Edusurfing with PMOG
This is PMOG, an online game that allows you to earn data points, level up and create thematic “missions” from your web surfing. You can also create portals from one page to another or drop some loot or a mine on a page for another PMOG player to discover. All you need is a free PMOG account and the browser plugin and you’re ready to play! PMOG is fun for anybody who likes the internet and has special potential for teaching and learning.
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Take a mission, make a mission
Taking other people’s PMOG missions allows you to learn about a new thing, while earning points. Creating your own missions is a way of transforming your web surfing – and insights – into a journey. For example, you could learn all about Second Life or share your favourite online music sources.
Potential for educators: Authentic learning, rewards and assessment
PMOG has obvious potential for educators. Let’s face it, most students don’t enjoy researching – in any form. The web is big and sometimes confusing. Educators could create distinct missions for particular units while inspiring interest in strategic searching. Teachers can evaluate and assess a student’s research via a student’s PMOG missions. Students can earn game points as well as a grade for their research.
A word from the creators
There are lots of other things to know about PMOG so I’ll leave it to creators Justin Hall and his wife Merci Hammond to explain. Here’s their presentation from Howard Rheingold’s Virtual Community/Social Media class at UC Berkeley.
My PMOG
I am Chandrasutra in PMOG. Right now, I’m part “seer” part “pathmaker” because I spend the majority of my time in PMOG creating and taking missions. Here are my first missions – for fun, thought and action.
Pathmaker Mission
Net neutrality: Greatest hits
Seer Mission
Blog History: oldskool primary sources
Seer Mission
Training Attention: Mindfulness 101
Pathmaker Mission
Are you ready for a marathon? The why, what and how
I find this idea fascinating, but I also find it to be an incredible time sucker. This is almost like an ARG.
Ironic,
Thanks for stopping by! Nice to talk to you again.
I’m presently working with another educator to come up with some educational strategies for PMOG. I do agree that any technology can be a time suck if it is not approached strategically and mindfully. However, for those of us whose professional identities and expertise involves knowledge and understanding of new tools, time spent “playing” and exploring these new tools is professional development and research. All of it has a dividend in the form of understanding how these tools work, how users are engaging them in the early stages and how they may be adapted to productive ends.
In any new learning – whether it’s learning to play a new online game or learning to run – there is an initial investment of time spent learning the basics. This is the necessary investment that leads to the insight.
Without insight, we’re simply trading in assumption, opinion and misinformation.
In this sense, “wasting time” and “playing” is a critical part of learning. Please check this video out – you might enjoy it.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/66
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