Overview:
Screencast video of my Parthenon build in the Minecraft virtual world, done up as a fictional webisode of a program called Minecraft Architectural Review.
Work description:
Virtual world building, script writing and presentation, screencasting and audio/video editing
Learner target:
Minecraft enthusiasts and fellow educational technologists
Technology employed:
Minecraft, Camtasia, Fireworks
Theoretical foundations:
I am a firm believer in the non-example as an instructional strategy and as an opportunity to inject levity into a lesson. In this video, I have the webcast host (Edward Bellforth) rather drolly point out the various shortcomings and inaccuracies of my build (e.g., I should have built it on a rocky outcrop, I confused the Parthenon with the Acropolis, I put in a sunroof, etc.) as a means of conveying factual information. If I was an instructor for this course, I could see using this as a effective means to introduce the activity. To talk ARCS (motivational theory), the video grabs ATTENTION with its storyline and narrative voice; it establishes RELEVANCE by framing the video in a familiar context (a webisode and a snarky reviewer); it creates CONFIDENCE in the learners (as my level of build is not unattainable); and it provides SATISFACTION (Bellforth’s comeuppance and the promise of creating one’s own cool classic build).
Related:
Into Minecraft? Classic arcade games? See how my Sinistar Minecraft build turns into a nightmare.
