Interpersonal Connection, Engagement, and Learning With Video Games During Remote Learning

Purpose & objective

We highlight the experiences of educators we have worked with that have harnessed the the affordances of the video game Portal 2 to teach Physics and Design Thinking during remote learning. We will share first-hand teacher perspectives collected in our recent research study on the uses of Portal 2 in classroom settings. The interviews we have chosen to highlight in this presentation took place during the initial transition to remote learning in light of the Pandemic in Spring of 2020. We will also share examples of how these educators used Portal 2 to teach physics and design thinking in an engaging way that met the needs of diverse learners. We will also share lesson plans and resources for educators to take back and apply in their math, physics, design thinking, and language arts classrooms.

Objectives:
- Participants will learn about the implementation challenges of remote teaching with Portal 2.

- Participants will be given lesson plans to use in their math, physics, design thinking, and language arts classrooms.

- Participants will be provided with examples of how other teachers were able to use Portal 2 to teach concepts, create a sense of community, and meet the needs of diverse learners during the pandemic.

- Participants will be encouraged to think about the value of video games for learning and teaching, especially during remote learning.

- Participants will also be given a curated set of resources and pedagogical tools to reference as they work through building lessons and incorporating Portal 2 in their curriculum.

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