen B, and so on) so that students can comprehend the differences in blood types.

- Students will evaluate the process of blood typing and determine how to interpret the results (genotype and phenotype) so that the student can apply this information to patients in the game.

- Students will analyze the process of blood transfusions and the problems that can occur if done incorrectly (i.e., patient may die) so that students may apply this information to patients in the game.

A brief summary of the strategies and materials:
Necessary materials – students are given a prescription and list of instructions for each unit of Biology class. These items are attached. The instructions clearly identify the objectives and the Sunshine State Standards involved in that particular unit. The two new lessons are placed in the instructions to allow students to obtain background information from various reading assignments and worksheets. Once students have this information, they can do the new lesson. The students can also see from the prescription when they should do the new lesson. The prescription also tells them how many points the lesson is worth. When the student is ready, they request the lesson. Each lesson is attached. The student uses the work they have already done in the class, their textbook, the computer, and the internet to complete the assignment. The teacher may also be considered a resource. These are all the materials necessary for the new lessons.

The new lessons – each lesson begins with an introduction. This preinstructional material will help introduce the topic and draw the student into the assignment. Motivation will be high because games/simulations and technology have been incorporated into the new lessons. The objectives are clearly stated so that the student understands the purpose of the lessons. Materials are also listed so students can gather what they need to successfully complete the assignments. A list of procedures, step-by-step instructions, and diagrams help guide the student and reduce confusion. Questions are designed to assess pre-lesson knowledge, post-lesson knowledge, and engaged knowledge during the process. Please see each lesson for more specific information.

A short synopsis of your assessment experiences:
I’ve had 7 students try the Blood Typing lesson and two students try the Natural Selection lesson. I also had two biology instructors review the lessons. One English teacher, one social studies teacher, and one administrator also reviewed the lesson and watched my demonstration. I got very good feedback from everyone and addressed their concerns. The students were a great source of constructive feedback as well. All students were highly motivated and completed the lesson rather quickly compared to the time they took to complete other assignments. Some students also ran the game/simulation extra times. I am assuming they did this because they were highly engaged and wanted to see the outcome when trying different scenarios and options.

Pre-lesson and post-lesson questions were designed to match the benchmarks set up by the Florida Department of Education. Please see the list above for specific benchmarks.

Considerations for planning implementation of instruction:Configuration and Linkages – the lessons and the answer keys were printed for all the biology instructors. I then demonstrated the lessons and the websites. Instructors (and one administrator that was present) were allowed to access the websites on their own while I walked around answering their questions.

Environment – I offered technical support if they needed it. The lessons were incorporated into class units so instructors and students would know when to do the lessons. I made sure each computer in the classroom had internet access and the websites were accessible.

Resources – I am a good resource for the biology instructors. We have good communication and they approach me with all their problems and concerns. Also, the answer key to the assignment may be used if they get stuck on a specific question.

First Offering – I offered the lesson to students first so that I could catch any problems or inconsistencies. The other biology instructors watched my examples, so that they could familiarize themselves with the process.


References
Florida Department of Education. (2009). Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://www.floridastandards.org/Standards/FLStandardSearch.aspx

Kiili, K. (2005). Educational Game Design: Experiential gaming model revised. Tampere University of Technology. Pori, Research report 4, 1-12. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://amc.pori.tut.fi/publications/EducationalGameDesign.pdf

Morrison, G. R., Ross, S. M., & Kemp, J. E. (2007). Designing Effective Instruction, Fifth Edition. New Baskerville: John Wiley & Sons.

Shih, Y., E. (2005). Seize Teachable and Learnable Moments: SMSE instructional design model for mobile learning. Paper presented at the International Association for Development of the Information Society International Conference Mobile Learning June 28-30, Malta. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://www.iadis.net/dl/final_uploads/200506L012.pdf

Ulrich, Kathy. (2004). Designing Constructivist Lessons Using the 5 E Model. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://cte.jhu.edu/techacademy/fellows/Ullrich/webquest/mkuindex.html

Wetzel, D. R. (2008). How to Design an Effective Science Lesson: Developing lessons which engage students in critical thinking. Suite 101.com. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://teachertipstraining.suite101.com/how_to_design_an_effective_science_lesson

Instructional Design Unit Plan for Natural Selection

Unit plan for Natural Selection includes:

Educational goals and a statement of rationale for the goals:
Overall Goal - By incorporating technology, in the form of games and simulations, into biology lessons, I will create curriculum that students consider highly motivating, but that will also, at the same time, improve student content knowledge, build student conceptual knowledge, and increase student problem-solving skills.

Specific Student Learning Goal For Natural Selection – Students will play the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about natural selection and evolution. Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.15.3 (which states: Describe how biological diversity is increased by the origin of new species and how it is decreased by the natural process of extinction (FLDOE 2009)) by playing the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years?” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.

Description of learners: social background, experiential background, developmental level, motivation, knowledge level, and learning style:
Students who attend this school have withdrawn from public school for various reasons. Some are over 18, but the majority of students are under 18 years old. There are a variety of social and cultural backgrounds and learning levels. For example, some are poor, some are rich, some are Caucasian, some are African –American or another minority, some dropped out of public school because classes were boring or going too slowly, some dropped out of public school because they had fallen behind and couldn’t catch up, and so on. One major difference from public school is that all students must TABE at least at a level 9. This means that all the students in class can read, at the very least, at a 9th grade level, which isn’t always true of public school classrooms. Any curriculum has to be varied to fit a variety of learning styles and attention spans. Technology is promoted at my school and most students really seem to enjoy technology infused curricula.

Instructional objectives for Natural Selection:
- Students will explore how several varieties of a species can, through natural selection, evolve into one new species with the most successful and heritable traits to help students comprehend and apply Natural Selection and Evolution.

- Given the information, students will conclude that Natural Selection is a primary mechanism leading to evolutionary change (i.e., survival of the fittest / those with the traits to live pass those traits on to their offspring). This will allow them to apply, analyze, and synthesize their own species to try to succeed, evolutionarily speaking.

- Students will identify the natural processes in the environment and interactions with other species may cause extinction (i.e., disease, climate change, predation, and so on) so that they can evaluate the situation and possibly synthesize their own preventions of extinction for their species.

Performance measures that evaluate student learning outcomes, including that learning which occurs prior to, during, and following the instruction:
I will ask students pre-lesson questions. I will also ask them procedural questions within the game/simulation to help them pay attention to how the game/simulation works. I will ask them questions about how their game/simulation is working and why “this or that” (will be specific to a game/simulation and event) has occurred. I will also ask them post-lesson questions to assess their gain in knowledge and abilities after completing the game/simulation. Please see the attached lessons for specifics.

Strategies and materials for each objective:The game/simulation sets up the scenario for each objective to be obtained. The questions asked during the lesson will help clarify student thought and hopefully measure student gain in knowledge. Please see attached lesson for specific strategies and materials for each of the objectives.

Instructional Design Unit Plan for Blood Typing

Unit plan for Blood Typing includes:

Educational goals and a statement of rationale for the goals
Overall Goal - By incorporating technology, in the form of games and simulations, into biology lessons, I will create curriculum that students consider highly motivating, but that will also, at the same time, improve student content knowledge, build student conceptual knowledge, and increase student problem-solving skills.

Specific Student Learning Goal for Blood Typing – Students will play “The Blood Typing Game,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about the genotypes that make up the blood phenotypes. Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.1 (which states: Use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to analyze patterns of inheritance (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.2 (which states: Discuss observed inheritance patterns caused by various modes of inheritance, including dominant, recessive, codominant, sex-linked, polygenic, and multiple alleles (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.34 (which states: Describe the composition and physiology of blood, including that of the plasma and the formed elements (FLDOE 2009)), and Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.35 (which states: Describe the steps in hemostasis, including the mechanism of coagulation. Include the basis for blood typing and transfusion reactions (FLDOE 2009)) by playing “The Blood Typing Game” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.

Description of learners: social background, experiential background, developmental level, motivation, knowledge level, and learning style
Students who attend this school have withdrawn from public school for various reasons. Some are over 18, but the majority of students are under 18 years old. There are a variety of social and cultural backgrounds and learning levels. For example, some are poor, some are rich, some are Caucasian, some are African –American or another minority, some dropped out of public school because classes were boring or going too slowly, some dropped out of public school because they had fallen behind and couldn’t catch up, and so on. One major difference from public school is that all students must TABE at least at a level 9. This means that all the students in class can read, at the very least, at a 9th grade level, which isn’t always true of public school classrooms. Any curriculum has to be varied to fit a variety of learning styles and attention spans. Technology is promoted at my school and most students really seem to enjoy technology infused curricula.

Instructional objectives for Blood Typing:- Students will analyze the genotypes involved in phenotypic blood types (i.e., AO genotype results in Type A phenotype, and so on) so students can determine where blood types originate.

- Students will recognize characteristics (traits) that offspring inherit from parents (i.e., inheriting an O from Mom and a B from Dad results in a BO genotype and Type B phenotype, and so on) so that students can deduct where the genes for each blood type originates.

- Students will identify that blood cells have characteristic structures and functions that make them distinctive (i.e., antigen A, antigen B, and so on) so that students can comprehend the differences in blood types.

- Students will evaluate the process of blood typing and determine how to interpret the results (genotype and phenotype) so that the student can apply this information to patients in the game.

- Students will analyze the process of blood transfusions and the problems that can occur if done incorrectly (i.e., patient may die) so that students may apply this information to patients in the game.

Performance measures that evaluate student learning outcomes, including that learning which occurs prior to, during, and following the instruction:
I will ask students pre-lesson questions. I will also ask them procedural questions within the game/simulation to help them pay attention to how the game/simulation works. I will ask them questions about how their game/simulation is working and why “this or that” (will be specific to a game/simulation and event) has occurred. I will also ask them post-lesson questions to assess their gain in knowledge and abilities after completing the game/simulation. Please see the attached lessons for specifics.

Strategies and materials for each objective:The game/simulation sets up the scenario for each objective to be obtained. The questions asked during the lesson will help clarify student thought and hopefully measure student gain in knowledge. Please see attached lesson for specific strategies and materials for each of the objectives.

Instructional Design Project Report #3

Project title: Incorporating games and simulations into biology curriculum

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Revisions since Report 2: Incorporated many more questions into the lessons. After the trials, I then edited the lessons (reworded, added, subtracted, etc.) to enhance the learning experience.

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Goal statementOverall Goal - By incorporating technology, in the form of games and simulations, into biology lessons, I will create curriculum that students consider highly motivating, but that will also, at the same time, improve student content knowledge, build student conceptual knowledge, and increase student problem-solving skills.

Specific Design Goal For Natural Selection – Students will play the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about natural selection and evolution.

Specific Design Goal for Blood Typing – Students will play “The Blood Typing Game,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about the genotypes that make up the blood phenotypes.
Specific Student Learning Goal For Natural Selection – Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.15.3 (which states: Describe how biological diversity is increased by the origin of new species and how it is decreased by the natural process of extinction (FLDOE 2009)) by playing the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years?” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.

Specific Student Learning Goal for Blood Typing – Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.1 (which states: Use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to analyze patterns of inheritance (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.2 (which states: Discuss observed inheritance patterns caused by various modes of inheritance, including dominant, recessive, codominant, sex-linked, polygenic, and multiple alleles (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.34 (which states: Describe the composition and physiology of blood, including that of the plasma and the formed elements (FLDOE 2009)), and Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.35 (which states: Describe the steps in hemostasis, including the mechanism of coagulation. Include the basis for blood typing and transfusion reactions (FLDOE 2009)) by playing “The Blood Typing Game” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.
***

Task analysis
I plan on using topic analysis for understanding the facts, concepts, and principles tied to understanding the science concepts. But I also will tie in parts of a procedural analysis because I want the students to apply those facts, concepts, and principles in games and simulations so that the students will understand and learn those lessons well.

For a task analysis specific to both games – Most of the facts, concepts and principles will be addressed in the prep-work, before the students play this game. The rules and procedures of the game must be addressed in the accompanying worksheet (see procedural analysis, below). I will try to make the lesson fun and attractive to help motivate the students.

For a procedural analysis specific to both games – I will need to cover the game rules and player instructions in this section. Once students are playing the Evolution game, I will need to cover the procedures and processes of Natural Selection & Evolution. This will help them to understand the concepts and lesson. While students are playing the blood typing game, I will ask questions to help them understand why blood types are specific and the inherited genes that cause those specific blood types. Also, they will need to understand the procedures for blood transfusions and blood typing.

***
Instructional objectives
General Instructional Objectives:Cognitive – students will need to understand the facts, concepts, and principles associated with each lesson. The games will provide intellectual activities that will help them demonstrate these concepts and help them predict future situations in the games.
Psychomotor – students will be actively manipulating the games, using psychomotor skills, in order to play.

Affective – students will hopeful learn an appreciation and value for the lessons and the species/patients involved in the game. Also, the incorporation of game will be highly motivational for the student.

Specific for Natural Selection and Evolution:To explore how several varieties of a species can, through natural selection, evolve into one new species with the most successful and heritable traits to help students comprehend and apply Natural Selection and Evolution.

To understand that Natural Selection is a primary mechanism leading to evolutionary change (i.e., survival of the fittest / those with the traits to live pass those traits on to their offspring) so that students can apply, analyze, and synthesize their own species to try to succeed, evolutionarily speaking.

To understand that the natural processes in the environment and interactions with other species may cause extinction (i.e., disease, climate change, predation, and so on) so that students can evaluate the situation and possibly synthesize their own preventions of extinction for their species.

Specific for Blood Typing:
To analyze the genotypes involved in phenotypic blood types (i.e., AO genotype results in Type A phenotype, and so on) so students understand where blood types originate.

To recognize characteristics (traits) that offspring inherit from parents (i.e., inheriting an O from Mom and a B from Dad results in a BO genotype and Type B phenotype, and so on) so that students understand where the genes for blood types originate.

To understand that blood cells have characteristic structures and functions that make them distinctive (i.e., antigen A, antigen B, and so on) so that students can comprehend the differences in blood types.

To understand the process of blood typing and how to interpret the results (genotype and phenotype) so that the student can apply this information to patients in the game.

To understand the process of blood transfusions and the problems that can occur if done incorrectly (i.e., patient may die) so that students may apply this information to patients in the game.

***
Plan for one-to-one formative evaluation:

For both lessons:
Learners: students are between the ages of 15 and 19. All have at least a ninth grade reading level (requirement for our school). All students are taking Biology (Ref#2000310) 1A.
Materials: students will use their textbook, worksheet, writing utensils, and lab computers. The students will access the internet from the lab computer. Students will be given an oral interview, after they finish, about what they thought of the game/simulation and lesson.
Procedures: students, one at a time and at their own pace, will complete background work (required reading and assignments) before attempting the new lessons. When students think they are ready, I will give them the new lesson. Students can then go to the computers and bring up the internet/website. The lesson will have detailed procedures for the students, in case they are not comfortable using the computer/internet. Students can use their textbook and worksheets as reference materials. While they are working on the lesson, I will periodically go talk to them to see if they are in need of assistance. I will also ask them some easy questions about whatever is on their screen, to help them feel more secure about asking questions and perhaps get some preliminary feedback about the lesson. When students have completed the lesson, I will grade it and give them feedback on their work. During this time, I will interview them about the lesson and the game/simulation so that I can get feedback on my lesson.
***

Results of one-to-one formative evaluation:Blood Typing:
Grades on the assignment: 70% (45/64), 72% (46/64), 77% (49/64), 83% (53/64), 86% (55/64), and 92% (59/64).

Natural Selection:
Grades on the assignments: 94% (64/67) and 100% (67/67)

Revisions for both assignments: After seeing the students’ answers and talking to them about the assignment, I revised several questions to make them a bit more clear. Also the directions needed revising in a few spots because the students were unclear about how to go on to the next step. All students liked the lessons and playing the games/simulations. They really liked that they could “see” what they were learning about in action. I was most interested in the fact that everyone passed the assignment the first time. It is our school policy that students must pass every assignment with at least a 70%. If students don’t pass something, they must re-do the assignment until they get a passing grade. Several of these students have needed to re-do assignments because they weren’t comprehending the material. So, I find it very interesting that those same students who were challenged by other assignments passed these assignments on the first try.

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Materials and assessments for small-group evaluation:N/A - I am unable to work with small groups at my school. It is a self-paced learning system, so no students are working on the same lessons at the same time.

However, if I were able to do a small learning group of students at my school, I would have gave them all the worksheets and done a small presentation on the SMART board with student volunteers. Then I would have taken them to the computer lab and had them do the lessons on their own too.

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Characteristics of small-group learners:N/A - I am unable to work with small groups at my school. It is a self-paced learning system, so no students are working on the same lessons at the same time.

However, if I were able to do a small learning group of students at my school, the students are described in the one-to-one formative evaluation.

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Instruments for small-group evaluation:
N/A - I am unable to work with small groups at my school. It is a self-paced learning system, so no students are working on the same lessons at the same time.

However, if I were able to do a small learning group of students at my school, the students are described in the one-to-one formative evaluation.

***
Procedures for small-group evaluation:N/A - I am unable to work with small groups at my school. It is a self-paced learning system, so no students are working on the same lessons at the same time.

However, if I were able to do a small learning group of students at my school, the students are described in the one-to-one formative evaluation.

Summary of small-group evaluation:N/A - I am unable to work with small groups at my school. It is a self-paced learning system, so no students are working on the same lessons at the same time.

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Discussion of small group data:N/A - I am unable to work with small groups at my school. It is a self-paced learning system, so no students are working on the same lessons at the same time.

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Revisions for instruction and assessment:I’m not entirely sure that I’m demonstrating every Sunshine State Standard efficiently. So, I want to rehash the questions to make sure I incorporate everything necessary. Also, I’m not sure the pre-game/pre-simulation questions are corresponding to the post-game/post-simulation questions well enough. I think I may need to re-word a few of the questions to obtain clearer results about the effectiveness of the lessons. Also, the students really seemed to enjoy the playing of the game/simulation. I will put in some more prompts to get them to continue playing.

***
Relevant current references:Florida Department of Education. (2009). Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://www.floridastandards.org/Standards/FLStandardSearch.aspx

Kiili, K. (2005). Educational Game Design: Experiential gaming model revised. Tampere University of Technology. Pori, Research report 4, 1-12. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://amc.pori.tut.fi/publications/EducationalGameDesign.pdf

Morrison, G. R., Ross, S. M., & Kemp, J. E. (2007). Designing Effective Instruction, Fifth Edition. New Baskerville: John Wiley & Sons.

Shih, Y., E. (2005). Seize Teachable and Learnable Moments: SMSE instructional design model for mobile learning. Paper presented at the International Association for Development of the Information Society International Conference Mobile Learning June 28-30, Malta. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://www.iadis.net/dl/final_uploads/200506L012.pdf

Ulrich, Kathy. (2004). Designing Constructivist Lessons Using the 5 E Model. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://cte.jhu.edu/techacademy/fellows/Ullrich/webquest/mkuindex.html

Wetzel, D. R. (2008). How to Design an Effective Science Lesson: Developing lessons which engage students in critical thinking. Suite 101.com. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://teachertipstraining.suite101.com/how_to_design_an_effective_science_lesson

Instructional Design Project #2

Project title: Incorporating games and simulations into biology curriculum
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Revisions since Report 1: I chose one game for demonstrating Natural Selection and Evolution. It’s called “Who Wants to Live a Million Years?” and is found online (for free) at http://science.discovery.com/interactives/literacy/darwin/darwin.html

I chose one game for demonstrating the genotypes that give you the phenotypic blood types. It’s called “The Blood Typing Game” and is found online (for free) at http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/landsteiner/index.html
***
Goal statement:Overall Goal - By incorporating technology, in the form of games and simulations, into biology lessons, I will create curriculum that students consider highly motivating, but that will also, at the same time, improve student content knowledge, build student conceptual knowledge, and increase student problem-solving skills.

Specific Design Goal For Natural Selection – Students will play the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about natural selection and evolution.

Specific Design Goal for Blood Typing – Students will play “The Blood Typing Game,” in addition to their prescribed lessons, to learn about the genotypes that make up the blood phenotypes.
Specific Student Learning Goal For Natural Selection – Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.15.3 (which states: Describe how biological diversity is increased by the origin of new species and how it is decreased by the natural process of extinction (FLDOE 2009)) by playing the game “Who Wants to Live a Million Years?” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.

Specific Student Learning Goal for Blood Typing – Students will address Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.1 (which states: Use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to analyze patterns of inheritance (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.16.2 (which states: Discuss observed inheritance patterns caused by various modes of inheritance, including dominant, recessive, codominant, sex-linked, polygenic, and multiple alleles (FLDOE 2009), Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.34 (which states: Describe the composition and physiology of blood, including that of the plasma and the formed elements (FLDOE 2009)), and Benchmark: SC.912.L.14.35 (which states: Describe the steps in hemostasis, including the mechanism of coagulation. Include the basis for blood typing and transfusion reactions (FLDOE 2009)) by playing “The Blood Typing Game” and completing the corresponding lessons & worksheets.
***
Task analysis tied to the goals: I plan on using topic analysis for understanding the facts, concepts, and principles tied to understanding the science concepts. But I also will tie in parts of a procedural analysis because I want the students to apply those facts, concepts, and principles in games and simulations so that the students will understand and learn those lessons well.

For a task analysis specific to both games – Most of the facts, concepts and principles will be addressed in the prep-work, before the students play this game. The rules and procedures of the game must be addressed in the accompanying worksheet (see procedural analysis, below). I will try to make the lesson fun and attractive to help motivate the students.

For a procedural analysis specific to both games – I will need to cover the game rules and player instructions in this section. Once students are playing the Evolution game, I will need to cover the procedures and processes of Natural Selection & Evolution. This will help them to understand the concepts and lesson. While students are playing the blood typing game, I will ask questions to help them understand why blood types are specific and the inherited genes that cause those specific blood types. Also, they will need to understand the procedures for blood transfusions and blood typing.
***
Instructional objectives:
General Instructional Objectives:Cognitive – students will need to understand the facts, concepts, and principles associated with each lesson. The games will provide intellectual activities that will help them demonstrate these concepts and help them predict future situations in the games.

Psychomotor – students will be actively manipulating the games, using psychomotor skills, in order to play.

Affective – students will hopeful learn an appreciation and value for the lessons and the species/patients involved in the game. Also, the incorporation of game will be highly motivational for the student.

Specific for Natural Selection and Evolution:To explore how several varieties of a species can, through natural selection, evolve into one new species with the most successful and heritable traits to help students comprehend and apply Natural Selection and Evolution.

To understand that Natural Selection is a primary mechanism leading to evolutionary change (i.e., survival of the fittest / those with the traits to live pass those traits on to their offspring) so that students can apply, analyze, and synthesize their own species to try to succeed, evolutionarily speaking.

To understand that the natural processes in the environment and interactions with other species may cause extinction (i.e., disease, climate change, predation, and so on) so that students can evaluate the situation and possibly synthesize their own preventions of extinction for their species.

Specific for Blood Typing:
To analyze the genotypes involved in phenotypic blood types (i.e., AO genotype results in Type A phenotype, and so on) so students understand where blood types originate.

To recognize characteristics (traits) that offspring inherit from parents (i.e., inheriting an O from Mom and a B from Dad results in a BO genotype and Type B phenotype, and so on) so that students understand where the genes for blood types originate.

To understand that blood cells have characteristic structures and functions that make them distinctive (i.e., antigen A, antigen B, and so on) so that students can comprehend the differences in blood types.

To understand the process of blood typing and how to interpret the results (genotype and phenotype) so that the student can apply this information to patients in the game.

To understand the process of blood transfusions and the problems that can occur if done incorrectly (i.e., patient may die) so that students may apply this information to patients in the game.
***
Instructional sequence:
For both games:
Interest: The student will be interested in playing a game. One game is helping patients which students may find interesting since they play the part of a healthcare worker. The other game is picking variations of a species and trying to get it to survive, which students seem to like competition and animals.

Development: Students must TABE at a level 9 (9th grade learning level) to be able to attend this school. Therefore learners can read and comprehend this material.

Content/Identifiable Prerequisite: Students will read their text and complete corresponding worksheets to obtain background knowledge of the information.

Familiarity: On the assignment, there will be pre-instructional information to refresh the prereq.’s and specify which concepts the lessons will cover.

Task/Difficulty: The student will ease into the lesson by first obtaining the necessary materials, followed a list of procedures beginning with light activities that progress into thought-provoking questions (i.e., turn on the computer, find the website, read the background info, answer questions about the background info, progress further into more cognitive material while answering more thoughtful questions, and so on). The last questions will involve the higher order thinking levels like analyze, apply, synthesize, and evaluate those concepts covered in the lesson.
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Strategies for objectives:
For both games:Recall – students must first recall the information that is being covered in that particular unit (i.e., definitions of natural selection and evolution, what is a blood type, how genes are inherited, and so on). This will incorporate primarily cognitive procedures.

Integration and Organization – the students will apply these concepts while playing the game. By applying the information, students will be “streamlining” the information into more easily remembered ways. Also they will interrelating key ideas/concepts by analyzing their applications. This will incorporate cognitive and psychomotor procedures.

Elaboration – students will be asked to apply their own ideas to the games (i.e., choosing their own varieties in the species and seeing how natural selection/evolution worked on their choices). This will incorporate cognitive and psychomotor procedures.
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Details on objectives:
Specific for Natural Selection & Evolution:
Cognitive – students will need to understand the facts, concepts, and principles associated with each lesson. There will be general questions that correspond to the introduction of the game/simulation and Charles Darwin that the students will answer. This will insure that they are refreshed with the ideas and concepts involved. As they continue in the game/simulation, they will apply this knowledge of natural selection and see the outcome of their choices. This application will allow them to analyze their choices within the parameters of the concepts. They can go further by evaluating their choices and try new parameters to see the outcome. This form of game/simulation lets them synthesize their own situations, predicting a certain outcome, and evaluate their decisions. This will help them thoroughly understand each of the instructional objectives and Sunshine State Standards for this topic.

Psychomotor – students will be actively manipulating the games, using psychomotor skills, in order to play. They will have to choose the variations of the species, so they will have to manipulate the mouse and use hand-eye coordination to run the game/simulation.

Affective – students will hopeful learn an appreciation and value for the lessons and the species/patients involved in the game. Also, the incorporation of game will be highly motivational for the student.

For Blood Typing:
Cognitive – students will need to understand the facts, concepts, and principles associated with each lesson. There is an excellent source of information available before starting the game/simulation. Students will be asked questions about this information to help them recall the concepts/ideas involved in this lesson. Students will have several links to a variety of information with questions and directions to guide them through this refresher. Once the learners have started the game/simulation they will get to apply these concepts to patients. There they will analyze and evaluate their decisions of giving blood transfusions. This process will help drive home the concepts involved in each instructional objective and the Sunshine State Standards.

Psychomotor – students will be actively manipulating the games, using psychomotor skills, in order to play. They have to manipulate the mouse on the screen and maneuver to several webpages. They will have to use hand-eye coordination to run the game/simulation by doing blood tests and transfusions.

Affective – students will hopeful learn an appreciation and value for the lessons and the species/patients involved in the game. Also, the incorporation of game will be highly motivational for the student.
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Practice for objectives:
For Natural Selection & Evolution:Practice & Feedback – students will choose varieties of a fictional species. Students are given a guide to the varieties they choose (i.e., furry is good for cold weather, but bad in warm weather, etc.) so that they can make informed decisions about their choice in varieties. Once they run the game/simulation, the students see if their variety choices will succeed in creating a species that would last a million years. Of course there are problems that challenge the success of the species, just like in real life. And students get a real dose of what is involved in succession of a species, natural selection, and evolution. They can take what they learn and go back to the drawing board, choose new variations, and watch their progress. The game/simulation gives them feedback in the form of success or failure by their species living a million years or not. If they fail, the game /simulation tells them why they failed (i.e., a predator, climate change, a disease, and so on).

For Blood Typing:Practice & Feedback – students will do blood typing on patients that have survived a car crash. Based on the results of the blood typing, they will choose the types of blood needed for a transfusion. As soon as the student starts the transfusion they will receive negative feedback, if necessary. For example, if the patient has Type B blood and the student gives them Type A blood, the patient immediately goes into shock. The game/simulation tells them what the problem is and requires the student to choose another type of blood. If the student continues to get it wrong, the patient dies. If however, the student chooses the right blood type, the game/simulation gives them immediate positive feedback and tells the student if the patient requires more blood or not. If not, that patient is taken away. If so, the student must choose another blood type for transfusion.
***
Preinstructional activities:
Motivation for both lessons:Graphics - lessons will include graphics to help students feel more comfortable in playing the games/simulations.

Headings – clearly defined headings will cut the lessons into sections so that students can take the lessons step-by-step, which will make the lessons less intimidating.

Preinstructional material – or introduction will help draw the student in. By posing a question or giving a paragraph introduction, students will likely begin the first step of the lesson, which will hopefully encourage them to continue.

Technology – because of the use of technology, most students, who seem to like technology, will be motivated to complete the lesson more so than lessons that just involve worksheets and textbooks. Also, the fact that the lessons involve games/simulations may be quite motivational to students who enjoy playing games on their own.
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Groupings and media:
Student Groupings – are not really applicable. Students are all on different paces and topics since the whole school promotes self-paced learning. Therefore, students will do this lesson by themselves, whenever they get to that point of the unit.

Instructional Media – the preinstructional worksheets will be done by the students using a textbook and worksheets. In both cases, there is a computer lab that will be done before completing these new lessons. So, a computer and some technology (either software or internet) will be used to prepare for these lessons. Once the student begins this lesson, they will use the worksheet that contains the instructions and questions for the lesson and the computer to do the lesson. They will also need something to write with and perhaps their textbook for reference. Of course, an instructor will be in the room as a resource, if needed.
***
Sample assessments:
For Natural Selection & Evolution:Pre-test (before running the game/simulation) Sample Questions – Darwin’s logic states “every species exhibits variations.” What does that mean? What eventually happens to a variety? What does “survival of the fittest” mean? What will eventually happen to the whole species that follows “survival of the fittest”? What causes evolution and natural selection?

Post-test (after running the game/simulation) Sample Questions – What are the varieties that you chose for your species? After the first event, are your varieties still present? Did the species change? What about after the second event? What about after the third event? Did your species survive…why or why not? How did your species survive the first (second &/or third) event? What causes evolution and natural selection?

For Blood Typing:Pre-test (before running the game/simulation) Sample Questions - Can a person with Rh+ blood receive blood from a person with Rh-? A patient has type A blood. You give her type B blood. What will happen? If a patient has type AB blood, what four types of blood can you give him? If the blood clots in the A tube, and the B tube and the Rh tube, then what blood type does the patient have?

Post-test (after running the game/simulation) Sample Questions – Can a person with A blood receive B blood? What would happen? What type of blood can a universal donor receive? Why are they called a universal donor? What type of blood can a universal receiver receive? Why are they considered a universal receiver?
***
Relevant current references:Florida Department of Education. (2009). Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://www.floridastandards.org/Standards/FLStandardSearch.aspx

Kiili, K. (2005). Educational Game Design: Experiential gaming model revised. Tampere University of Technology. Pori, Research report 4, 1-12. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://amc.pori.tut.fi/publications/EducationalGameDesign.pdf

Morrison, G. R., Ross, S. M., & Kemp, J. E. (2007). Designing Effective Instruction, Fifth Edition. New Baskerville: John Wiley & Sons.

Shih, Y., E. (2005). Seize Teachable and Learnable Moments: SMSE instructional design model for mobile learning. Paper presented at the International Association for Development of the Information Society International Conference Mobile Learning June 28-30, Malta. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://www.iadis.net/dl/final_uploads/200506L012.pdf

Ulrich, Kathy. (2004). Designing Constructivist Lessons Using the 5 E Model. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://cte.jhu.edu/techacademy/fellows/Ullrich/webquest/mkuindex.html

Wetzel, D. R. (2008). How to Design an Effective Science Lesson: Developing lessons which engage students in critical thinking. Suite 101.com. Retrieved 12 June 2009 at http://teachertipstraining.suite101.com/how_to_design_an_effective_science_lesson

Instructional Design Project Report #1

Title of my project: Incorporating games and simulations into biology curriculum***

Project Description: In the process of updating the biology curriculum, educational games and simulations will be incorporated into each unit covered in class. This will help engage students while giving them an opportunity to “learn by doing” or apply the lessons they have learned. By completing a gaming/simulation lesson, students will practice the concepts of the biology lesson. Since games and simulations can be considered a form of assessment (i.e., you must achieve something to get to the next level), succeeding in the game/simulation would mean the mastery of the lesson.
***

Learner Analysis: Students who attend this school have withdrawn from public school for various reasons. Some are over 18, but the majority of students are under 18 years old. There are a variety of social and cultural backgrounds and learning levels. For example, some are poor, some are rich, some are Caucasian, some are African –American or another minority, some dropped out of public school because classes were boring or going too slowly, some dropped out of public school because they had fallen behind and couldn’t catch up, and so on. One major difference from public school is that all students must TABE at least at a level 9. This means that all the students in class can read, at the very least, at a 9th grade level, which isn’t always true of public school classrooms. Any curriculum has to be varied to fit a variety of learning styles and attention spans. Technology is promoted at my school and most students really seem to enjoy technology infused curricula.
***

Needs Assessment & Summary/Outcome of Needs Analysis:
The immediate need (felt and anticipated) is to incorporate lessons that use technology while addressing various learning styles, levels of motivation, and academic levels. Educational games and simulations are new vehicles for education by providing a form of assessment, problem-based learning, a fail-safe environment, and a highly motivational learning environment.

Interviews with students led to complaints about “boring” lessons. Students also said they had a hard time applying the lessons on tests when they had no other form of practice. This illustrated a gap in mastering biology lessons because students had no practice of applying lessons before taking their tests. Also during the interview, students were asked their opinion of gaming. Most students considered themselves gamers. When asked if they would like some of the biology lessons to incorporate gaming, 100% of the students replied positively.

By implementing an intermediary lesson that incorporated technology, the lesson must use technology that is already found in the classroom (like computers and the internet, for example) and it must be able to be accessed by more than one person at a time. There must not be any financial cost to the implementation of the new lessons. Lessons, games, and simulations must be challenging enough to engage the student, but not too difficult to encourage quitting. Each lesson, game, or simulation implemented must follow the biology curriculum.
***

Learning Environment: The biology classroom has five computers with Windows and internet access. The classroom has 6 large tables with two chairs at each table. The classroom is bright and warm enough to be comfortable with lots of science equipment. Students have their own notebooks and text book. They are allowed to listen and use electronic devices such as Ipods or MP3 players. Students are only asked to turn them down or off if they are bothering other students. Students do their book work or reading at the tables and use the computers for research or computer labs. Students may go to the restroom when needed. They are allowed to have food and drink in the classroom as long as they don’t make a mess.
***

Goal analysis & development plan:
1) Determine the topics of games/simulations that I need (for example, a game involving natural selection/evolution)
2) Find free games and simulations on the internet that fit the topics chosen in step #1.
3) Write curriculum that uses the game/simulation following an instructional design model involving gaming (Kiili’s Revised Experiential Gaming Design Model, see Kiili 2005, and Shih's SMSE model, see Shih 2005).
4) Try the new curriculum out on students.
5) Interview students for their opinion.
6) Reassess and refine the curriculum.
***

Goal statement: By incorporating technology, in the form of games and simulations, into biology lessons, I will create curriculum that students consider highly motivating, but that will also, at the same time, improve student content knowledge, build student conceptual knowledge, and increase student problem-solving skills.
***

List of entry competencies:
Technology Skills – students should have very basic technology skills (i.e., know how to turn on and off a computer, how to use a mouse, how to go on the internet). These lessons assume students have these skills. If they do not, the teacher will be available to assist them.

Attitude – students should have enough motivation that they want to complete the class and lesson. That should be sufficient to get them to earnestly try the new curriculum.

Student knowledge – students will have needed to start the unit to have a background/foundational knowledge to be able to run the game or simulation smoothly. The information from the book chapters will be enough to understand the new curricula. Students will not be given the new lesson until they have progressed sufficiently in the unit.

Aptitude – all students test, at the very least, at a ninth grade learning level. This will be sufficient for the new lessons.
***

Learner interview:
Summary of an interview of three students currently in biology class:
1) Q - What do you like about the class? A – The class mixes up tasks so that you are never doing the same old thing. I like the computer labs because you can see what is happening.

2) Q - What don’t you like about the class? A – The class is so much work. Sometimes it is difficult to understand. I don’t like the book, it makes things too complicated.

3) Q – So, you really like the computer labs? How would you feel about games incorporated into lessons? A – Wow! Yeah, that would be so cool! I love games, I play them all the time.

4) Q – What about simulations? A – What are those? Don’t we do those already on the computer? As long as it’s not reading in the book, I’ll do it.

5) Q – So, you don’t think you get much from the book? A – No, it’s just so boring. I dread reading it. I don’t read it because I just look for the answers.

6) Q – If you just look for answers, and don’t read the book, how do you understand the ideas? How do you pass the tests? A – That’s my hardest part. I never do well on the tests because I’m just not understanding what they are saying.

7) Q – So you think a computer game or simulation would help you more? A – Yes, I could see what is happening instead of reading about it.
***

Relevant current references:
Kiili, K. (2005). Educational Game Design: Experiential gaming model revised. Tampere University of Technology. Pori, Research report 4, 1-12. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://amc.pori.tut.fi/publications/EducationalGameDesign.pdf

Morrison, G. R., Ross, S. M., & Kemp, J. E. (2007). Designing Effective Instruction, Fifth Edition. New Baskerville: John Wiley & Sons.

Shih, Y., E. (2005). Seize Teachable and Learnable Moments: SMSE instructional design model for mobile learning. Paper presented at the International Association for Development of the Information Society International Conference Mobile Learning June 28-30, Malta. Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://www.iadis.net/dl/final_uploads/200506L012.pdf

Instructional Design Model Report

ID Model Report

Location and selection: Dick and Carey’s, Gerlach-Ely’s, and Schank’s models and the Rapid Prototyping model all appealed to me because my research is problem (project) – based learning and educational gaming. So, I started running internet searches with combinations of these models. When I ran across an article that seemed helpful in describing models, but didn’t have its own model, I read through the bibliography to see if the articles or authors listed may be helpful. In this method, I found the author of the ARCS (integrating learner motivation) model, John Keller. While running a search of his name in combination with the key terms educational gaming, I found the two articles I am using for this assignment. The article on an experiential educational gaming model appealed to me since my research interest lies with gaming and I am currently trying to incorporate gaming into my curricula. The second article appealed to me because I was introduced to using cell phones in (and out of) the classroom at FETC. After reading the SMSE model and paper, I realized that the FETC speaker was using this model with the assignments he had us (the audience) doing.


Citation:
Kiili, K. (2005). Educational Game Design: Experiential gaming model revised. Tampere University of Technology. Pori, Research report 4, 1-12.
Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://amc.pori.tut.fi/publications/EducationalGameDesign.pdf

The Revised Experiential Gaming Design Model (REGDM) proposed by Kiili is complex. The author explains that his main purpose in proposing this model is to help designers to understand the mechanism of learning with games. The author thinks that currently the use of educational gaming is more as tools for supporting factual information then utilize the power of gaming as an interactive context free media.

The author tries to explain his model by likening the model to the cardiovascular system of a human. The human cardiovascular system has two loops, one from the heart to the lungs and then back to the heart (pulmonary) and the other loop goes from the heart to the body and then back to the heart (systemic). Kiili’s analogy likens the pumping of a human heart to the challenges, gamefulness, or playability of the educational game. His thought behind this is that the drive to play the game pumps the rest of the process. His solutions loop is likened to the human pulmonary loop. The experience loop is likened to the human systemic loop. The “heart beat” is the challenges the game player is faced with in the process of playing the game. Each challenge forces the gamer to generate solutions and the trial of each solution generates experience and learning. Of course this is just a simple overview of Kiili’s REGDM. Kiili breaks each of the loops into steps, just as you could break down the pulmonary loop into blood vessels, lungs, and alveoli. The aim of this game design model is to guide and facilitate the work of game designers. Unfortunately, because games are so variable and abstract, there is no one recipe to make a good educational game. Kiili suggests starting with a needs analysis, then solution generation, and then fast prototyping to refine game features. Of course the final step is evaluation, and Kiili recommends two phases of evaluation: game world (gaming features) analysis and experience (gamer’s experiences, feelings, and perceptions) analysis. Again, this is a very basic overview that fits into Kiili’s complex REGDM.

Kiili states that the three main goals of this model are: 1) describe the learning process through games; 2) support design of flow inducing educational games; and 3) describe the educational game design process in an abstract form. I tend to agree with his goals. In my opinion, most educational games are skill and drill which don’t allow the students to think for themselves. His model for making educational games would allow the player to think in strategic and problem-solving ways. In my opinion that is more important than factual knowledge that can easily be looked up in this digital age. His model was very complex, but I won’t use most of it because I’m not looking to design games, but implement them. I can use the foundations of his model to design curriculum around games. By modifying his model slightly, it allows me to create curriculum that doesn’t focus on fact-based knowledge, but allows the “heart” to generate lessons in each loop of experience and problem-solving. It will be a process without a single recipe because of the variability of games and learners.



Citation:Shih, Y., E. (2005). Seize Teachable and Learnable Moments: SMSE instructional design model for mobile learning. Paper presented at the International Association for Development of the Information Society International Conference Mobile Learning June 28-30, Malta.
Retrieved 22 May 2009 at http://www.iadis.net/dl/final_uploads/200506L012.pdf

The SMSE model is a new instructional design model to facilitate mobile teaching and learning in education. The introduction of mobile handheld devices (such as cell phones, PDA’s, Pocket PC’s, etc.) enables learners to participate in a learning environment at anytime and in any location. As a model, SMSE has four crucial parts: Scenario, Message, Synchronization, and Evaluation. Scenario means creating a situation where students can learn through their mobile devices. The teacher creates a lesson, webpage, survey, or other assignment. This is anytime and anywhere learning since the lesson can be sent at any time and the student can be anywhere. Message refers to the process of notifying the students which could be by texting, instant messaging, or by sending an audio/video file. Messaging also encourages interactivity and collaboration. Synchronization refers to the coordination of the mobile learning assignment to the lessons of the class. This process promotes self-reflectiveness and transformative learning for students. Finally, evaluation refers to the assessment of the assignment and learning outcomes so that improvements can be made to ensure authentic learning and knowledge construction.

The author’s objective is to effectively combine mobile technology and learning environments to enhance the learning experience. According to Shih, the SMSE model is designed to maximize the effectiveness of mobile learning applications while integrating mobile learning into existing learning activities. I agree that Shih’s model has the potential to succeed in this combination of traditional learning and new technology. Shih created his model primarily for distance education, but I plan on adapting his model for face-to-face classes. His model is relatively simple and straight-forward, so I don’t anticipate any problems on creating mobile device lessons for my own classes. I think linking lessons to handheld technology is a great idea. Based on my own experiences, students have a hard time turning off or putting away handheld devices. By tapping into their interests, using mobile devices may be a vehicle for education.