Integrating Web Technology and Simulation-Games with K12 Lessons in

Mathematics and Physical Science

Dean L. Zeller

Dr. Paul Wang, advisor

Department of Computer Science

Kent State University

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“I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.”

Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

German/U.S. physicist

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“Science can be introduced to children well or poorly. If poorly, children can be turned away from science; they can develop a lifelong antipathy; they will be in a far worse condition than if they had never been introduced to science at all.”

Isaac Asimov (1920-1992)

US science fiction novelist and scholar

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Outline

• Experience and background

• Testing lessons on K12 students

• SitePal talking characters

• Simulation Games

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Education Experience

• My Background

• Challenge of Education

• Active Learning Lessons

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My Background• Both parents college professors (statistics, early childhood education)

• 4 years computer science instructor at Bowling Green State University

• 3 years computer science assistant professor at Park University

• 2 years mathematics high school teacher at Kansas City Missouri school district

• Currently in Computer Science PhD program at Kent State University, teaching classes on computer science and educational technology.

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Challenge of K12 Education

• High school teaching proved to be very stressful

• Inner-city environment

• High percentage of behavior problems

• Quality control of administration and faculty

• Used active learning methods to allow me to deal with discipline

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Active Learning

• Polyhedron Models• Algorithmic Art• Logic Games• Critical Thinking

Puzzles

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Polyhedron Models

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Polyhedron Models

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Testing Technology

• Testing is part of any software development process.• Software developers test programs on actual users.• K12 educational software, in any form, must be tested

on actual teachers and students in a classroom environment.

• Improvements must be made for usability, enjoyment, and understandability.

• Collect data through:– Observation– Surveys– Program statistics

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SitePal Talking Characters

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Characters

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Character Variations

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SitePal Educational Benefits• Instructions and results can be read out loud to viewers

• Helpful for a learning environment where low reading skills are blocking progress in other areas

• Multiple inputs (sound, visual, text) aid in learning to read

• Give a more personal feel to web pages

• Choose own character(s) and can record own voice

• Animation quality (1970’s cartoon animations)

• Implement for different languages

• Artificial intelligence

• Roleplaying

• Potential to read aloud complex mathematical formulas

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SitePal CostsBronze plan $ 9.95/mo• Silver plan $19.95/mo (more characters)• Gold plan $49.95/mo (artificial intelligence)• Gold-Educ plan $349.65/yr (30% discount)

Alternatives?• Open source• Alice• In-house program

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Caveats

• Not a “silver bullet.”

• Underlying lessons and instructions must still be taken seriously.

• A poorly designed lesson with talking characters will still be poorly designed.

• Be a integral part of lesson and material, not just “thrown in”

• Not a replacement for a human teacher

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Eliza Program with SitePal

• Goal: The student will create an artificial intelligence personality using sentence patterns with multiple responses.

• Previously tested Lisp implementation of Eliza program on CS305 (Artificial Intelligence) class at Park University.

• Choose a visual and voice in addition to conversation rules to create personality.

• Appropriate for artificial intelligence or psychology classes.

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Mad Libs Program with SitePal

• Goal: The student will create a Mad Lib story to be read aloud by a SitePal character.

• Currently working on Mad Libs Markup Language proposal for eventual development.

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Simulation-Games• Many games are simulations of real world systems

– Grand Theft Auto– First person shooters (Doom, Quake, etc…)– Warcraft– Massive multiplayer virtual reality games

• Integration of games into education– Teacher must be knowledgeable and trained in the simulation

pedagogical style– Teachers must integrate the simulated aspects of the program into

meaningful lessons requiring complex analysis.– Students must take the lesson seriously. It’s not just “game time.”– Game must be active, but not “too” active.– If the lessons are conducted incorrectly, all the students will learn

is how to play games.

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Definitions

• Simulation: Any training activity designed to reflect reality.

• Game: A learning activity governed by rules, entailing a competitive situation, and having winners and losers.

• Simulation-game: A reality-based game wherein the participants experience what happens in a real-world system.

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Benefits• Concrete learning objectives• Structure provided by the trainer• High participant involvement• Internal motivation• Generation of data• Analysis of completed results• Allows for student creation of new

problems

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Why Use Simulation-Games?• Experiential learning

• Heightens participant awareness, interest, and curiosity

• Fully immersing participants in tasks

• Provides a degree of reality

• High motivational value

• Participation for everyone

• Emphasizes peer/collaborative learning

• Learning is rapid

• Safe atmosphere, permitting the learning of costs, benefits, and effects of decisions without risking costly resources of the real world.

• Aids in skill development

• “Taps the right brain,” thereby stimulating the intuitive, creative, emotional, and spontaneous side of participants

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Caveats

• Simulation games may not work well if the game is not in sync with learning objectives.

• Participants may get hooked on winning and may thus overlook learning goals.

• Must be constructed so that winners and losers learn equally.

• Keep complexity level low– Few objects

– Short learning curve

– Easy creation of new levels and problems

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Examples

• Line Rider

• Doom Funnel Chasers

• Aargon

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Line Rider

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MoviesEscape from Heaven, by scion

Jump Down, by tgrub1

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Line Rider Lesson• Goal: Create an entertaining arena for the line rider.• Grading criteria:

– Originality

– Variety of tricks

– Artistic quality

– Timing with music

• Technical requirements:– Flash

– Screen capture utility

– Movie editing software

• Improvements to program– Speed and direction indicators

– Improved interface for editing

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Line Rider Lesson• Simulated aspects of the physical world

– Speed– Acceleration– Gravity– Inertia– Impact– Wind resistance

• Sites– www.official-linerider.com/play.html– www.linerider.org– YouTube.com (search for line rider)

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Doom Funnel Chasers

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Doom Funnel Chasers

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Doom Funnel Chasers

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Doom Funnel Chasers

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Doom Funnel Chasers

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Doom Funnel Chasers

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Doom Funnel Chasers Lesson

• Goal: Find the angle and initial velocity for the duct tape ball to maximize travel distance (including flag bonuses) and hit the vortex.

• Finding the best angle and velocity– Eyeball

– Random shots

– Tracking results to correct errors

– Educated predictions

– Experimentation

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Doom Funnel Chasers Lesson• Simulated aspects of physical universe

– Gravity

– Inertia

– Orbits and orbital paths

• Technical requirements– Flash

• Improvements to program– Better interface for precise measurements

– Record previous attempts

• Site– www.bigideafun.com/penguins/arcade/doom_funnel/

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Aargon

• Goal: Solve a logic puzzle incorporating concepts of reflection, refraction, and prisms.

• Logic– Multiple solutions vs. Single solutions– Pilot tested on 9th grade mathematics students

with interesting anecdotal results.

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Aargon Lesson

• Simulated aspects of optical science– Reflection

– Refraction

– Prisms

• Creative– Students can create their own boards

– Class competitions

– Boards must recognize when a board is unsolvable

• Sites– www.twilightgames.com/aargondeluxe/aargondeluxe_info.htm

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Other Ideas

addictinggames.com– 50 States– Jelly Blocks– Stick Trampoline– Avalanche– Simpsons Wrecking Ball– Territory War– Draw Play– Samurai Defense

bigideafun.com– Spaced Penguin– Light Brigade– Ship Lander

sodaplay.com– Soda Straws

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References

The Winning Trainer, by Julius Eitington, ©2002