Portfolio Theme
Theme: Science, Technology & Society (NCSS Theme Eight)
My portfolio will cover the use of SimCity 2000 to build a city. My SimCity simulation will require the students to think about money management, the needs of various citizens, time management and how technology can help to serve as a solution to all of these problems.
The problem with using SimCity is that SimCity is also used as an entertainment game, which is available for retail in most entertainment retail outlets (e.g.: Circuit City). My goal is to show my students how SimCity can both be used as a tool for designing a city and as a tool for understanding how that city is run. I plan on differentiating SimCity the game from SimCity the learning tool by creating a city, leaving a vital aspect of that city out and requiring that my students not only detect the problem but also learn how to work with the residents of that city to correct the problem.
While I have decided to leave an aspect out of the city as my use of this technology tool, there are many uses for SimCity. A teacher could use SimCity to show students both how to design a city and how to budget that city. A teacher could use SimCity to show students the difference in the cost of city construction and maintenance over various years. A teacher could also point out the technological differences that made city construction more effective from 1900 to 2050.
I look forward to finding new uses for SimCity. I recently found a webpage that used SimCity 2000 as the basis for a lesson plan on identifying city landmarks. The fact that I found another classroom teacher using SimCity 2000 as the basis for a lesson plan lets me know that I am on the right track.
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