It seems like you can’t go very far these days without hearing about AI. Whether it is a debate about what AI will do to jobs, or how it can impact (positively or negatively) teachers and students, one thing is for sure - the idea of using AI is here to stay and the technology is getting better with each passing moment.
In this episode of GAME ON, Adam Bellow interviews Matthew Farber, an expert in gaming and educational games. The two discuss the importance of play and his work on social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies in games. Farber describes his Gaming SEL Lab, which studies and develops curriculum around games that enhance SEL skills such as empathy, compassion, and perspective-taking. He also discusses his favorite childhood games, including board games, Choose Your Own Adventure books, and Commodore 64 computer games, as well as his recent gaming experiences with Life is Strange 2 and Before Your Eyes, a game in which players relive and redo moments in their life every time they blink. Farber explains that his path to studying games and learning began with the educational game iCivics, which he used as a social studies teacher, and led to his interest in project-based learning and writing for Edutopia.
In this episode of GAME ON, Adam Bellow interviews Toby Price, an educator and former elementary school principal who made national headlines for reading a children’s book called “I Need A New Butt” to his students. Price shares his origin story, his passion for teaching, and how he became a principal. He also talks about the challenges he faced and how he overcame them, including his dismissal for reading the children's book.
Despite the setback, Price remains optimistic about the future and the opportunities that lie ahead. He has continued his path to being an advocate for diversity and inclusion in education. He has also written a series of children’s book starring “Titus the Monkey” which he hopes will promote kindness and understanding. Despite the challenges he has faced, Price remains committed to his passion for education and helping children succeed while having fun.
tudies show that the use of positive reinforcement leads to heightened enthusiasm in students. Who doesn’t love a pat on the back and validation that they did a great job?
Along with breaking out, students can also feel the sweet victory of collecting badges earned for a variety of fundamental skills! We are (extra) excited about this latest feature available - digital badges designed to reward the 4Cs and SEL skills to complement any kit-based games, digital games, or student-designed games!
My favorite thing about Breakout EDU is its unique educational experience. Having to solve educational puzzles using content knowledge and critical thinking in an immersive game is such a fantastic idea. Students need to be involved in their learning, and Breakout EDU does it best. When I first heard about Breakout EDU, I was blown away by how original and exciting it is. I knew I had to get a Breakout EDU Kit in my classroom as soon as possible.
Kathy Schrock has been a school district Director of Technology, an instructional technology specialist, and a middle school, academic, museum, and public library librarian. She is currently an online adjunct graduate-level professor for Wilkes University (PA) and an independent educational technologist. Kathy is known for her practical presentations dealing with pedagogically-sound practices for the infusing of technology seamlessly into teaching and learning. Her passions are online tools to enhance classroom instruction, the role of emerging technologies in the classroom, infographics, tablets in the classroom, assessment and rubrics, copyright and intellectual property, and gadgets of any type!
My favorite thing about Breakout EDU is that it truly is an engaging experience for ALL of my students. There is something for everyone and an opportunity for each of my students to be able to discover new skills and build confidence. It is an experience that is student-led and allows my students to feel empowered through every challenge.
Lucas Gillispie is Director of Technology and Media for Surry County Schools in North Carolina. A passionate educator and gamer, Lucas explores the intersection of games and learning. He is the creator of the WoWinSchool Project, exploring the educational potential of online games like World of Warcraft with middle schoolers, was one of the earliest pioneers to bring Minecraft into classrooms, and is working to build game-inspired professional development for teachers in his district through his EPIC Academy program. As an international speaker and facilitator, Lucas explores all things related to games and learning, from board games to esports, and shares a variety of resources with educators on his website: http://www.edurealms.com.
Foundations are the underpinning of emotional, social, and academic intelligence in early childhood education. With rising social complexities and global interdependence, it is more important than ever for today’s youth to have a firm foundation upon which to build higher-level thinking skills to support them as they grow and progress throughout their schooling, college, careers, and beyond. This journey begins in early childhood.
Carl Hooker is an educational consultant and speaker from Austin, TX. He spent the past 23 years as a teacher and administrator building successful mobile learning programs for schools. He also serves as an advisor for multiple ed tech companies and is the co-founder of the social media platform K12Leaders.com.
He has written 6 books on mobile learning as well as being a named a National Faculty Member Emeritus for Future Ready Schools out of Washington, D.C. He hosts two podcasts (ISTE’s Learning UnLeashed and The UnDisruptED podcast) and his latest book Ready, Set, FAIL! is intended for teachers and school leaders looking to unlock creativity and innovation in their schools and classrooms. For full bio go to https://CarlHooker.com
Equity in the classroom means ensuring every student, regardless of circumstance, has the resources and support needed to be successful. Equitable classrooms do not allow for individual factors to limit a student from reaching their full learning potential. The first, important step for education leaders to do in support of classroom equity is to evaluate existing learning activities and materials from a perspective of equity and inclusion.
Elana has dedicated the majority of her career to improving K-12 education. Prior to founding LCG, she spent eight years leading the marketing and community strategy for the George Lucas Educational Foundation where she grew Edutopia’s social media presence exponentially to reach over 20 million education change-makers every month.
Amy Stevens is a PLTW TEACHER AT TRI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
What Tri Elementary says about her: ‘Mrs. Amy Stevens is a treasure for our elementary school. Carrying an infectious joy, she teaches our students about the mystery of science each day through our Project Lead the Way program.’
The US Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights estimates 6% of public school students are enrolled in gifted and talented programs - a number likely to rise exponentially given evolving identification practices including universal screening. Without question, every student has unique interests and characteristics, but those identified as gifted or twice exceptional require a differentiated instructional approach to experience success.
In 1972 Nolan Bushnell created an industry when he founded Atari and gave the world Pong, the first blockbuster video game. Today his design credo—that games should be “easy to learn and difficult to master”—is inspiring a new generation of developers. A prolific entrepreneur, Bushnell has started more than 20 companies, including Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza Time Theater, Catalyst Technologies, the first Silicon Valley incubator, and Etak, the first in-car navigation system. In the process, he pioneered many of the workplace innovations that have made Silicon Valley a long-standing magnet for creative talent. Bushnell was the first and only person ever to hire Steve Jobs, which he details in his 2013 book, Finding the Next Steve Jobs.
Loss of instructional time and decreased access to teachers and peers led to shocking academic gaps as documented by the 2022 NAEP administration.
Education leaders are right to be concerned about student academic setbacks stemming from the pandemic.
The dialogue surrounding this issue allowed for the term “learning loss” to earn a prominent place in back-to-school planning sessions and professional development. It has been a nexus of conversation for leadership teams and board members across the country.
Universal design for learning (UDL) is an instructional approach based on decades of learning science research. The purpose of UDL is to administer instruction in ways that accommodate the needs and abilities of every type of learner
