Dongping Zheng, Ph.D.

Philosophy of Learning, Thinking and Teaching

Is learning an individual activity? Is cognition an internal process or embedded and embodied in the environment? How do kids think and learn? How should educators teach kids to think and learn? What is learning and thinking? Do Chinese children learn differently from American children: or a better question might be, do Chinese and American cultures value and define learning and thinking in different ways? Some of these questions I have raised can be answered through one's philosophical beliefs, some have to be answered via research and a comprehensive understanding of both cultures. As I enter academia, I have a goal to formalize my own approach, grounded in theory and research, and reflecting both western and oriental cultures, in which my students will be free of boundaries, acting as reflective, creative, self-disciplined, goal-oriented learners and passionate about learning throughout life. >>>Read More in the Philosophy Statement.

A Defense Scenario about Game and Education

This Scenario was the final exam prompt for EPSY 343 Advanced Educational Technology.

The Context: Consider the content of EPSY 441, Research Methods in Education, in which the design of true experiments and qualitative methods are described. Next consider that is has been proposed to deliver all or part of this content as a computer game. The proposal is just an outline. Here is what has been stated:

The main challenge of the game will be to communicate an idea or phrase to another group, with the limitation that every statement must be proved. As you enter the game you will be given a "mission" of what you must communicate, for example, "Good Morning." But instead of just saying it, you must prove it. So in this example case, one would have to display evidence showing that it is morning and the morning is, indeed, "good," including an operational definition of "good" in observable terms, presenting survey results of how many respondents said it was good, objective evidence of good things occurring, etc .. If the receiver group is convinced, you complete your mission and receive points accordingly. All during the interaction, there is a running meter showing estimations of how convincing you are, so you can alter or amend your tactics as you try to be convincing. It is also possible to build alliances with other groups, trying to communicate slightly different things (with common themes or purposes), but this is a higher order gaming strategy.

Unfortunately there are several faculty adamantly against this approach. a) List three (3) arguments you would anticipate hearing from these colleagues, and then b) list three (3) rebuttal argument you would make in response (drawing from the literature and discussion we have had in EPSY 434). c) Help the game designers by outlining how a limited trial of the game approach might be investigated for its impact on student achievement; that is, propose what aspects of the game (as you design it or as is) might be active in affecting student achievement (possibly both positive and negative effects) and how that might be measured to correlate with (or determine, depending on the scientific method) achievement. >>> Read my response.