Rebecca Hyman EDIT 618

Professor Gura Spring 2020

Multicultural Game Project #1

Gaming, whether it be educational or entertainment based, is so relevant to the climate

of our 21st century world. Because of social media, niche online communities, and the high
demand for technological minds, gaming systems and game users are facing a high rise of
popularity. It makes sense to me that the increase in tablets and devices in school settings
would influence the expansion of gaming. However, while technology in school opens a window
for endless access to digital tools, not all resources and gaming practices work for all learners.
Afterall, just as we would differentiate typical instruction, we must differentiate online instruction
and gaming as well. When determining how to differentiate digital education games,
pedagogues must consider the notion of various intelligences, learning styles, and multicultural
contexts of each individual learner.

My multicultural game, Cultural Quest will teach students about two aspects of diversity,
Multiple Intelligences and Multicultural Diversity. This game will be played through a synthesis of
multimedia platforms. Students will interact both in person and through the online portal, Second
Life. Through Second Life, they will be able to customize characters’ physical attributes in a way
that reflects their own personal cultural identities. One thing to note about players’ customized
characters is that in addition to crafting the avatars to reflect players’ cultural identities, they can
also select sexual orientations including male, female, and gender varient/non-binary. “Immerse
players in complex systems, allowing them to learn the points of view of those systems and
perhaps even develop identities within the systems… In addition, the very nature of computer
games allows students to learn at their own pace, receive immediate and often continuous
feedback (Kee, 2014).” This digital world will allow students and teachers to collaboratively
interact in a safe, structured way. Through this online resource, teachers will be able to provide
ongoing feedback, disseminate instruction and tasks, and more. Along the way, some tasks may
be developed and completed in person, or on different kinds of devices, depending on each
players’ multiple intelligence profile and responsibilities per task.
 The assigned responsibilities per character/player will be based on Howard Gardener’s
Multiple Intelligence Theory, in cooperation with each individual’s personal upbringing and
cultural identity. “According to multiple intelligences theory, all human beings possess at least
eight forms of intelligence, which I call linguistic, logical-mathematical (the two favored in
school), Musical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, naturalist, interpersonal, and intra-personal. All of
us have these intelligences- they are what makes us human, cognitively speaking. But because
of genetic variation and the accidents of experience, no two of us have exactly the same blend
or combination of intelligences. I call on educators to take advantage of this multiplicity of
intelligences. Teachers should fashion reaching and learning so that all students have a chance
to learn and to demonstrate what they have learned – not just those students who happen to be
gifted with words and numbers (Gardener, 2000).” My game will teach about Multiple
Intelligence and Multicultural Diversity by simulating various scenarios to help students grow
awareness around various multiple intelligences and self-reflect on which style they identify
with. Then, players and their characters will assume appropriate responsibilities in order to
successfully complete a given task. When reading Level Up Learning: A National Survey on
Teaching with Digital Games by Takeuchi and Vaala, I was surprised by the mere 12% of games
being played during class time that encourage physical activity. I was expecting to see a larger
number for this category or purpose. This made me realize that students who are
bodily-kinesthetic learners must be experiencing a lack of access to the entry point in which they
thrive most. Cultural Quest will provide multiple points of entry for all learners, to better
differentiate for individual students, rather than appealing to one ideal learning profile.
 (Second Life Quickstart, 2019)

Once students identify which intelligence they identify most with, they will utilize
intelligence profiles to help them customize digital avatars, or characters. Character
profiles/avatars for the game are reflective of the eight different multiple intelligence;
verbal-linguistic intelligence, logical-mathematical intelligence, visual-spatial intelligence,
musical intelligence, naturalistic intelligence, bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, interpersonal
intelligence, and intrapersonal intelligence.
 (The Better Toy Store, inc., 2018)

This multimedia Multicultural Game will consist of various levels of complexity. There will
be a Novice, Experienced, and Expert Level. Teachers/districts may determine each level to be
appropriate for progressive grades, or perhaps may determine each level to take place at the
elementary, middle, and high school levels. “Games can model complex scientific, social, and
economic processes, thus increasing the students’ understanding of such complex subject
matters (Kee, 2014).” The initial, Novice Level will consist of the task in which students must
collaboratively design a holiday party. Students can be strategically paired to work in
homogeneous or heterogeneous groups, depending on the instructional goals of the classroom.
Homogeneous groups would consist of a committee students with similar intelligence profiles
working towards a similar goal, while heterogeneous groups would consist of various
intelligence profiles working towards a common goal in which they all must contribute differently.
A pedagogue might also decide to strategically group students this way based on cultural
identities. At this level, students will have many opportunities for choice around which holiday(s)
to celebrate,and what kind of traditions should be included.
The Experienced Level will consist of students forming club committees based on
interest and identity, but not exclusive only to individual cultural identities. There will be a
culminating club fair as an effort to teach out about various cultures. The teachers discretion will
dictate if this club fair occurs in the digital, real, or both worlds. The Expert Level will simulate a
United Nations meeting in which characters must work collaboratively to create a constitution or
framework that promotes harmony and interpersonal global affairs. As teachers collaborate and
implement Cultural Quest in their classrooms, new scenarios and tasks could be created to be
more relevant to the student populations’ identity as a community.
Throughout each complexity level of the game, different learning styles and preferences
are assigned different roles. “The teacher in maximizing learning should provide each student
with appropriate experiences that will cause him to learn to the best of his ability and at his own
rate(Papalia, 1978).” For example, the Visual-Spatially aware Character is responsible for
assessing, rearranging and plotting geographical territories based on each culture’s background
and needs. For example, rural communities whose income is based on agriculture would need
access to water and fertile soil, while an urban community would need to have flat lands with
access to ports for trading, etc. The Musically/Auditorily aware Characters would be responsible
for designing a new international anthem. They could listen to and analyze various national
anthems, and synthesize their messages in order to create their own international anthem.
Students could use multimedia platforms to produce the music, or record themselves performing
it. The Interpersonal Learners could act as facilitators for communication between characters
and their roles/responsibilities on Second Life as well as in the classroom setting amongst peer
groups. “Play and games are ancient elements of human learning. The former instills basic
social cues that facilitate human interaction and group cohesions, while the latter improve
complex skill acquisition, abstract thinking, and peer cohesion (Kee, 2014).”No matter what role
your character/you as a player is responsible for, I want students to feel immersed in gaming
and playing in a way that showcases their natural competencies. As a result of this, I feel that
the necessary materials and resources needed for this game can vary greatly. Some students
may need the Second Life platform only, while others may need word processors, instruments,
maps, etc.

When contemplating how I’ll know if students achieved learning through this game, I
come to the conclusion that there must be a holistic evaluation. Because different players are
experiencing different tasks informed by their different intelligences and cultural identities, they
simply cannot be assessed in one standardized way. “The teacher must acknowledge these
differences and adapt the instructional goals and methods to them. Knowing their students'
learning styles gives the teachers the possibility of modi- fying instruction in terms of grouping
within the class, pacing, and materials. In addition, systematic observations of stu- dents'
learning styles provide an analysis of the teacher's style of instruction and how it meets the
needs of the students (Papalia, 1978).” As part of this holistic evaluation, Cultural Quest will
include a self-evaluation such as a student-led reflection conference or written reflection.
Cultural Quest is intended to teach students about and promote understanding around multiple
intelligences as well as multicultural backgrounds. Through this interactive, multimedia game,
individual students can access learning experiences that truly break the mold of traditional
education.

Bibliography:

Gardener, Howard (2000). Can Technology Exploit Our Many Ways of Knowing? (2000).
In The Digital Classroom.

Kee, K. (2014). Pastplay: teaching and learning history with technology. Ann Arbor:
University of Michigan Press.

The Better Toy Store. (2018) Multiple Intelligences Retrieved from

https://www.thebettertoystore.com/multiple-intelligences
 Papalia, Anthony (1978, May). Assessing Students' Learning Styles and Teaching for
Individual Differences. Hispania, 61(2).

Linden Research, Inc. (2019, October 11). Second Life Quickstart. Retrieved from
https://community.secondlife.com/knowledgebase/english/second-life-quickstart-r373/

Takeuchi, L. M., & Vaala, S. (2014). Level up learning: A national survey on teaching
with digital games. New York: The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop.