Alternate Reality Teaching: OurSpace

Abstract : Phase 1 Final Report for Alternate Reality Teaching: OurSpace in support of DARPA-BAA-12-38 ENGAGE. The purpose of this document is to present the results of the PHASE 1 Program. Computer games offer the ability to attract and hold children's attention for extended periods of time, often exceeding that of the classroom environment. OurSpace offers an innovative game tailored to pique the interest of first grade students in Science concepts. The environment the game is hosted in allows various levels of education/play with graphics and other concepts to interest students while collecting metrics that may be used by educators to assess the performance of any individual student. Intific believes that in the modern digital age it is now possible to fuse this method of self-paced learning with classroom processes and guidance to energize students to achieve greater levels of interest and performance in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) topics. The very cumulative nature of computer game progression ties extremely well the educational layering required to teach STEM related material. Our discoveries in this first phase have shown that this type of training must be configurable or modifiable by the educators in order to adapt the material to the learning levels, capabilities and potentially, the disabilities of the individual students. Feedback through collected data, metrics and eventually analytical tools must assist the educators in rapidly identifying the changes needed for each individual or for the group as a whole. Initial testing indicated that there will be occasions when additional educational levels need to be added in order to effectively convey the concepts.