My thoughts about Education Humanities, Technology and Digital Culture. Interested on social media tools in educational contexts and
gamification in education.
Today is the "Worldwide Social Media Day". Portugal is one of the countries that join this initiative.
The aim is to have a global comprehensive conclusion of the revolution that has transformed the Media into a social environment.
The initiative joins the super social media blog Mashable. More than 340 meetups in the world in about 90 countries will take place.
You can keep up with the celebration on Twitter by tracking by following @mashSMday or #smday.
In Porto (Portugal) the meeting will take place today at UPTEC. The Portuguese event will be cover in real-time via Internet from 6:30PM (Portuguese time) on this website
You can also keep up with the Porto's meetup on Twitter by following@Web_Mkt_Tuga
There will be some interesting speakers that will discuss the phenomenon of social networks in Portugal.
With the first anniversary of the dead of Michael Jackson gamers amd fans will have a new opportunity to moonwalk, dance and sing along with The King of Pop.
Ubisoft® announced June 14, 2010, at the E3 Expo 2010, in Los Angeles, the development of an interactive performance-based video game, inspired by the legendary King of Pop, Michael Jackson. The game is family entertainment at its best and will provide an interactive experience that enables players to step into the shoes of Michael Jackson himself and re-live his most iconic performances through their own singing and dancing.
The upcoming game will include the most famous tracks from Michael Jackson's extensive catalogue such asBeat ItandBillie Jean, as well as an array of his awe-inspiring dance moves for players to learn and emulate within the game.
Additionally, fans will be able to sing along and test their vocal skills while immersed in the performance.
(...)
"We're delighted to have the opportunity to develop a game based on the songs and moves of one of the world's most incredible performers of all time," said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer at Ubisoft. "We expect the game to bring Michael Jackson fans, families and friends together with the energetic song and dance of The King of Pop." Read more ...
The game will be available for "Project Natal" for Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 system with PlayStation®Move support, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, Nintendo's Wii&tm; system and Nintendo DS&tm; handheld system, for holiday 2010.
José Saramago, the Portuguese writer who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1998 died, June 18, 2010, at the age of 87. His ashes are in Lisbon under a 'oliveira' (olive tree) The Nobel Prize in Literature 1998 was awarded to José Saramago: "who with parables sustained by imagination, compassion and irony continually enables us once again to apprehend an elusory reality" Nobel Prize
He lived in Spain and Portugal with his Spanish wife. After Saramago death, Pilar del Río, came to Portugal as the new director of Fundação José Saramago. The fondation will continue to promote and preserve the study of Saramago incredible literary work, correspondence and other works of the Portuguese Nobel Prize in Literature.
"Promover o estudo da obra literária do seu Instituidor bem como da sua correspondência e espólio e respectiva preservação".
"Começar a ler foi para mim como entrar num bosque pela primeira vez e encontrar-me, de repente, com todas as árvores, todas as flores, todos os pássaros. Quando fazes isso, o que te deslumbra é o conjunto. Não dizes: gosto desta árvore mais que das outras. Não, cada livro em que entrava, tomava-o como algo único."1)
José Saramago, Outros cadernos de Saramago
His message in this document is about the power of literacy!
This childre's book ant its animated video (Portuguese or Spanish language could be a beautiful motivation to read the book in your Languages lessons ( Portuguese or Spanish, native language or foreign lnguage).
Animation:
The video is an animated version (2007) of his children's book. It's narrated and featured by José Saramago himself. There is a Spanish version too.
"A magnificent parable of loss and disorientation and a vivid evocation of the horrors of the twentieth century, Blindness has swept the reading public with its powerful portrayal of man’s worst appetites and weaknesses-and man’s ultimately exhilarating spirit. The stunningly powerful novel of man’s will to survive against all odds."
Teachers and students can find the book/ e-book in so many languages here
"He writes a prose of particularly luminous intensity, brilliantly rendered into English by his regular translator Giovanni Pontiero…Sweepingly ambitious."
Education: Different ideas, and different school levels to include José Saramago, Nobel Prize in Literature, into school curricula. Levels: Primary and K12 schools: A Maior Flor do Mundo.
Elementary schools: Memorial do Convento/ Das Memorial "In early 18th-century Lisbon, Baltasar, a soldier who has lost his left hand in battle, falls in love with Blimunda, a young girl with visionary powers. From the day he follows her home from the auto-da-fé where her mother is burned at the stake, the two are bound body and soul by a love of unassailable strength. A third party shares their supper that evening: Padre Bartolomeu Lourenço, whose fantasy is to invent a flying machine. As the Crown and the Church clash, they pursue his impossible, not to mention heretical, dream of flight."
"What distinguishes the book is the concern Saramago breathes over his characters; like potter's clay, they are patiently moulded into their best shape, retaining soft marks of memory"
"Claraboya es la puerta de entrada a Saramago y será un descubrimiento para cada lector. Como si un círculo perfecto se cerrara. Como si la muerte no existiera"
Pilar del Río
And of course so many more! Make your choice and invite your students to participation.
Secondary/Vocational education: Teachers can propose different Saramago books: Novels, essays, chronicles, theatre, poetry, diary, memories... There so many interesting books that teachers an students can read students. Make a choice by inviting your students.
As a motivation, you can display the video of the film Blindness based on Saramago's novel Ensaio sobre a Cegueira/ Blindness in Literature lessons. Curricula: Literature and Languages, Arts, Multimedia. “We use words to understand each other and even, sometimes, to find each other.” José Saramago
Once again, let's talk about movies and games at the classroom, this time to teach the "Narrative text".
A narrative is a story that is created in a constructive format (as a work of writing, speech, poetry, prose, pictures, song,motion pictures, video games, theatre or dance) that describes a sequence offictional or non-fictionalevents.
It was the first educational adaptation from the video game and the film Price of Persia.
A huge success among teachers who participated on the workshop.
The game & the film:
We all know the gamePrince of Persia: Sands of Time! Of course!But a live-action adaptation of a video game series to a movie, sometimes, it's not a good idea! This is not the case ofPrince of Persia.
Prince of Persia Sands of Time, developed at Ubisoft Montreal, successfully captures the mechanics of the original platformer and extends it to the 3D generation.
The Sands of Time was praised for its visual design, finely tuned game mechanics, and intriguing storyline, winning the game several awards.2)
The game has been developped between playstation and PC and now mobile phones.
It's fairly short, and it's missing the console versions' bonus features, but Prince of Persia is a truly excellent action adventure game for as long as it lasts.
Despite the film having the same title as and being primarily based on the video game "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time", elements from "Prince of Persia: Warrior Within and Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones, two other titles from the Prince of Persia video game franchise, are also incorporated.3)
Synopsis:
Dastan a rogue prince (Jake Gyllenhaal) reluctantly joins forces with Tamina a mysterious princess (Gemma Arterton) and together, they race against dark forces to safeguard an ancient dagger capable of releasing the Sands of Time - a gift from the gods that can reverse time and allow its possessor to rule the world.
Young people love this kind of stories, right? A young warrior-prince and a fetching damsel scamper across the desert sands to keep a magical dagger out of the hands of villains who would control time.
A wonderful narrative, with a bit of magic and a lots of adventure and special effects. I just loved it! And my students too.
Prince of Persia, the film and the game have all the elements to motivate young students to learn the Narrative text in Literature curriculum.
Narrative is central to children’s and young students learning. They use it as a tool to help them organise their ideas and to explore new ideas and experiences.
Composing stories, whether told or written, involves a set of skills and authorial knowledge but is also an essential means for children to express themselves creatively and imaginatively.
It's a fun action-adventure movie. The camera exquisitely follows the video game’s style. That gives the real enjoy of the game, the interaction between the characters and the story are really attractive and not bored till the film's end. Students can easily follow the narrative, generic structure, characters, action, grammar, vocabulary.
As teachers we need activities wich can help the students to develop their vocabulary and to stimulate a desire of communication. We need an activity in wich students will not feel bored.
Games and films are not only motivating and fun but can also provide excellent practice for students to improve pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and the four languages skills.
Immerse yourself and your students in the captivating Prince of Persia universe with an original and independent story that closely coincides with the action of the console & PC editions of the game, and teach your students the "Narrative text" in a different but consistent learning.
Don't miss two important interactive digital resources (a game and a film)! So funny to teach and learn in a different way!
"The using of games provides a unique opportunity for students sel-assess their progress in learning professional vocabulary and for a teacher to assess students' progress informally wihout causing stress and anxiety."
Kavaliauskiene, 2000
*Note: Prince of Persia, a game in school
to include into the school curriculum, was part of my presentation at the Workshop for teachers EFQUEL Innovation Forum Lisboa 2010. It was the first educational adaptation from de video game and the film Price of Persia. A huge success among teachers who participated at the workshop.
