EduTek n Social Media Advisor

Online Simulations & Games as Teaching Tools

simCEO

I came across this interesting online simulation tool ‘simCEO’ that lets students create their own companies in an environment defined by the professor. The tool is a brain child of Derek Luebbe, principal of American International School of Budapest ,as he wanted his students to create their own companies, buy and sell stocks in classmates’ companies and study the fluctuations of stock prices.

simCEO  can be accessed by clicking here

Luebbe invites interested teachers to set up a free SimCEO account (using the promotional code: edutopia), and see where their creativity takes them.

Evoke

Then I came across another interesting tool, Evoke that challenges players to solve global problems. The advantage of Evoke is that it can be accessed from mobile phone too.

Evoke is free to play and developed by the World Bank Institute, the learning and knowledge arm of the World Bank Group, and directed by alternate reality game master Jane McGonigal.

Visit the social network game Evoke and explore the various possibilities.

Don’t forget to share your experiences after you’ve tried.

Various Ways of Engaging Students

In my earlier blog titled ‘Is Blended Learning the Future of Educational Scenario?’ I had mentioned that instruction offered through blended mode enhances learning. It is not enough that technology is utilized for offering instruction. The instruction must be designed in such a manner that enhances recall, application and retention of knowledge that has been imparted.

 

 I am reminded of a famous Chinese Proverb, that says,

 

“Tell me, and I’ll forget

Show me, and I may remember,

Involve me, and I’ll understand.” 

 

It is true one hundred percent. Hence technology should be utilized in such a manner that learners are actively engaged after transfer of knowledge and utilize the knowledge that has been transferred.

 

Therefore, I am suggesting various ways through which one can engage the students interestingly.

 

1.    Activities through social networks so that the learners share, collaborate and arrive at a solution.

2.    Activities through games (suggested link to a simple game to teach English preposition) as they allow the learners to realize the pre-determined objectives through usage of acquired information, deploying various mental methods and physical actions related to specific concepts or areas of learning in enjoyable way quickly.

3.    Interactive and engaging assessments as they improve learning, since immediate feedback is offered in most of the cases.

4.    Mind maps as they work similar to brain, allowing associations and links to be recorded and reinforced.

5.    Videos, since they send the messages to be delivered effectively.

6.    Virtual Reality as it enables you to offer active, realistic and immersive experience to the learner.

7.    Rubrics as they help learners set and realize goals and assume ownership for their performance.

8.    Timeline generators (example) since they enable one to record historical. planned or projected periods and events according to the sequence of their occurrence.

 

I have just suggested few ways through which one can engage the students where transfer of knowledge gained takes place. These activities would reduce ‘‘inert knowledge’, the knowledge learners fail to transfer from one setting to another.

 

 

Please share how you had engaged or would engage your students.