#103 – Games-based learning from “content” to “creation”
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Welcome to this episode of the Pearson Future Tech for Education Series on The Edtech Podcast. My name is Sophie Bailey and each week, in this series, I’ll be exploring the challenges and opportunities of future tech for education with contributors from across industry, research and academia.
What’s in this episode?
What initiatives are supporting teachers and students to co-create games together? Hear from educators, gaming companies, and researchers on the evolution of games-based learning from “content” to “creation”.
People
More here: http://ygd.bafta.org/competition/ygd-mentor-award
Steve Isaacs, an ISTE outstanding teacher, blogger and lead digital innovator
Teacher, Video Game Design and Development
Steve Isaacs teaches Video Game Design and Development at William Annin Middle School in Basking Ridge, NJ. Over the past three years, Steve and his classes have been involved in research on the use of Virtual Reality in schools with foundry10, a research organization in Seattle. His classes have been exploring VR software, hardware, and dabbling in content creation in Virtual Reality. Steve recently joined on with the XR4Change (XR4C) program as an ambassador. XR4C is part of the Games4Change (G4C) organization.
Steve is a strong proponent of student choice and student voice. It is his mission to provide students with opportunities to pursue and nurture their passion. He is passionate about game-based learning and is one of the founding members of the Games4Ed Initiative as well as a co-founder of the weekly #games4ed twitter chat.
Steve was honored as the 2016 ISTE Outstanding Teacher of the Year as well as the state lead PBS Digital Innovator for 2016-2017. Community building and connecting with other educators is one of Steve’s passions. He is the co-founder of #EdTechBridge, a twitter chat and community working to build collaborative relationships among EdTech stakeholders to create better EdTech for our students. Through his involvement with a number of EdTech organizations, Steve has become a Brainpop Certified Educator, Microsoft Innovative Education Expert, Common Sense Certified EdTech Coach, Classcraft Ambassador and a global Minecraft Mentor.
In addition to teaching, Steve is the lead producer for Minefaire, a massive Minecraft fan experience. Minefaire is one of the official Mojang Community Minecraft Events, and currently the only official event in North America.
On a personal note, Steve is married and has two daughters. When he does have ‘free’ time, Steve loves to bike, hike, swim, snorkel, ski, and play video games.
You can follow Steve’s blog and find out more about his pursuits at http://gamesandlearning1.blogspot.com and explore his showcase of student work at http://www.pinterest.com/stevei2071. You can also follow and contact Steve on twitter (@mr_isaacs)
Twitter: @mr_isaacs
Jessica Lindl, Global Head of Education, Unity
Quotes from this episode
References
Tell us your story
We’d love to hear about innovative technology or approaches you are developing or using in education. Leave your stories in the comments below. Alternately, record a quick free voicemail via speakpipe for inclusion in the next episode. Finally, you can post your thoughts or follow-on links via twitter @podcastedtech @kristendicerbo via The Edtech Podcast Facebook page.
The Pearson Future Tech for Education Series is produced by The Edtech Podcast and supported by Pearson Education. If you’re interested in the themes that come out of the series, check out more ideas in the “open series” here.
