3D Game Lab, First Update

  As part of the teacher camp for 3D Game Lab they want us to note down things in a journal or blog of some sort. Rather than use their internal tool I'll share things here.

  First off upon getting in you have the ability to easily pick the starter quest. Completing it leads you to 4 new options. I'm not entirely sure that the titles picked by the creators were as good as possible for these quests as I didn't want to click on one because it seemed to exist only for the purpose of making a report of an issue. Actually it was a required quest that showed me how to make a report. Important lesson, name your quests well.

  I also very quickly found that I wanted to earn more XP. I simply couldn't help it. One more quest, this one is worth 25 xp. That bar could get more filled -- I got a rank up -- I have more quests available, I should look at them before I log off -- maybe I'll just do this one -- or two. Now I'm a big fan of learning so maybe this is personal and won't be as present in my students. But the simple fact that I can see my work increasing a score makes me want to get a few more points.

  From a teaching and learning perspective this is fairly revolutionary. Students are generally given a task that may or may not be graded. If they do well, they are rewarded with a good grade. If they do poorly, they are punished with a bad grade. That's the end of the story. Perhaps a teacher will give students the chance to return to their work to try to improve their grade. But these are generally only awarded to students with significantly inferior scores. The student with a B that will keep working until they get an A is generally left in the dust. 

  Here suddenly we can go beyond this model and actually hold all students to a higher standard. It's not done until it's A work. But you can keep on working on it until it gets there. It becomes a great way to always be moving forward without the millstone of previous failures. If learning is about making mistakes, why doesn't everyone get the chance to try again. 

Surving the Night - My Minecraft Adventure

First off this isn't my first foray into minecraft. I have some experience from a couple of years ago (maybe more) so I remember a number of the basic designs. But apparently not as much as I'd hoped.

My starting location was right by this nice valley with a big open ocean on one side and down the valley it leads to a desert area. The hills are covered with trees and stand ten to fifteen blocks above the bottom of the valley. First off I find a tree that looks like it's decayed somewhat. This isn't something I remember but it looks like coal. I was thinking that perhaps an old tree could turn into coal if not harvested too long -- or something. Turns out this is alder wood. Oh well. Alder is good too. I think it's harder than pine which is what the rest of the trees probably are so perhaps it can make better tools.

I get to work harvesting enough wood to make a mining pick and have a fair bit spare. I drop into valley and pick a little spot to start digging in. I get a suitable little room made, make a craftingbox, a furnace, and a stone sword. It turns out my little hillside vally is covered in pigs. An unusually high number of pigs. One of these will make fine food, perhaps two. I trap one pig by building a dirt enclosure two bricks high around it. I'm saving that one for later. I cut down some grass and pick up wheat seeds and try to figure out how to plant them. Then it's getting dark.

I run into my hole and quickly make a door. I throw the door up and look around for something to do. The total absence of coal has left me unable to cook my pork, unable to see in my hole, and unable to successfully mine in new directions without falling into the darkness of an unclear wall. Then I remember that the furnace will put off light when active, but alas, no coal.  Then I decide to see how well my alder burns. I throw some pork steaks on the barbie and get a nice alder smoke going. There's enough light for me to continue working until the morning. However, it's going to be difficult to mine without more light of some sort. My next venture will have to be to look for some coal somewhere -- or maybe just stay here and work on a fence to keep my trapped pig safe.


In the end I did figure out how to use the hoe to plant the wheat, for some reason right clicking just never occured to me until I looked it up. I also think that the first place I was trying was too close to the spawn point making any attempts I made unsuccessful. It also appears that alder is just like other wood but looks different. There goes my hopes of an Ironwood Axe being invented into the game.

3D Game Lab Camp on the horizon

  On top of everything else going on in my life (moving, new job, baby due in August, brother in law's wedding) I'll be embarking on designing my technology classes using 3D Game Lab for the upcoming year. This will be the basis for assignments in my three technology classes next semester. In the future I'll be updating what this looks like in practice.

  For those not familiar with 3D Game Lab it is a web based program being designed by the Boise State University to track student achievement in an experience point completion based model. What this means is that a student has a number of options as far as assignments (called quests) to choose from and each will give an experience point reward upon completion. Completion of certain quests may unlock other quests and the instructor may grant certain awards (called badges) for students that deserve something special for completion of a particular assignment.


  In this model student grades can be based on the experience points that students earn as well as earning certain badges. An expectation for a student may be to earn 1000 exp to get an A as well as complete 3 badges that signify content area completion. However, earning these badges will only grant 500 of the total experience required allowing students to pick which assignments they will complete to earn the remaining points. An instructor could have 3000 possible points from quests allowing students to pick a number of areas that they wish to focus in or allow them to spread out and experience a number of particular areas.

  With a clear goal at the beginning of the quarter or semester, students can pace themselves to reach their necessary goals. Students can also repeat an unsuccessful quest to learn the material and show mastery. Consider how different this is from traditional education. In a traditional classroom you learn teacher selected material and then are tested to prove your knowledge. If you fail to show mastery you are punished with a bad grade and the class moves on to a new subject. If you succeed, you are rewarded with a good grade and are forced to move on to a new subject, regardless of your interest in the area you've just completed.

  This very model turns education on its head. It is student directed and standards based, with clear expectations and endless options. Students are working towards a clear goal at their own pace. They can pick the assignments that fit their interests, current mood, or time available. The education is accessible at home, at school, or anywhere that there is an internet connection.

  Of course this model does have its problems. First off it basically requires a 1 to 1 student/computer ratio. I happen to be fortunate that I have this option in my upcoming position, even if it is just limited to netbooks. Secondly, it assumes that quest completion is equivalent across the board. Regardless of how any one quest was completed, students are essentially awarded the same experience. While instructors have the option to send a student back to do more work on a quest before it is completed, there is something inherently different from a student who is able to complete work successfully the first time with  minimal guidance, and the student that may finally complete it after submitting seven failed versions. Finally, it is still product oriented. Students are required to build something and are ultimately judged on the product rather than the process. Unfortunately, learning remains a process, not a product. I've learned tons by creating something crappy, and I've created things perfectly but didn't manage to learn anything. I'm not sure that this problem can really be successfully addressed in education, but I'm not afraid to hope it can.

  I'm curious to see how this plays out in my classroom and I look forward to make additional reports. While it is clear that education is not the panacea of society, it may be that the internet is the panacea of education.