Game to Learn?

A note for my pupils.

I spent all Saturday at game to learn. Where we listened to a lot of educators talking about using video games to learn new skills. If you want to check out the #gametolearn hash tag on twitter you will get a better sense of what was going on.

Abertay is a great looking campus and lecture theatres have not changed a lot since I was at uni (digital projectors and WiFi are a welcome addition). However students are students and a lot of the teachers in the audience were playing with their mobile phones and laptops even when people were talking. We were creating the twitter feed and researching the topic and presenters as it happened,  it was very engaging and I know I took a lot away from the experience.

The question is – Do you have the same level of self control? I had full access to the internet and mobile phone during a class but stayed on topic (OK a topic that interests me). I will be honest I was surprised that I didn’t hit facebook or youtube.

I had prepared for each seminar the night before and looked up people and facts on the net ( I even found an old uni classmate who is now a lecturer (and a PhD)). My laptop had all the software loaded on it and although I never used it as much as the iPad (my main twitter client) it did come in handy to collect digital notes etc.

I did spend an hour or two on Saturday night; tweeting , reading notes and blogs, catching up and making plans for the future.

So I guess education has not changed that much, prepare, take part and review. Which is what I hope all my classes are doing each night.