I tried a new app last week for my Social 30-2 students as a way to review the main concepts of ideology before their unit exam. After doing a bit of questioning on Twitter, the GooseChase app was recommended so after looking into it, I went with it.
The purpose of the activity was to put my students into 5 teams (the free version of GooseChase only allows for 5 teams) and to get them going around the building looking for people/objects/action that represented the values of individualism and collectivism. They had 12 missions to complete (one for each value). By working in teams, I wanted them to work together to share and build knowledge. I teach the values using the mnemonic of PRICES and PRINCE. PRICES represents the values of individualism (Private property, Rule of law, Individual Rights and Freedoms, Competition, Economic Freedom, and Self interest). Their missions were simply " PRICES -- P". As a group they had to determine what the P stood for and then what in the school might best represent that concept. Using their phones, they then had to take photos or short videos (or even write some text) and upload them to the app.
What I really like about it:
1. Instant formative feedback. There is a live feed on the teacher side of the app so I can see instantly what the students are uploading and determine which students completely understand the concepts and which ones need more help.
2. Creativity. The students were able to look outside the box and find some very creative ways to demonstrate their understanding.
3. Ability to roam. Students spend so much of their day sitting and the ability to move about is powerful. If I can move my classes outside my classroom walls I will.
4. Ease of use. The app is very easy to use. It didn't take me very long to set up a game and the students were logging in and uploading photos right away.
5. Share learning. The students are able to share their photos and see what other teams have done so after the the game is complete we can look at all the entries and discuss them.
Drawback:
1. Limited on teams. By using the free version (no budget here for the paid site), I can only have 5 teams and with class sizes approaching 40 students it can get a bit tricky to give everyone a voice. 8 team members often mean some are simply following and not contributing to the understanding.
That was really the only major drawback to it. I would absolutely use it again as a review tool. The students were highly engaged and I overheard many groups explaining concepts to fellow group members throughout the game which empowered them as teacher-learners.
The purpose of the activity was to put my students into 5 teams (the free version of GooseChase only allows for 5 teams) and to get them going around the building looking for people/objects/action that represented the values of individualism and collectivism. They had 12 missions to complete (one for each value). By working in teams, I wanted them to work together to share and build knowledge. I teach the values using the mnemonic of PRICES and PRINCE. PRICES represents the values of individualism (Private property, Rule of law, Individual Rights and Freedoms, Competition, Economic Freedom, and Self interest). Their missions were simply " PRICES -- P". As a group they had to determine what the P stood for and then what in the school might best represent that concept. Using their phones, they then had to take photos or short videos (or even write some text) and upload them to the app.
What I really like about it:
1. Instant formative feedback. There is a live feed on the teacher side of the app so I can see instantly what the students are uploading and determine which students completely understand the concepts and which ones need more help.
2. Creativity. The students were able to look outside the box and find some very creative ways to demonstrate their understanding.
3. Ability to roam. Students spend so much of their day sitting and the ability to move about is powerful. If I can move my classes outside my classroom walls I will.
4. Ease of use. The app is very easy to use. It didn't take me very long to set up a game and the students were logging in and uploading photos right away.
5. Share learning. The students are able to share their photos and see what other teams have done so after the the game is complete we can look at all the entries and discuss them.
Drawback:
1. Limited on teams. By using the free version (no budget here for the paid site), I can only have 5 teams and with class sizes approaching 40 students it can get a bit tricky to give everyone a voice. 8 team members often mean some are simply following and not contributing to the understanding.
That was really the only major drawback to it. I would absolutely use it again as a review tool. The students were highly engaged and I overheard many groups explaining concepts to fellow group members throughout the game which empowered them as teacher-learners.