Final Harry Potter Post

After I got my but whooped in round 2 by Germany I went back and completed some more house challenges. In the house challenges I learned how to complete more moves and I earned more quidditch cards. When I returned to world cup action I was more skilled and had an easier time. I was able to win the world cup by beating Spain. The score was close and it took me two tries to beat them. So in a way I mastered the game but I didn't play everything the game has to offer. I could go back in and start over with a different team from Hogwarts.

I must be honest I really didn't enjoy playing Harry Potter on play station. It was a struggle to make myself do it. I was more willing to write my paper than play a video game. I'm not sure why exactly. It's just not something I enjoy. Maybe if i was playing a game more oriented for girls but I don't think so.

I have been trying to think about how this game is educational and I can't come up with very much. You can buy things with your quidditch cards you earn so I guess you could put a mathematical spin on it. There is teamwork involved when playing the games. I was much more successful in the matches when I continuously passed the quaffle. when I used higher level skills I earned more points and the snitch appeared quicker in the game. Whoever catches the snitch signifies the winner. The graphics on the game were good I thought. The game is a few years old and I know that graphics have come a long way since the game was created.

Well based on this experience I don't foresee myself playing alot of video games in the future.

World Cup Matches

I have finally made it to the next level in Harry Potter. I had to play Gryffendor again and i was able to get a higher score than last time and I kept them from scoring as many points. Once I succeeded in beating Gryffendor it unlocked the World Cup matches. i no longer played for the Huffle Puff team but they were there cheering me on. I chose a country to play for(England) and then I played matches against other countries. My first match against France I lost. That was the first match that I lost. The competition is much more difficult. I really needed to use my advanced skills, but I'm not that good at them yet. When I played France again I was able to win. I have successfully made it through round 1 of the World Cup. I will continue to play this week. I keep earning quidditch cards and I was able to upgrade to a better broom for the cup matches.

Harry Potter

Well I have been playing a little here and there, but tonight but i made some serious progress. I mastered all the house challenges which gave me advantages during the matches. When I master a challenge my team earns Quidditch cards. I finally got through the match with Ravenclaw and moved on to playing Slytherin. I played Gryffendor next. It was the toughest match thus far. I was finally able to beat them. My score wasn't as high as when I played the other teams but I managed to pull out a win. I used my combination passes and the special moves to win the match. I won the Quidditch Cup and now my team Huffle Puff will play in the world cup. I can choose to play teams such as Spain, England, France, Australia, or Germany. I will continue to play and advance in the game.

Video Games in the Classroom

While reading Squire's piece I couldn't quite figure out what his opinion is. It seems to me that he thinks Civilization for many reasons. But on the other hand I thought he was trying to promote a new literacy. Squire says that this game may not be a good game for the classroom b/c of the difficulties students may face with the game. The students may become frustrated and not really be able to get into the detailed learning that the game offers. He was also saying that he thought that this type of learning would not be accepted in every community. Squire also stated that students felt that learning through video games would not prepare them for their future in traditional educational settings.

I think hypothetically video games can be used in the classroom. What I mean by that is that I think they can be useful and can be another tool used by some students to differentiate instruction. But i don't know that I would introduce video games into my classroom b/c I don't know very much about video games.

I'm wondering if anyone interpreted this research differently and can please share the other side with me.

Are You Having an Identity Crisis?

Do you think the identity play allowed in many games is beneficial or harmful? Why? How does the identity play in games compare to that in reading different novels and taking on character perspectives?

I think that identity play can be both harmful and beneficial. When children are allowed to create new identities it can be harmful because they may choose to make their character in the game do negative things or make bad choices. It also gives kids a false sense of security. All children do not understand right from wrong or that it's just a game. So maybe their video game identity does something wrong, but doesn't get caught or doesn't get in trouble. The child may attempt a similar action but he/she will get caught and not fully understand why. I think that something like that is rare but I'm sure it does occur. I think that it may be possible for a gamer to become obsessed with the identity they have created. They may want to live their lives similarly to their character in the game. This could potentially cause an identity crisis.

I feel that creating an alternative identity can also have a positive effect on ones life. I believe you can try to feel how another person feels. I realize that video game characters don't necessarily have feelings. In Gee's book it says that many game players choose to create a player who is of the opposite sex. The games are so sophisticated now that by creating an opposite sex character, people might be able to see how the other half lives. Through the game you can create an awareness of what life is like for the opposite sex. This might also help children to be more accepting of people with different personalities. They might learn to be more open to new ideas or new ways or doing things.

I see this in my classroom all the time. Some students do not know how to tolerate another person's idiosyncrasies. I hear them saying all the time "You are so annoying". This could be minimized by students playing video games where they choose a player that is different from themselves. They might not like everything about that character but they must learn to deal with it if they want to be successful at the game. That theory also extends to life. To be successful in life you must be able to get along with many different types of people.

I agree that when a person reads a novel they do the same thing, most of the time you choose books where you can assimilate with the main character. Or at other times you may chose a book because the main character is so different that you would like to live through his or her experiences. The only main difference I see is that with a video game the person is interacting differently. In some games you can chose to change your players attributes such as in Arcanum. Gee decided that he wanted his half-elf Bead-Bead to be stronger so he used one of his points to make her stronger. So I see it as a person making connections to other identities whether it be through a book or a video game.

New Literacies

I took Dr. Dana's New Literacies class last year so one would think I should have a fabulous grasp on what New Literacies. I understand that literacy has to do with any type of reading or writing and when you look at the "new" part to me it implies that this reading and writing can be found through different medias or multimodal texts. Examples can include blogging, fan fiction, social networking sites, and electronic games.

In my school students are using new literacies all the time. Last year my students wrote fan fiction stories. They typed them into their own blog page and then I posted their blog page to a class blog page. The project was successful and the students had fun doing it.

Everyday students in our school are using compass learning which is a web based site where students learn and practice skills for every subject. The students in my class seem to like and usually stay on task. I assign them tasks based on their reading levels and what skills they are deficient in. Students will continue to learn using these and other new literacies. It can even be said that they might learn more from these new literacies than the old school way of a text book.

Are Video Games A Waste of Time???

I continued playing Harry Potter today. I am advancing in the game but I'm not all that interested in the game. It's seems like a children's game. I had a hard time remembering which button controlled which skill because as I advanced I learned more skills and needed to use more buttons. I was trying to think about how the game involves strategy or problem solving skills. I will have to keep thinking about that. The game does involve teamwork. During the cup matches I play with my team mates of Hufflepuff. I pass the Quaffle and try to shoot and score.

Video games is a new domain for me. I am not familiar with this domain. I am learning but I'm not convinced yet of the value of the learning. If I wasn't playing my video game I would be watching TV so I'm not sure how much learning takes places while I'm doing that either.

I like Video Games!!!

Well I just started playing Harry Potter on Play Station 2. I played for an hour and my thumb started to get sore b/c i'm not used to playing video games. lol I picked the Hufflepuff team b/c I like the name "Hufflepuff". When I picked up the controller I was a little frighten that I wouldnt know how to use it b/c it has so many buttons. But when I started each practice activity it explained which button did what. I only had to use 2 buttons and the left joystick nob so it wasn't too bad. I won my first Quidditch match because I caught the seeker but i didn't score the most goals. I did much better in my second match. I scored 23 goals in the second match. In the first match i was confusing the two buttons. The circle button is for scoring and the x button is for passing and tackling. I beat Ravenclaw twice and now maybe I will "be allowed" to play in the Quidditch cup against another team. Hopefully I will have more time to play 2moro. I doing a snow dance!!!!!

How Do I Learn?

I have always been an auditory learner. When I was in high school my mother read me Lord of the Flies because I just couldn't get through it reading it silently. When in college I always went to class and took notes that was how learned. If the teacher is talking I can be listening and playing on the computer at the same time and still remember what she said. When I need to memorize something I say it out loud over and over again. When I try to read something my mind just wanders. I often need to reread paragraphs or sentences b/c I realized that I had no idea what I read. I just can't stay focused. It doesn't matter if it is educational or reading for pleasure.

I would have to agree with Vygotsky's theory of social learning. I am definitely a social learner. I learn through my experiences of going places and talking to different people about different things. In elementary school the teachers would tell my mother that if they went out the room for a minute I would be able to report to them everything that happened in the classroom while they were gone. I am always aware of everything and every conversation that goes on around me. I don't have the ability to block things out.

When it comes to my classroom I would say that I teach to the auditory learner. We read just about everything aloud in my class, that is for 2 reasons: low readers and I want to make sure they are actually reading it. My students lack prior knowledge about many different things. I try to provide prior knowledge and connect it to something they know about. I am not well connected to the rap world so it becomes a little difficult sometimes. I try to make connections to sports to spark their interest. We have 10 minutes of silent reading everyday so I hope that I am able to meet the needs of all my students in one way or another.

MEDI 506

Yesterday was the first day our Evaluating Media course, I didn't really know what to expect. When we arrived Dr. Dana explained that we will be taking a closer look at video games and evaluating their academic qualities as well as looking at other media sources. I'm not exactly sure what academic qualities the video games will have but I'm eager to find out. And when I tell my students that video games can be learning tools they are probably going to be mad. Then when I tell them that I support them playing video games they are even going to be more shocked (as long as their homework is done of course).

I will admit I dont have alot of experience playing games. I played my cousins Atari when i was real little. Then we got our own Nintendo but that was the only gaming system i ever really played. My sister and her husband have a wii and I have played it a few times but that's it. I think I would like the waitressing game that Dr. D mentioned.

I would like to respond about the video we watched in class also. I don't think the parents in Jessica's town should have called the principal. It is not the school's business. I think if the parent was that concerned then they should have contacted Jessica's parents. I don't think the provocative pictures should be on her site but I also dont think her parents should have made her take down the website maybe just some of the more risque pictures. Jessica's parents should monitor Jessica's site and allow her to photograph herself but in the pictures she should wear a little more clothing. She can still express herself wearing whatever she would like just not lingere. I am interested in watching the rest of the video clips b/c it is so real to me b/c the footage is from kids around here.