November 17, 2010
This spring, The School of Education will introduce New
Media, Virtual Environments and 21st Century Learning, a new course
built around the premise that video games possess academic
benefits, such as motivating and engaging students, enhancing
critical thinking and supporting bilingual and second language
education.
Sandra Abrams, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Adolescent
Education in The School of Education, noted that the course will be
available to Education majors as well as students from other
programs pending approval from their advisors. Offered on the
Staten Island campus, it encourages students from all campuses to
take advantage of the cutting-edge technology available in the
University’s state-of-the-art teaching facility and educational
video game lab.
The course combines the theoretical with the practical as students
learn about the connections between new media, digital literacy,
pedagogy, and industry. They will explore how technology relates to
human behavior, analyzing and applying their understanding of Smart
technologies, podcasts and video games, including such popular
products as Guitar Hero, American Civil War, Brothers in Arms, Gran
Turismo, Little Big Planet, and Madden NFL10.
The course also incorporates a service learning opportunity
allowing students to provide academic support to adolescents from
neighborhood middle and high schools.
Dr. Abrams promises to provide students, particularly Adolescent
Education majors, with a unique skill set that can be incorporated
into their teaching practices, better preparing them to engage
children who already spend as much as seven hours a day hooked on
electronic media. Utilizing the resources of a technologically rich
classroom environment complete with Smartboard Technology, an
Instructional Materials Center, and the Game Lab, students enrolled
in Dr. Abrams’ class will have the opportunity to think critically
and creatively as they explore how new media and technology can be
used to enhance learning, communication and commerce.
To learn more about this and other innovative courses on the Staten
Island campus, please contact Rosette Allegretti at allegrer@stjohns.edu or
(718) 390-4130.