Games and Simulations for Learning - ETEC-526
I used to think...
Games and simulations for learning -- I can't even imagine such a thing. Learning was one-sided in that the teacher solely was the learning path, and usually, he (unless it was a catholic nun, whom I had for the first 8 grades of private school) where told us what to learn, how to learn it, and even worse, how to think! Usually, it was their way or the highway, and I always quickly took the highway. I ended up being pulled by my ear (from the principal in front of all my classmates/friends) to the principal's office to call my parents to let them know that I was being obstinate, among other things. Everyone was expected to be, do, and learn the same exact way when I was in school growing up. Reflecting on those early years in school, since my identical mirror twin sister was introverted and right-handed, maybe the rest of the class was. I was extroverted and left-handed and had never done anything like anyone else. Still, back then, it always got me into trouble. Usually, my parents (due to their upbringing during the Great Depression and World War II era generation, where the "teacher" is always right blah blah blah…) always immediately sided with the nuns and priests who were the teachers at the private school I went to. My dad (who left school in 8th grade to become the primary caregiver for his Italian immigrant family who was originally here illegally) noticed one day that my twin sister NEVER got in trouble (intelligent or not, because she always saw me get into trouble from everyone), he asked me why I didn’t want to do what the nuns/teacher told me to do. I told him it was because I couldn't do it that way (among many other awful experiences, they tried to make me be right-handed like everyone else and my twin sister too). He said, don't do it that way! I said they wouldn’t allow that (I was in the first grade then), so he began asking me more questions about my school experiences (vastly different from my twin sister's). I told him I didn't hold a pencil right-handed; I didn't think the way other kids did, I didn't learn the way others did, and I was constantly raising my hand to ask questions, which was highly frowned upon a time in the classroom. My dad never said anything to me or even showed emotions as my twin sister, and I was describing "my" experiences in our class and with schoolwork…. When we finished telling him, he told me to do my schoolwork; however, I needed to do it so that I could "do and learn" how they expected me to and that he would take care of it. The next day, the nuns never hit me over my left hand again with a ruler when I picked up my pencil with my left hand to write…. Still, I always got funny looks and sighs, and the twenty-five other classmates (including my twin sister) usually chuckled too, but they (the nuns and priests) kept it to themselves. I could only assume that my dad told them (among other things) to let me learn things how I needed to learn them, even if it was different sometimes. So, the remainder of my catholic/private school experience was not great, although I learned a lot, especially reading, writing, and math, but as a result, I am NOT creative, and I rarely think creatively. So, taking a graduate class titled Games and Simulations for Learning is pretty far out there for me! When this class started, I couldn't even imagine what this topic would be about. I couldn't even imagine, but I was very curious though!
Now I think...
Games and Simulations for Learning