Aligning Outcomes, Assessments and Activities

 

The ultimate goal for each of the groups that will be forged in this blended learning  project is to produce an impactful and educational interactive experience while also helping establish their ability to work together as a team to produce something they will be proud of the rest of their lives. If successful, I will reiterate the project yearly and continue to refine it after group reflections. My Big Hairy Audacious Goal(BHAG) for this project will be to have all the games that these students create be shared and promoted to impact a MUCH larger audience by training the players about growth mindset and neuroplasticity. If enough people play the game and take the lessons within seriously then maybe the world will be a step closer to learning how to learn.

My "3-Column-Table"(ya it's got 5 I know)

(its actually 5 columns for me because I gave the categories and definitions their own column :-)

Significant Learning Categories Definition Outcomes/Goals Activitie(s): Assessment(s)
Foundational Knowledge: Recall and demonstrate understanding of information and ideas Students will gain fundamentel knowledge of interaction design, growth mindest and neuroplasticity. Before multi-discipline groups can be formed . Each subject's teacher will introduce the blended project outline and presentation separately to their own students in their own classroom. Each subject will research their area specific to the projec so they already feel strong in their subject before joining a group. quizzes for assessment on intial students.
Application: Demonstrate skils. Engage in critical, practical and creative thinking. Learners will be able to analyze and communicate what details need to take place prior to production, what occurs during production & what processes happen during post production. -review the assigned and related course resources/research and start building the interactive learning experience rough draft /design document with group. Discussion post with sketches and the design document describing the basic plan for the final experience.
Integration: Perceive connections between ideas, experiences, disciplines and realms of life. Learners will be able to articulate and justify basic GameDesign techniques used in the Unity Game Engine Review the assigned and related resources and continue buiilding the interactive project Grey box blockout discussion posts
Human Dimension & Caring: Gaining a new understanding of themselves and others. Acquire new interests, feeling or values about what they are learning. Lab groups will reflect on what helped them complete their project while working together. Publish the finished interactive experience. Discussion Post with published game build link.
Learning How to Learn Learning about the process of their particular learning and learning in general. Participants will understand the basic concepts of adopting their own growth mindset with the help of understanding the concepts of neuroplasticity. This will build a strong foundation for them owning their power to learn how to learn. Play test and publish for bug fixes and integral repairs. Otherwise publish and share. Upgraded Discussion Post with published game build link.

Learning Environment & Situational Factors

Specific Context of the Teaching / Learning Situation
  • 3 diverse class types:  Game Design students, Science Students and English students
  • Groups of 6 will contain 2 students from each discipline. The amount of groups will depend on class sizes
  • Groups will be comprised of students who have proven themselves to be reliable students capable of completing the project 
  • Groups will meet both during their class times and have self led group meetings outside of class time.
  • Blended learning environment using GameDesign Computer Lab, and Science Labs
  • Resources needed: Computer labs for research, Science database for knowledge details and visuals about neuroplasticity.

General Context of the Learning Situation
  • Collaboration end goal expectation for each group: A complete interactive educational experience about growth-mindset and neuroplasticity
  • Prepare students for careers in GameDesign, NeuroScience research, and interactive story telling.

Nature of the Subject
  • The subject of this project is definitely a combination of both theoretical and practical. 
  • Subject is both convergent and divergent
  •  This project will be a similar experience to working on a professional game design team.

Characteristics of the Learners
  • High school students who are interested in building a game that can help many people learn how to unlock their learning potential
  • Students will have experience in their classes subject but this type of project will be a fresh experience 
  • Many different grade, experience and skill levels

Characteristics of the Teachers
  • Passionate about facilitating hands-on game design experiences that let students learn by doing.
  • Knowledgeable about game production pipelines, animation techniques, interaction design
  • Knowledgable about Neuroplasticity and growth mindset.
  • Skilled at encouraging collaboration between programmers, artists, designers, writers, researchers.
  • Dedicated to fostering student exploration, and ownership in the game design process.

Questions for Formulating Significant Learning Goals

Foundational Knowledge Goals
  1. Game Design Classes: Terminology and Techniques for Game-Design including but not limited to Shaders, Materials, Animations, VFX, Cameras, Audio, Programming, Mechanics, and Publishing.
  2. English Classes: Creative story telling for interactive design basics (choose your own adventure)
  3. Science Classes: Physiological process that occur during Neuroplasticty and how to represent that with visuals and motion.

Application Goals
  1. Critical thinking, will be essential in the beginning in which students analyze and evaluate which aspects of the Neuroplasticity and growth mindset they want to focus on in their game.
  2. Creative thinking, will be used throughout the project as students imagine and create different scenes to portray different aspects of the game's main goals.
  3. Because game design projects take an extremely long amount of time to produce even with seasoned veterans, practical thinking will be necessary throughout as students solve problems and make decisions on what to focus their time on.
  4. During this project students will need to learn how to manage their time and juggle many details within their complex projects. At the same time they will need to build real world skills of working with and compromising with others to produce a product and interactive experience within a certain time frame.

Integration Goals
  1. Integrations between Writing, Science, Technology, and Play
  2. Inter-Disciplinary collaboration 
  3. Objectives from all 3 of the classes will be aligned with each other that are involved with this project.

Human Dimension Goals
  1. Identify personal aptitudes and development areas
  2. Practice teamwork and group cooperation
  3. Recognize individual talents and growth opportunities
  4. Cultivate skills for working together in teams

Caring Goals
  1. Nurture appreciation for cooperative imagination
  2. Esteem varied outlooks and capabilities

Learning How to Learn Goals

Here are three alternate versions of the Learning How to Learn goals:

1. Cultivate self-motivation and proactive mindsets

2. Establish objectives and strategies for positively contributing to the team

3. Practice providing and responding to constructive critique. 

How Will the Course Outcomes Planning Process and 5 Column Table Influence or Impact my Innovation Plan?

The 3-column table(5-column in my case) assists in specifying details to achieve goals. context, assessments, direction, knowledge foundations, and learning objectives to break down the big picture into actionable steps. Having these thoughts outlined, specifically into an aligned table(The GRID) makes the plan more concrete and achievable.

The project outcomes provide a set of goals and expectations that can shape our gamified blended learning project innovation plan. Objectives like building critical thinking skills, creativity, and real-world teamwork align with our intention of creating an immersive educational game. Focusing on these goals will ensure the project effectively enhances relevant skills. The planning process offers structure for turning ideas into reality. Steps like identifying resources, considering obstacles, and timing will reveal needs when implementing the plan.

In summary, connecting the innovation plan in course goals and strategically planned logistics significantly increases chances for the experience to be successful. The course goals delineate the intended learning outcomes for students, while the planning process maps out the steps to achieve those goals through the project. The 5-column table helps fill in the journey's details. Integrating these components into the 3D game empowers students with hands-on career-building skills. The vision, roadmap, and specifics come together to inform a focused, comprehensive plan..

Project Summary / Rationale

This collaborative project fosters creativity by bringing together Game Design, English, and Science students. Groups of six will be formed with members from each of the 3 different classes.. With regular in-class and outside-of-class group meetings, we'll utilize the Game-Design Computer lab, a Science lab, and a English writing classes to create a collaboration to then create an immersive learning environment.

The goal is developing a short 3D educational game about neuroplasticity and growth mindset. Through convergent and divergent thinking, students will mirror real interdisciplinary teamwork and production habits. This active learning will strengthen analysis, communication, technical skills, and problem-solving abilities.

While from diverse backgrounds, these motivated learners and teachers will share a drive to create. My fellow teachers and I enthusiastically guide hands-on learning, lending our expertise in game design, narrative writing, biology concepts, and more. I hope to nurture teamwork, creativity, and appreciating different perspectives.

Personal growth is nurtured as well. Students will identify strengths/weaknesses, practice constructive feedback, and set collaborative goals. We'll instill passion, insight, persistence and connecting ideas (Godin, 2012). Cross-disciplinary collaboration mirrors real-world teams.

Foundational knowledge will come from mastering terminology, techniques, and principles in game design, writing, neuroscience, and growth mindset. By actively acquiring through creating, students will retain information longer (Fink, 2005). Connecting disciplines will empower adaptable learning and problem-solving.

This project empowers students to tap their potential. Creating a 3D game, instead of passively consuming information, allows them to see connections and encode broader contexts which makes them a more adaptable, efficient, effective learner and problem solver (Harapnuik, 2015). This comprehensive experience boosts career skills and adaptability beyond the classroom.

 

References

Godin, S. [TEDxYouth]. (2012, October 16). Stop stealing dreams. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=sXpbONjV1Jc

Fink, L. D. (2005). A self-directed guide to designing courses for significant learning. Retrieved from: https://www.deefinkandassociates.com/

Harapnuik, D. (2015, August 15). Connecting the dots vs. collecting the dots. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch? time_continue=1&v=85XpexQy68g

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