Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-38387588-20190709175203/@comment-33759565-20190714015546

Is Animal Jam Truly Educational?

By the Potato Child Animals1778

I learned a lot playing Animal Jam when I was younger. Being the factoid-spouting kid I was, I was drawn to the "educational" aspects of the game. I played countless rounds of Temple of Trivia, read every book in the Chamber of Knowledge (BEFORE the prizes) and regularly watched the educational videos. As time went on, though, I found I was more drawn to the items I wanted and the more "material" aspects of the game. So, here is the question: are we really still learning from Jamaa?

While learning in the game was once fun and rewarding, the Animal Jam economy just has too much of a pull. Instead of trying to find out more about, say, your avatar animal, you would instead spend hours swapping items and getting yourself scammed. And, with values rapidly changing, It seems better to sit back and trade spikes all day.

Nowadays, when you log on to Temple of Trivia, barely anyone is playing - only those young, new players who haven't yet been tempted by their first spikes, or the people who still appreciate the game's educational intent and aspects. Either that, or they're bored. If you visit Brady Barr's lab, it's become a center of unique and rare item trade. The game has changed drastically over time, as trading grew more and more relevant.

So, are we still learning? The answer isn't definite. At one point or another, on a day-to-day play session, you will probably click on a fact or two, or encounter some in a game. However, most of the "learning" is done simply for items. Answering a short, unmemorable quiz after skimming through an ebook or completing a safety quiz for coins has softened the educational impact on the game for most. Facts are optional to click. The AJ Acdemy crafts and experiments have also seen a definite drop in quality (I remember making some with my younger sibling and it turned out terrible after three tries). While I definitely learned on a day-to-day basis when I was 8, I can't say the same a few years later.

Another thing I note is that AJHQ is still determinedly pushing the major "educational aspect" of the game under National Geographic brand. Unfortunately, it's starting to seem as if that's just a sugarcoating. With all the tension between parents and the concern for safety in online games, it makes sense that the Nat. Geo logo and educational mini-activities would be a large appeal. It does, however, appear that Animal Jam is still paying reasonable attention to its informational content, by updating videos and the AJ Academy.

In conclusion, I would say Animal Jam could certainly be educational, but a lot of it depends on your own engagement with learning and if you feel like learning a bit more each day.

I did another. I'm bored.

An Animal Jam Update - Could AJ Become A Teaching Tool?

Once again, written by the potato child

As stated above, Animal Jam is an online playground filled with information. What if, though, Animal Jam could become more? What if there was a version that could be an engaging learning platform?

Introducing Animal Jam : Academic Edition. It is a separate Animal Jam spinoff site that has the basic aspects of the game, such as clothing, animals, and dens. However, there are some major differences. First of all, you have to log in with your auto-set username, your customized password, and your teacher's class code.

Once you've logged in, you and your class have an entire mini-server to themselves. While playing AJ:AE, you can access the main parts of the game - Adventures, mini games, parties, etc. However, these will give you grade-level problems and lessons in order to pass through the game. Your teacher would also be able to set up lessons for the class ahead of time. It would use a more strictly set chat, since it's for school.

The Animal Jam Academic Edition site would have separate curriculums that can be edited and removed by your teacher. It would include science, match, language arts, and history. These classes would consist of basic national curriculum information. The classes would be different based on the set grade level (1st-6th). There would also be an option where your legal guardians can set up a private class for you, which would be good for homeschooling.

This update would make education more engaging and exciting for students and educators across the globe, and would make an excellent teaching tool and learning platform.

I'm sorry my writing's bad, I'm too tired to bother with grammar and fancy stuff. I hope it's all right that I did two, I went back and forth for a while. While I was doing my first essay, I thought of a bunch more stuff that could be useful for the update idea. I guess the update wasn't really an update, more like a spinoff game. Anyways, I need sleep and some boba tea.