Being an educator I am always in search of practices that can make learning more meaningful and whenever I come across such practices I get excited and want to implement them. As a teacher for many years, I know that games are very effective methods for introducing such topics as artificial intelligence, programming, or medicine. Today I would like to share my experience and some observations concerning certain types of the Games that I consider most efficacious for education.
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The Power of Learning Through Play
I will always recall when I came across the first educational coding game I happened to find. It was a revelation. While I was creating a simple program where a little character navigates through a maze using only five commands I understood that this is the way that can bring a real revolution in teaching technical professions. After that, it became my personal goal to research various fields on effective teaching through games.
AI and Coding Games: Where Fun Meets Function
In my journey, I’ve found several standout games for learning AI and coding:
1. Minecraft: Hour of Code – This game is my favorite. I have even taught it to student age 8’s and nothing is more satisfying than seeing the joy on their faces when their character has to navigate over an obstacle and they make it happen! It is a perfect start for the idea of automation in general with the use of Artificial Intelligence.
2. Machine Learning for Kids – Is my new favorite teaching aid in my class. I had a student in my class who could not understand standard coding lessons, but when we got to teaching an algorithm to differentiate between various fruit types, everything changed. He went on to create a simple game which used his trained model, his self-esteem levels rose.
3. CodeCombat – This game can actually turn non-enthusiastic learners into coding fanatics. Most children love fantasies, and the fact that it takes its time to increase the level of challenges it provides to children makes it fascinating to use.
Medical Games: A Prescription for Engaging Education
As someone with a background in biology education, I’ve also explored games that teach medical concepts:
1. Anatomy Arcade Chart – We often employ this in our classes. These matching games are especially suitable to support learning of complicated anatomical terms by students.
2. Stop a Viral Outbreak – The CDC presents this game not only as quite helpful, but also as appropriate in the current world situation. In order to explain to students some epidemiological cases, I used it to explain real-life measures that correlate with the game strategies.
Engineering the Future: Games for Budding Innovators
For those interested in engineering, I highly recommend:
1. Kerbal Space Program – this is a game I’ve played quite a lot; in fact. It is a very useful gizmo for analyzing orbital dynamics and station construction. I once employed it in teaching high school students physical sciences and the reception was unbelievable.
2. Poly Bridge – I have found this game very useful when trying to introduce students to the fundamentals of basic structural engineering. I’ve even had the opportunity to begin conversation on practical bridge structures with my use of this.
The Impact of Educational Games
Drawing from my experience as teachers and researchers of educational technology, I have witnessed the impact these games make in learning. They afford students safe practice, quick feedback, and enjoy most of all during the learning processes.
I recall one learner who told me he disliked science. When I introduced her to some of these games especially, the medical ones she sharply developed an interest in biological science. The last time I spoke to her, she was in school studying Biomedical Engineering.
Looking to the Future
I believe such games will become even more diverse and complex in the future, so we are getting closer to the model of an educational game as an entertainment product. Mobile learning and Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality will find a place in the classroom, and the learnings which are still in our dreams today will come true.
Therefore, it is my plea1 to teachers, parents, or anyone interested in learning, to try these education games. Yet what was make-believe is now a path to information, problem solving, and maybe even a profession.
How did Confucius put it, “I hear and I forget I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” These games allow one to do it and in so doing grasp these tricky ideas in a fun way that is not possible when sitting behind a computer or in a classroom.
- a request made in an urgent and emotional manner ↩︎
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