UNID Reflection

After learning this subject Understanding Instructional Design (UNID), I can’t say that I like this subject very much nor can I also say that this subject is boring either. If I am not mistaken, this subject is teaching us how to be teachers whereby if we do not become teachers, at least instructors or as educators. I think being a teacher is very interesting. You impart your knowledge to the students so that they may benefit from it.

What I like about this subject
The best part about this subject is the game design although I have poor game design skills.
I love to play games a lot especially educational games whereby you learn as you play. Just think of all the possible games. Example (Maths, Science, Programming and so much more). It will be fun and exciting. However, one must wonder are these games already on the market. If the games are on the market, are the students learning form it in terms of the game content. If the games are not on the market, don’t worry. UNID has provided us with the chance to design and create games for educational purposes.

I mean it is very interesting and also challenging to design a game whereby the objective is to teach students. In other words, students must learn as they play. I feel that creating a game for pre schools and primary schools is quite manageable because there are some of these software’s already on the market. However, the most challenging part is being able to create and design a game for tertiary education like (Polytechnic, Universities and so on. I strongly feel that since there are no games suited for tertiary education, which is why students only attend lectures and practical sessions for learning purposes.

Overall, I myself feel that designing a game is still manageable. It is only the programming part that is unmanageable. This is the part that often makes the game work. To be able to play the game, programming codes must be written. My programming skills are very weak. I just wonder why do we need programming for UNID. I just don’t see the link. Being teachers, we get to teach students a lot of things like both inside and outside the classroom. Apart from receiving education inside and outside of the classroom, there are many subjects that a teacher can teach. I feel that being a teacher is very interesting and challenging. Anyway back to UNID.

When I started this subject UNID, I did not know what to except of this subject or what I will be learning. To begin, we started off with research and then moving on to some programming. Very soon we found ourselves applying what we have learnt in programming to designing simple games for our assignment. Time really flies. Now that our UNID lesson is almost over, I must say that this subject is quite enjoyable. I think if we remove the game part for assignment, it would be so much better. Everyday just do research.

I strongly feel that by being a teacher, there is just more than research being involved.

Extra Entry Major Project (MP)

Although I am currently taking this subject/module UNID, this subject allows me to design educational materials to teach. According to our lecturer (Miss Roselind), if you like teaching, interact with kids if not design the teaching materials.

I got a chance to view the Major Project (MP) show by the seniors. I must say I was impressed by all their works. Although I can’t say which was the bad one, the entire MP was amazing. Even if there was a bad one, I will not say it out because students themselves put a lot of effort into it before show casing. Apart from that, students were able to make use of 3D, DM and technology to produce their Major Projects. There was animation, interactivity and so much more when there presented their works. It was an eye opener for me.

I like one of the E-book presentations done by the seniors. I also hope to create something similar when it is my turn to do MP.

Extra Entry (My UNID game)

Since my UNID game is about shooting shapes, I found this very interesting game which is similar. The game title is called Shape Invasion whereby you also Shoot the shapes.

After playing the game, i find it very interesting as after shooting the shapes, there is like a reward in the form of cash. (computer cash not physical cash). The graphic background is like a battle field. very interesting

http://www.gunshootinggames.net/game/85/Shape-Invasion.html

Educational Website 2

Pros of this Website
Text and graphics on this site are not cluttered. They are well spaced out to a certain extend.
As this is a website for kids, at the centre, top, there are a lot of a cartoon or kiddy images. It is something kids can relate to easily.
There is different use of graphics or metaphors to indicate different subjects.

Cons of this Website
The background is white and it is very dull looking. Suggest a light blue background so that kids are more comfortable with it. Furthermore, the colour blue does not pressure the kids. It is a colour they can relate to easily

There is no usage of videos for the kids to view.

The menu bar in the left hand corner is using green text which is not very good. Suggest the usage of black text as green text can be a little hard to read

Also the colour blocks associated with the menu bar is totally not appropriate at all. Suggest that the blocks be replace with icons to make it easier to understand.

The layout of the different subjects does not follow a continuous pattern. Some of them are placed vertically while others are placed horizontally.

Educational Website 1

http://www.funbrain.com/math/

Pros of the website
This website tells you how to play the game and what is expected of it
It allows user to select addition, subtraction and so on
It also allows user to select level of difficulty
Words and text on this site are well spaced out

Cons of the website
The white background is very plain and very boring.
There are also vertical lines in the background which is very distracting
There are no video to view
There is very little or no animation is being used at all.
There should be more animations being included. A baseball rolling across the screen at the bottom is not interesting at all.

Educational game 2

Pros about the website
Interesting choice of colors used like yellow, pink, blue and green. There are many activities that pre schools kids can select and choose to play from coloring to ABC. Items on this website are well spaced out. They are not cluttered. The text are easy to read as different fonts and colors are used. There is also a left and right button for kids to view different images. As this is a preschool website, the use of the graphics is very appropriate. I feel that kids will enjoy it very much when they visit this site.

Cons about the Website
I feel that the color pink for this website is too strong. Instead try and use a lighter shade of pink. Also, Instead of just playing games, should include some quizzes. There are no videos to view as kids should watch video instead of reading text. This website might want to consider including a menu bar to organize the activities.

Website
http://funschool.kaboose.com/preschool/

Educational game 1

This is about a Maths Tic Tack Toe game whereby you play against the computer. To place X or O in the box, user needs to complete a Maths problem as seen in the above image. Solve the problem and your X or O will be placed in the box.

Pros about the Website
The text on this website is easy to read. Apart from that, images and text are well spaced out. They are not cluttered. This game allow users to select the level of difficulty and also since it is a Maths game, users can select what they want to do (like addition, subtraction and so on). As for the level of difficulty, they follow a common pattern which is all are vertically align. The website also tells you how to play the game and what is expected of it.

Cons about the Website
The background is white and it is very plain. The usage of images or graphics is very little and limited. This website is not interesting and attractive at all. There are also no videos to view and it is considered boring. I feel that not many students will visit this website but the game is interesting.

Website
http://www.funbrain.com/tictactoe/index.html