Most people
would probably argue that social media is the epitome of convergence. And while
social media is proficient at exploring both multimedia and transmedia, I feel
as though the more social media progresses, the dumber our society will become.
Take, for example,
politics – specifically, the Obama campaign. As we discussed in class, back in
2008, the Obama administration utilized multiple facets of social media as part
of its campaign strategy, in order to appeal to a younger and wider demographic.
Clearly, the strategy was a success, because a senator of hardly three years
was able to convey his messages of “hope” and “change” to millions of new
receptors online that he would have otherwise never been able to reach.
But as more and
more people relied on a tweet or a Facebook status to gather bits and pieces of
information, less and less people took the time to thoroughly read articles
about the election and truly educate themselves. So while social media allows
for second-to-second information and the widest array of “news” the world has
yet to see, are we actually learning?
I believe the true
future of convergence with regards to education lies in the form of video
games. Though the creation of this type of gaming dates back to the 1980’s with
Atari as the first home-style console system, rendering it a fairly old
concept, the last two+ decades have been spent perfecting both the online and
at-home gaming world.
Originally
designed as either single or multiplayer, these interactive games were no more
advanced than to allow a tiny dot to bounce from one virtual racket to the next
in a simulated version of tennis or ping-pong. As technology advanced, games
like Galaga and Pac Man were developed. These games incorporated a motive that
players needed to feel in order to successfully win. In both games, obstacles
in the forms of tiny virtual enemies were set into place that brought with it a
greater challenge, but also in it, a greater sense of victory.
According to
game designer and New York Times Bestselling author, Jane McGonigal, whose
lecture on TED Talk very much inspired me, “gaming can make a better world,”
and in her opinion, is the resolution for the future. Famous for her lectures
on gaming and how it can save the world, McGonigal has created video games
based on real-life circumstances and possibilities, and challenges players to
use their personal skills to complete the tasks given. McGonigal, who thinks
the biggest misconception about video games is that they are a waste of time,
argues that these interactive games help to channel social and leadership skills,
teamwork, and helps to create a level of self-confidence for even the shyest
and most introverted of gamers, restoring assurance in their own ability to
achieve what they set their minds to.
“My goal for the
next decade is to try to make it as easy to save the world in real life as it
is to save the world in online games,” says McGonigal. Worldwide, 3 billion
hours a week are dedicated to gaming. McGonigal’s intention is not to redirect
these hours, but to apply life lessons where people are going most often:
online. “If we want to solve problems like hunger, poverty, climate change,
global conflict, obesity, I believe that we need to aspire to play games online
for at least 21 billion hours a week by the end of the next decade.”
McGonigal’s
research at the Institute of the Future points to a greater feeling of accomplishment
in the gaming world, a sense that far surpasses that of real life. Her plan is
to continue creating games that bring real-world obstacles into the gaming
world, with the hopes that these gamers, after achieving the “epic win,” will
have confirmation that they are well-equipped to handle real issues and tasks.
It is a new
platform for learning, and McGonigal isn’t the only one in support of it.
Microsoft’s XBOX
has made its own contribution to the gaming-based classroom in the form of
“Kinect,” a motion-controlled accessory to the console. “But why use it in the
classroom?” asks edutopia.org. According to the article “Kinect in the
Classroom,” written by Andrew Miller on the organization’s website, “there is a great opportunity to use the Kinect in the classroom to not
only meet specific learning goals, but engage in research-based practices for
learning,” (edutopia.org).
Below is a link to the website that features a
video on “Kinect Math,” and how it allows students in classrooms to manipulate
graphs, variables, etc. The video is located towards the end of the article:
The world has
been changing since its inception, but the last century’s advances are far
greater than all previous centuries combined. In a world that is growing and
changing at an exponential rate, all educators can do to successfully teach
each group of new students is to also change with the times, and learn to adapt
to a new world. Right now, that world is gaming.
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