Hope Myles Scott

"The kind of schooling that requires knowing a lot of facts but does not provide the ability to solve problems with the facts is on its last legs. Innovation and creativity are required, to survive in a developed country, outside of low level service work, for all who plan to work in an ever changing global market. Video games put you in an environment where you must solve problems. Games do not separate learning from assessment; they give feedback to the learning curve you are on. Games give you language just in time. Games engage kids in reading and writing more than ever through fan fiction. We are going to get a new Sputnik, which will encourage innovation and creativity. Teachers who are unfamiliar with digital media can model learning by learning with their students. Make teaching a much more sexy job. [1]" All concepts above are my paraphrase from Big Thinkers: James Paul Gee on Grading with Games. Gee hit a lot of areas of concern for teachers and the teaching profession. First, he spoke of knowing a lot facts that do not solve problems. There are subject where you need to know facts, but, according to Gee, facts that do not solve problems are pointless. For me, that would be math. Just kidding. But, there are math facts that I have learned that are just that, facts that do not solve problems. He spoke of the need for creativity and innovation. Teachers need to challenge our students to be creative and innovative. My Web Mastering students cannot just read about creating a Web site, they must do the work to create a site. When I look at some of the projects that my students have created, I know that innovation and creativity are alive and well in technology classes. Gee also brought out the point that games engage, in a way that nothing else does. Kids, and even adults, can sit and play a game for many hours but will complain if they have to sit in a classroom for more than 55 minutes! He spoke of how America rises to the challenge when needed. Our Sputnik, or challenge to be the best and greatest, is on the horizon. As other countries outpace and out-produce the USA in every area, we will step up to the challenge. He also spoke of making the teaching profession more sexy or appealing. My son lives and works in Hong Kong. He has met many American teachers there who love teaching in Hong Kong because they feel valued. 

Teaching and learning have changed because of technology and digital media. Students should not have to learn by drills; instead, students learn best by doing. We need to create learning environments that are not like our traditional schools. We need to ensure that our students are digitally savvy innovators prepared to survive the changing global economic climate where collaboration to solve problems is paramount. 

[1]Edutopia.org (nd). Big thinkers: James Paul Gee on grading with games. Retrieved on Oct. 5, 2009 from http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-james-gee-video