A Multiscalar Coordination of Languaging

This study adds to a new area of research that seeks to harmonize language pedagogies in classrooms and language learning in virtual environments. Harmonious languaging uses co-actional and symmetrical structural dynamics to compare three environments in a Chinese school: a baseline traditional classroom using textbooks, the virtual space of Quest Atlantis Quest Atlantis has recently changed its name to Atlantis Remixed (http://atlantisremixed.org), and a comparable class using print-based handouts. Each has a different design and thus features, and we show that these affect languaging. We found languaging styles that were contingent upon a) the teacher (e.g. answering questions, correcting, inquiring, repeating, and writing in the form of note-taking), b) Quest Atlantis virtual material artifacts (e.g. individuating multiscalar coordination between reading and writing), and c) the teacher and the handout (e.g. answering questions, self-expressing, and reflection). These styles are important for pedagogy. In our view, the field neglects the harmonious languaging style that arises around virtual worlds. There is lack of engagement with language-as-part-of-nonlinguistic-action. From the distributed view, we show an example of how foreign language learning is facilitated in an experiential domain where verbal patterns are evaluated immediately in the coordination of reading and writing, for which avatar actions, link-clicking, and using dictionaries become other-oriented modes of ambient action.

Positioning gamers within identities

In this paper, we describe the language used in a particular educational video game, Quest Atlantis (QA). We begin by reviewing a number of works which deal with video games and come to the conclusion that, although many speak of aligning the player with a particular identity (cf. footing, Goffman, 1981) which is necessary to achieve particular tasks, none of these works deal specifically with the role language plays in the construction of these personae. Therefore, we describe the language used in a single task in QA, revealing the generic structure (Hasan, 1985) of these prompts. After that, we observe how language is used at the level of the sentence with the analysis of deictics (Ochs, 1992; Hanks, 1992). We conclude that more interactions within QA need to analyzed before we reach a more definite answer to our questions, but the language resources revealed here will certainly provide educators and game with a more tangible framework with which to position learners and players.

Games and the Development of Students’ Civic Engagement and Ecological Stewardship

In recent years, researchers and classroom teachers have started to explore purposefully designed computer/video games in supporting student learning. This interest in video and computer games has arisen in part, because preliminary research on educational video and computer games indicates that leveraging this technology has the potential to improve student motivation, interest, and engagement in learning through the use of a familiar medium (Gee, 2005; Mayo, 2009; Squire, 2005; Shaffer, 2006). While most of this early research has focused on the impact of games on academic and social outcomes, relatively few studies have been conducted exploring the influence of games on civic engagement (Lenhart et al, 2008). This chapter will specifically look at how Quest Atlantis, a game designed for learning, can potentially be utilized to facilitate the development of ecological stewardship among its players/students, thereby contributing to a more informed democratic citizenry.

Why Videogames are not Teacher-Proof

This chapter considers the crucial role that the teacher plays in supporting successful use of immersive technology in the classroom, focusing particularly on the use of an interactive, online, multiplayer videogame called Quest Atlantis. This chapter presents an account of successful strategies for integrating immersive technologies into teaching practice, such that the game does not replace the teacher, nor the teacher replace the game, but rather the two are integrated in their mutual support of student learning. The authors focus specifically on two distinct roles that teachers can play in leading whole-class discussions: attuning students to important concepts and connections in the game, and deepening opportunities to learn beyond what is afforded in game design. For each role, the authors present two contrasting cases with the goal of illuminating the central role that a teacher can play when integrating complex technologies into the classroom. Differences in the ways that teachers support their students while using games like Quest Atlantis are not trivial; it is argued that differences in teachers’ support of whole-class conversations can create dramatically different opportunities for students to learn.

Video Games in Education

There has been an abundance of writing about video games1 in education. Characteristic of a young field, much of this work is theoretical and not necessarily based on data (de Freitas, 2006). Classroom integration strategies rely on researchers’ arguments, anecdotal evidence, and teachers’ pragmatism. Unfortunately, video games are often created for profit and to entertain, leaving many additional issues to consider (i.e., marketing, effectiveness, etc.). Researchers’ arguments combined with video games’ widespread popularity and potentially spurious advertising may leave teachers confused or misinformed. To exemplify this issue, this chapter contrasts the salient properties of a commercial game (Spore), an immersive context with game-like features (Quest Atlantis), and a pedagogically based immersive context (GlobalEd 2). Specifically, the authors describe the educational and technological affordances of three contexts, the limitations associated with each, and the necessary yet pragmatic steps involved in their classroom use.

Games and the Development of Students' Civic Engagement and Ecological Stewardship

In recent years, researchers and classroom teachers have started to explore purposefully designed computer/video games in supporting student learning. This interest in video and computer games has arisen in part, because preliminary research on educational video and computer games indicates that leveraging this technology has the potential to improve student motivation, interest, and engagement in learning through the use of a familiar medium (Gee, 2005; Mayo, 2009; Squire, 2005; Shaffer, 2006). While most of this early research has focused on the impact of games on academic and social outcomes, relatively few studies have been conducted exploring the influence of games on civic engagement (Lenhart et al, 2008). This chapter will specifically look at how Quest Atlantis, a game designed for learning, can potentially be utilized to facilitate the development of ecological stewardship among its players/students, thereby contributing to a more informed democratic citizenry.

Blending Classroom Activities with Multi-User Virtual Environment for At-Risk Primary School Students in an After-School Program

This chapter documents how a group of 14 academically at-risk Primary 5 students have been engaged in academic related tasks in an after-school program mediated by a game-like 3D multi-user virtual environment (MUVE), Quest Atlantis (QA). The case study explores the possibilities and potentials of using the game-like 3D MUVE for the re-engagement of this group of academically at-risk students. From the observation notes, interviews with the students and students’ activities in the MUVE, the two main elements in the MUVE that have been found to engage the students are: ‘play and fun’ and ‘recognition and affirmation of performance.’ However, these engaging elements alone could not purposefully engage these students. Non-ICT activities such as orientation tasks, support by teachers, and the careful selection of authentic assignments are necessary to further enhance their engagement with their learning.

Blending Classroom Activities with Multi-User Virtual Environment for At-Risk Primary School Students in an After-School Program

This chapter documents how a group of 14 academically at-risk Primary 5 students have been engaged in academic related tasks in an after-school program mediated by a game-like 3D multi-user virtual environment (MUVE), Quest Atlantis (QA). The case study explores the possibilities and potentials of using the game-like 3D MUVE for the re-engagement of this group of academically at-risk students. From the observation notes, interviews with the studentsand students’ activities in the MUVE, the two main elements in the MUVE that have been found to engage thestudents are: ‘play and fun’ and ‘recognition and affirmation of performance.’ However, these engaging elements alone could not purposefully engage thesestudents. Non-ICT activities such as orientation tasks, support by teachers, and the careful selection of authentic assignments are necessary to further enhance their engagement with their learning.

Developing Critical Implementations of Technology-Rich Innovations: A Cross-Case Study of the Implementation of Quest Atlantis

This study examined the tensions surrounding the implementation of a technology-rich educational innovation called Quest Atlantis (QA) in a local public elementary school. Three qualitative case studies of three classrooms implementing the innovation and a subsequent cross-case analysis were undertaken to illuminate: 1) the reasons why teachers chose to implement the innovation in their classrooms; 2) the core challenges and tensions of implementing this innovation; 3) the supports necessary to successfully implement the innovation; and 4) the adaptation that the innovation underwent in the course of its implementation. The results of this study indicated that teachers implemented QA because of its alignment with their existing curricular goals, its flexible adaptivity, and its emphasis on social commitments. Findings also indicated that teachers persisted in using QA because the students enjoyed it and were enthusiastic for its continued use. Core challenges and tensions in the implementation included security concerns related to QA's use of web-based communication features, providing appropriate technical and social support for implementation, and balancing the innovation's intended use and its actual use.