DIGITAL ABUNDANCE AND THE “GAME OF SCHOOL”

1. DIGITAL ABUNDANCEAND THE“GAME OF SCHOOL” Brandt Redd, Senior Technology OfficerBill & Melinda Gates Foundation Brandt.redd@gatesfoundation.org http://www.ofthat.com CC-BY

2. The Game of School was designed around scarce resources. But new technology offers abundance where scarcity once ruled. • Intro • Thesis

3. Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Intro • Outline

4. Post Scarcity • Digital Abundance • Post Scarcity

5. Conventional Goods MarginalCost EquilibriumPrice MarginalValue • Digital Abundance • Supply and Demand

6. Digital Abundance MarginalValue EquilibriumPrice MarginalCost • Digital Abundance • Supply and Demand

7. Publishing is Frontier DigitalAbundance ConventionalScarcity Publishing • Digital Abundance • Supply and Demand

8. Digital Abundance • Abundant Content • Abundant Assessment • Abundant Data • Digital Abundance

9. Abundant Content • Digital Abundance • Supply and Demand • Abundant Content

10. Abundant Assessment • Assessment is Expensive • To compose • To administer • To score • To interpret • Digital Abundance • Supply and Demand • Abundant Content • Abundant Assessment

11. Abundant Data • Purpose (Feedback vs. Compliance) • Cross-Activity (Standards & Privacy) • Scale • Digital Abundance • Supply and Demand • Abundant Content • Abundant Assessment • Abundant Data

12. A game is an activity that has: • A Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Digital Abundance • Games (Bernard Suits as quoted in Reality is Broken by Jane McGonigal)

13. Digital Abundance • Games

14. Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School

15. Goals for Public Schooling: • 1840: Preserve the Democracy • 1890: Prepare Everyone for Vocations • 1980: Keep America Competitive • 2000: Eliminate Poverty • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal (Christensen, Clayton: Disrupting Class)

16. Society’s Goal: Eliminate Poverty Student’s Goal: Achieve Prosperity • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal

17. Rules • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules

18. Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Failure

19. Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Failure

20. Presence ≠ Achievement • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Failure • Proxies for Achievement

21. Learning Credentialing • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Failure • Proxies for Achievement • Unbundling

22. Applying digital abundance to these rules: • Failure consequences • Abundant Assessment • Measures of achievement • Abundant Content • Abundant Assessment • Learning and credentialing are bundled • Abundant Data • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules

23. What’s the lowest score you expect on a multiple-choice exam? A: 0% B: 25% C: 50% D: 100% • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Formative Assessment

24. Control Theory Sensor Feedback Controller System Input Reference Output • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Control Theory

25. Pedagogical Theory Assessment Feedback Instruction Student Standards Activities Skills • Feedback must be: • Frequent • Fast • Rich • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Pedagogical Theory

26. Voluntary Participation = Motivated Participants • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation

27. Duncker’s Candle Problem • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Duncker’s Candle Problem (http://anthonyogrady.wordpress.com/2010/05/02/carrots-and-sticks)

28. Candle Problem “for Dummies” (Dan Pink) • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Duncker’s Candle Problem

29. Candle Problem Solution • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Duncker’s Candle Problem

30. CandleProbem 7.41 11.08 Simpli-fied 3.67 4.99 Norm Incentive (Times in Minutes) Subjects given financial incentives averaged 3.5 minutes slower on a cognitively demanding task! • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Duncker’s Candle Problem (Glucksberg, Sam (1962) The influence of strength of drive on functional fixedness and perceptual recognition.)

31. “As long as the task involved only mechanical skill, bonuses worked as they would be expected: the higher the pay, the better the performance.” But, once the task called for “even rudimentary cognitive skill,” a larger reward “led to poorer performance.” • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Motivation (Dan Pink, Drive pg. 60 quoting a study by Dan Ariely et. al.)

32. Intrinsic motivators that work for cognitive challenges like learning: • Autonomy • Mastery • Purpose • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Motivation

33. Students are invested in the outcome when they help choose the activity. • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Autonomy

34. Extrinsic incentives that aren’t inherent to the task can impede achievement. Demonstrations of mastery are intrinsically rewarding. • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Autonomy • Mastery

35. Cognitive Scaffolding • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation • Autonomy • Mastery • Purpose

36. Applying digital abundance to motivation: • Autonomy • Abundant Content • Mastery • Rich Feedback from Abundant Assessment • Purpose • Context from Abundant Content • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Goal • Rules • Feedback • Voluntary Participation

37. The Game of School was designed to maximize the utility of scarce resources. Classrooms Teachers Funds Curriculum • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Conclusion Time

38. To realize the benefits of digital abundance. The structure of the Game of School must be changed. • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Conclusion

39. References and Resources • Shared Learning Collaborative: http://slcedu.org • Learning Resource Metadata Initiative: http://lrmi.net • Common Core State Standards: http://corestandards.org/ • Common Education Data Standards: http://ceds.ed.gov/ • Jane McGonigal: Reality Is Broken: http://www.janemcgonigal.com • Clayton Christensen – Disrupting Class: http://www.innosightinstitute.org • The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts: http://www.civicenterprises.net/reports/the_silent_epidemic.pdf • Duncker’s Candle Problemhttp://anthonyogrady.wordpress.com/2010/05/02/carrots-and-sticks/ • Dan Pink: The Surprising Science of Motivationhttp://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html • RepRap 3-D Printer: http://reprap.org • Digital Abundance • Games • Game of School • Resources OfThat.com Brandt.redd@gatesfoundation.org