Learning Principles and Experimenting with Simulations

In education, Gee identified ten principles that are essential for learning (Jonassen, 2008, p. 54), but I would like to emphasize on three of them.  The Committed Learning Principle lets students engage in learning through commitment they feel confident with as it relates real-world to virtual identities.  A student may not be interested in learning if he or she does not experience a real-world situation, and to do that they ought to be at a comfort level to achieve their goal.  The Practice Principle may sound as if it were another boring repetitive task, but if it is done through a game, practice may actually be a challenging and fun activity.  For some subjects like math, practice is essential.  For other subjects, visualization may be the best option.  The Multimodal Principal can facilitate subjects such as history, art, and foreign languages to be learned meaningfully.  Through images, symbols, interactions, and sounds, students’ knowledge and comprehension is built up. 

If I were to create a simulation for my Spanish class, for example, I would support the Urban simulation.  In this activity, students would pick and create the country and city where they would make a trip and spend a week there.  The variables that students would be able to manipulate would be the buildings they visit, they people they talk to, and the dialogue they use to communicate.  Students can practice asking for and following directions, make decisions on the type of transportation they will use, and learning about the culture of the town.  Further, students will learn about the behavior of the system they are using to enhance their learning skills and it will prepare them for a later real-life situation.  Simulations best benefits students in subjects such as science and science labs, architecture, and engineering.  Also, some of these simulations require higher computer skills which may only be appropriate for those in secondary education and/or special training organizations.  Nevertheless, the use of these will engross students in learning any new concept.  

The key for making learning principles and simulation activities successful is motivation.  Motivation is a state within individuals that arouses and maintains behavior (Woolfolk, 2010, p. 376).  The activities educators may choose to incorporate a new concept may be achieved if students are motivated.  Because learning principles are goal driven, the attitude students have toward learning will determine the outcome, and both students and teachers will be feel great about their achievement.  Learning should be fun, so games have to be implemented in education.     

References

Jonassen, D., Howard, J., Marra, R., Crismond, D. (2008). Meaningful learning with technology (pp. 54). Upper Saddle, New Jersey: Pearson.

Woolfolk, A.(2010). Educational psychology (pp.376).  Upper Saddle, New Jersey: Pearson.