My name is Lynn Keener and I am currently living between Monongah and Pittsburgh. I live during the week in Pittsburgh and take care of my father and come home on weekends as often as possible. I am currently on a medical leave due to a falling accident when I broke both hands and wrists. I have my MAT from Fairmont State and my undergraduate is Family And Consumer Science. I teach cooking and nutrition part time at CCAC in the community education program. I love to teach cooking and nutrition to middle school students and I am always on the lookout for new material and new ideas to use. The classes I teach are not for grades or credit so I have the luxury of making the class fun and not worrying about standards however I do gear the classes to alien with what they need in their regular school. I do a summer cooking camp and would like to make a gaming component. I think gaming helps not only with hand eye but also with goal setting, problem solving and achievement. I love all types of games both video and in person games. I play on-line as well as on WII, and X-box 360 and think I have palyed every gaming system that has come along thanks to my son and his friends. I found an article that gives a good insight into gaming and education. I may have passed on this article because it is from a gaming organization however the article gives research on the subject and the effects of gaming being used in the classroom. Here is a link: http://www.theesa.com/games-improving-what-matters/education.asp
Lastly the year I was born is 1953 which proves you are never too old to learn. Here are three major world events that I found on The People’s History for 1953. First Polio Vaccine Developed, The Korean War ends after three years and one month and Queen Elizabeth II crowned queen of England
I like that you mentioned that video game playing promotes goal setting, problem solving, coordination, and achievement. I am also a big fan of the sitting down face to face and playing games; what seems like the outdated form of game playing, with today's quickly expanding age of technology, is a great way to also interact, grow, and develop on a social level. As for your three major world events, I was not born yet. However, they are very interesting. You possess an abundance of world knowledge and experience, that is way cool; and I wholeheartedly agree with what you said about never being to old to continue learning.
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DeleteThe first time I went to Fairmont state was right out of high school and I was expected to go to school. This time I returned when my husband died and I now have some options and this is what I want to do. I only wish I would have did it sooner.
DeleteI have played cooking games on my ipod. They are fun but I am not sure if they have any educational benefits. But I think all students would love to play video games as a way to learn something. I was not born until 1988 but the Polio vaccine was a major accomplishment.
ReplyDeleteThe event component gave me a laugh when I was surprised to find out i was a old as the polio vaccine.
DeleteI'm so impressed by your gaming experiences! I'm very excited to see what kind of game you develop in this course!
ReplyDeleteI love to play but hope I can come up with a game.
ReplyDeleteI have copied a quote from your related article, since I believe it is so powerful. As educators, we must embrace the cultural and technological shifts of the 21st Century or we will have a difficult time meeting the needs of our students.
ReplyDelete"Educators increasingly recognize the impact of entertainment software and utilize games as a teaching device in a growing number of classrooms and business settings. In doing so, they are embracing the cultural and technological shifts of the 21st century and expanding the use of a favorite leisure activity, computer and video games, into a critical and still-emerging educational resource. More than just play, entertainment software helps impart knowledge, develop life skills and reinforce positive habits in students of all ages."
I was born in 1965, so I don't remember the events as they happened.
As a comment from one who has played MMORPG's (or Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games) I added that in case someone was not familiar. I know I even had to ask what it was when I first heard it :) Anyway, in World of Warcraft, and the newest MMORPG out there, Star Wars:Knights of the Old Republic, part of these games is leveling up some sort of "crafting" or crafts. I know in both of these examples that cooking is one such craft, or as some call them, professions in game, that you can level, and in both cases, are often times important to a guild's progress. If you are not familiar, a guild is basically a "Mafia" for lack of a better word. Players join together and attempt game content that would otherwise be impossible in solo play. I loved leveling cooking in WoW, it was always fun harvesting and creating the different ingredients from other materials, and then standing in front of an oven and slowly cooking cakes, pies, hamburgers, steaks and other such items. These games even bring out special content for different real life holidays, though they often name them something else. For instance, in WoW they had Winter Festival for Christmas, complete with a "Santa" and they often brought out special recipes, such as Eggnog and other drinks that a player could create.
ReplyDeleteI bet it is fun teaching cooking to middle school kids. I think they are a fun age group because they try to act big and bad, but seem torn to still be babied.
ReplyDeleteTeaching cooking and nutrition sounds fun. It would be nice not to have to worry about standards for teaching.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't born yet, but I do remember hearing about thoese wolrd events.
When I first went to Fairmont State there were no standards and when I returned I was surprised to find that designing a class for what you deemed to be important did not always fit into the CSO's and i found that I had to be very creative to include what I wanted the students to know and still meet the standards. It is easier for vocational classes I think.
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