Robin Bartoletti Northeastern State University College of Education

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Making online learning fun Tips for course
developers to educate entertain

• Robin BartolettiNortheastern State
  UniversityCollege of Education

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Todays Fun Time

• Explore using fun in learning
• Share examples
• Share feedback from participants
• Free and low cost ideas tools to get started
  today adding fun to your online course

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If Learning is

• If it is not fun Why learn if it is boring and
  dull?
• If learning isnt fun people wont want to do
  iteven if it is required
• Why can't it be fun too?
• If learning is fun people will not only
  comprehend and remember, but they will be able to
  apply it to the way they live because they didnt
  just learn it ... they experienced it.
• If learning is fun it takes place painlessly
• If learning is fun it can encourage students to
  raise their aspirations and push education up on
  their own personal agenda.

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Use Fun Because

• Fun engages people
• Fun encourages active learning
• Fun provides a comfortable environment

I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do
and I understand.
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Fun Enriches the Learning Environment

• Marian Diamonds and her team of researchers at
  the University of California at Berkeley have
  been studying the impact of play and fun enriched
  learning environments on the brains of rats.
  Diamonds believes that enriched environments
  unmistakably influence the brain's growth and
  learning. An enriched environment, Diamonds says
  
• Includes a steady source of positive support
• Stimulates all the senses (not necessarily at
  once)
• Presents a series of novel challenges that are
  neither too easy nor too difficult for the
  learner at his or her stage of development
• Allows social interaction for a significant
  percentage of activities
• Promotes the development of a broad range of
  skills and interests mental, physical,
  aesthetical, social and emotional
• Gives the opportunity to choose many learning
  efforts and to modify them
• Provides an enjoyable atmosphere that promotes
  exploration and the fun of learning
• Allows learner to be an active participant rather
  than a passive observer.
• Diamond M. Hopson. J. (1989) Magic trees of the
  mind. Dutton

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HOW?

• Rich content
• Community environment and personal Touch -
  pictures, biographies, and ice-breaker games. Add
  the human dimension!
• Let them DO something
• Interactive elements - self-assessment, hands-on
  activities, drill-and-practice, scavenger hunts,
  learning games, case studies, and simulations
• Engage students in hands-on activities. Create
  dynamic class assignments to maximize learning
  for your students.
• Make use of technology - digital photography,
  video and audio recordings, and Web site design
• Global experience

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The Fun I Use is

• Free or very inexpensive
• Easily modifiable to incorporate customized
  questions or information
• Runs within Blackboard
• Works with individual material and learning
  objectives

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2 kinds of fun Focused individual

• Review and reinforce basic information
• Lower levels of Blooms Taxonomy
• Knowledge
• Comprehension
• Played repeatedly until win
• Awards for completion of games

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Individual Fun

• Examples
• Bingo
• Hangman
• Crossword puzzles
• Matching
• Other Basic Games
• Scavenger hunts
• Web quests
• TV quiz games
• Hosts
• Music
• Video Clips
• Survey

• Types
• Bingo
• Hangman
• Crossword puzzles
• Matching
• Other basic games
• Scavenger hunts
• Web quests
• TV quiz games
• Hosts
• Music
• Video Clips
• Surveys

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2 Kinds of Fun Team-based

• Upper levels of Blooms Taxonomy
• Synthesis
• Evaluation
• Taking elements of games and wrapping them around
  a traditional assignment
• Use elements of games that engage and excite
  students
• Merge the benefits of games-based approach with
  the rigors of traditional capping assessments
  such as
• research papers,
• literature reviews,
• problem-based case studies
• Low threshold
• Doesnt require programming on your part
• Doesnt require new programs for students
• Minimal work all round

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Compare

• Assignment with Play
• Pose Issue/Problem
• Situate it in creative context
• Make student active participants role play
• Students asked to research to identify materials
  and evaluate materials
• Synthesize found materials and course materials
• Apply/Write solution/argument about problem/issue
• You are a member of an expert team responding to
  the Commission on..

• Traditional assignment
• Pose Issue/Problem
• Students asked to
• Research to identify materials and evaluate them
• Synthesize found materials with course materials
• Apply/Write solution/argument about problem/issue
• Write a ten page paper on..

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Team-based Fun

• Examples - Situation that can range from the
  emotional and dramatic to something quite
  prosaic
• Rising rates of Extinction and concern by
  environmental groups
• Need to deliver sales/expense figures to managers
  when usual sources are off at conference/sick
• Need to identify disease causing elements on
  cruise ship
• Survivor
• Museum

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Competition/Challenge/Opposition

• Competing individuals/teams
• Competing for gold
• If students agree Team Gold Standings posted
• Peer evaluation for gold
• of team members effort
• of other teams finished product
• develops students critical capacity
• even more learning takes place
• Competition increases student effort, achievement
  and learningbut
• Games tend to reduce stress of competing for
  grades
• Gold does not equate to grades Instructor
  evaluation for grades

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What Was Different

• New parameters for completing assignment
• team effort rather than individual work
• use milestones for progressive and incremental
  feedback
• from instructor
• from colleagues
• built-in rewards as various elements of
  assignment are completed game levels
• New types of assignments
• informational websites aimed at general public or
  specific interest group,
• professional newsletters,
• just-in-time training materials,
• policy recommendations to various levels of
  government,
• game that teaches specific elements
• New formats for completed assignments
• informative websites
• blogs for individual learning
• wikis for group projects
• New submission process
• submitted in stages with first stage being peer
  critique
• submitted publicly so that all assignments are
  shared with others within class.

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Results

• Lots of enthusiasm and excitement during courses
• Evaluation comments of awesome to kick-ass
  fun
• Learning enhanced
• Participants integrated benefits of using games
  into their own teaching

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Reaction?

• Student reaction?

Concentration
Collaboration
Engaged, involved and active students
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Several factors that consistently seemed to
contribute to success

• The inclusion of interactive games, communication
  features, and creative
• activities.
• Features that compel repeat visits such as
  voting, episodic stories, frequently
• Updated content, and message boards.
• Presentation of content in visually compelling
  formats.
• Technical soundness (i.e., bug-free work on many
  platforms and many connection speeds).
• Simplicity of design ease of use
• Navigation and Instructions - lots of options,
  buttons, information, and site categories are
  clearly labeled and easily identified. With clear
  and concise explanations of what to do and how to
  do it
• Sense of Community Opportunities to interact
  with their peers. share their ideas and to hear
  what others have to say.. with moderators to
  stimulate and steer conversations in meaningful
  directions.

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By the numbers
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By the comments

• Evidence that the collaboration and
  community-building "exercises" I've been forcing
  on my students is well-justified.
• Ideas on how to make the usual "striving for an
  A" more meaningful than just a grade.
• Concrete evidence that the collaboration and
  community-building "exercises" I've been forcing
  on my students is well-justified.
• Ideas on how to make the usual "striving for an
  A" more meaningful than just a grade.
• Lots of work but best online course yet
• We were presented a variety of different tools
  and techniques to incorporate in our online
  classes. The presentation manner and activities
  provided wonderful modelling and variety.

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Resources To Explore

• AIM http//eduscapes.com/flash/explore.htm
• Cool Tools Webquest http//www.thematzats.com/cool
  toolsquest/process.html
• Schoolhouse Technologies http//www.schoolhousetec
  h.com/products/download.htm
• Im Dreaming http//www.madison.k12.al.us/compserv
  /necc/onlinetools.html
• Internet Tools http//www.internet4classrooms.com/
  teachertools.htmmake
• Programming.de http//www.programming.de/
• Online Teacher Tools http//t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/te
  acher_resources/teachertools/teachertools.htm
• Game It Yourself http//www.runestoneit.com/dseag
  raves/list_b.html
• Wisc Online http//www.wisc-online.com/
• Blended.edu http//blendededu.com/ Yack Pack
• Cue-card http//www.wadeb.com/cuecard/
• Eduforge http//eduforge.org/
• Primo PDF http//www.primopdf.com/
• Freemind http//freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/inde
  x.php/Main_PageInstall_and_run
• Odeo http//odeo.com/tour/record
• Schoolforge http//www.schoolforge.net/software.ph
  p
• Tuxpaint http//www.newbreedsoftware.com/tuxpaint/
  
• Low Threshhold Apps http//zircon.mcli.dist.marico
  pa.edu/lta/archives/lta44.php
• Creative Ways to use your existing Software
  http//www.rcps.org/creativeways/index.htm

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Give it a try!

• Lots of work but most rewarding online teaching
  weve done.
• Weve found this an exciting experience and would
  encourage you to
• Try it
• Share your experiences

Any questions? Robin Bartoletti bartolet_at_nsuok.edu