Writing for Edutopia, Terry Heick explains the place of video games in the English language arts classroom–to provide entry points to content, to give students a voice, to inspire and engage learners. Heick also provides simple, straight-forward advice on how educators can embrace video games as digital-learning tools. 

The Games-Based-Learning blog examines a recent article that argues that game-based learning is on the rise and effective–as games “provide meaning through real engagement, immediate feedback, and a sense of accomplishment that is well-integrated with sound pedagogy.” The post also includes a useful infographic that showcases gamification as well as other educational technology.

Writing in the Games-Based Learning blog, Paul Ladley looks beyond Adobe Flash for easy tools that can aid in the development of games for learning. Ladley covers include Captivate, Construct, and MIT App Inventor.

The Games-Based-Learning blog explains that GBL is essentially the gamification of learning–using gaming principles to aid learning–and that the model is not limited to traditional subject materials or traditional learning audiences. To illustrate this, the blog presents some ways that people are teaching a wide number of things to people around the world via games such as Angry Birds, Money Island, Second Life, and Minecraft.

Emerging EdTech thoughtfully shares eight of the latest and greatest infographics on education and technology. Topics include tablets, game-based learning, learning analytics, and social media in education.

English-language learners fall into two categories:  native speakers and those pursuing it via ESL/EFL instruction (or self-instruction). Both demographics can build up their skills, no matter their age or proficiency, through game-based learning. The Internet does not disappoint when it comes to hosting effective resources for teaching and reviewing the core components of the English language, as indicated by this thoughtfully curated list of games and game suites from Online…