ncase
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How Do We Learn? A Zine! (+ thoughtdump)
🕑 Added 2018-03-01 12:00:59 +0000 UTC Hi all! I'm back from my trip to DynamicLand, where I spent a couple weeks in THE FUTURE or at least the research lab that's trying to do that. Next week, I'll post some videos I recorded + a short writeup about DynamicLand, in case you're interested in what a more humane vision of technology looks like / cool interactive shtuffIn the last week, I've also been thinking and re-thinking a lot about my approach to making educational things. How can I teach things better? So, I spent a week binge-reading as many papers on learning/memory I could find -- and, here's what I've learnt about the science of learning... as a zine!
(if you don't see the above images, or want links to the references, click here. also, here's this zine as a tweet, for your sharing pleasure)
So, why've I been obsessed with the science of learning recently?
To be honest, I'm not satisfied with my interactives. But in a (hopefully) healthy, growth-mindset-y, here's-what-i-can-do-to-improve kind of way??
<THOUGHTDUMP>
First off, I feel my interactives are good introductions to ideas, but they don't actually let you practice putting those ideas into action. (e.g: it's not like The Evolution of Trust actually teaches you how to "do" game theory!) This is despite the fact that games are a really good medium for letting people practice & master skills! (think about what complex skills the games Portal and Braid teach you in a few hours!!)
And secondly, I feel like I'm getting too comfortable in my current method of making explorables: linear, single-player, tour guide of a simulation, slap a sandbox at the end. In the poll I posted last month, I proposed six ideas that (mostly) tried to break my usual formula, by having them be multi-player, or role-playing/dialogue-based, or something else. I want to spend 2018 experimenting with these other approaches!
But for now, short term: next month, I'll focus on making The Wisdom and/or Madness of the Crowds! (my project about network theory + group behavior) I'm blown away by how much y'all liked just the prototype alone! I think, with Crowds, I'll have an opportunity to address the two challenges I listed above.
Here's the new design philosophy I want to try out with Crowds: you practice skills by solving problems. In contrast, all my previous explorables are problem-free sandboxes. Sandboxes still have their place, but I think -- given the science of learning, plus my own personal experience of how I've learnt things -- that solving meaningful problems may be a far more effective way to teach things. (and after you've gained a basic foundation, then sandboxes are useful, because then you can meaningfully create your own goals)
So what "skill" will I teach in Crowds? Well, jeez, I won't make you a certified network scientist in half an hour -- that's a skill with a zillion sub-skills like model creation, data collection, statistics, visualization, etc etc -- but I think I can teach at least one important sub-skill: how to design a network. Specifically, how to make a network of humans that can spread good information, resist misinformation, be robust yet flexible, be diverse yet unified. Because, whether you realize it or not, you already design a network: the network of your peers, friends, the people you influence and are influenced by. A collective brain. Which, after playing this game, maybe you can make that collective brain smarter, kinder, better.
Maybe. That's the hope, anyway.
So yeah that also addresses my two challenges, in that 1) it teaches an actual skill, and 2) it's slightly different from the way I've been approaching my work for the last four years. Win-win?
</THOUGHTDUMP>
Whoo, I hope you enjoyed that giant wall of text! That's my behind-the-scenes thought process. Would you like to get more updates with this kind of design-process stuff? Or maybe that'll too much, and you just want updates of actual milestones & new stuff?
Let me know what you think of, uh, any of this!
<3,
~ Nicky Case
Comments
preethi shreeya
Thanks, Nicky! Thanks for getting back. Appreciate it. :)
Nicky Case
Oh, this one wasn't digital! I drew this on paper (using felt tip markers) and then scanned them. Much more fun and visually pleasing than going purely digital!
preethi shreeya
Hey, Nicky! This zine has inspired me so much. I am thinking of making one for a small topic. I would love to know how you created this one digitally. Hope you can help!
Kayle
Are you familiar with Screeps? The concept behind it is great. It's a real-time strategy game (eg Starcraft) set in an enormous single continuous MMO world. However, you cannot control units with the mouse. Instead, you program them with Javascript. You write code, check if it's working, then log off. The next day, you come back to see how it worked. It fits perfectly with the concepts in the "Use it or lose it" figure in your zine.
Kayle
Fantastic zine and thoughts on making better explorables. I completely agree about solving puzzles. Are you familiar with Jane McGonigal's work? It's a mighty challenge, but would it be possible to give the players UNSOLVED problems that could actually improve something we care about? Armies of learners work on problems that we already know the answers to.
Eric Willisson
Finally finished reading that article. Thank you very much! It gave me a lot to think about.
Paul d'Aoust
+1 for showing your work. I like seeing the context in which an idea gels and becomes meaningful in someone's mind.
Tomás Tomcat
I love your work so far! the idea that it will be *even better* kind of blows my mind :). I teach a lot in my work so this helps me too!!!
Nathan Borson
Took a bit to work through this post because of side trips to learn about Portal, Braid, Network Science, and taking notes on learning. Worth it!
Jerry Michalski
Love the inner dialog dump, particularly the many ways it overlaps with my quests. Thank you!
Nicky Case
I have seen that article! R.I.P. power laws. Even weirder, I just found this article about "Weak Ties" (or "Small Worlds") -- while they're good at disseminating simple information, they're actually WORSE at spreading "complex contagions" like behavior: <a href="https://stuff.mit.edu/afs/athena/course/other/econsocseminar/www/WLT_final.pdf" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://stuff.mit.edu/afs/athena/course/other/econsocseminar/www/WLT_final.pdf</a> c'est la vie (p.s: whoops, replied earlier on my test patreon account. ignore that jazz)
Andrii Zakharov
loved the thoughtdump. moar please!
Eric Willisson
I like the behind-the-scenes thoughts too! Your new, completed stuff is easy enough to notice. One thing I'm curious about, as you work on Crowds. Have you seen <a href="https://www.quantamagazine.org/scant-evidence-of-power-laws-found-in-real-world-networks-20180215/?" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.quantamagazine.org/scant-evidence-of-power-laws-found-in-real-world-networks-20180215/?</a> I don't know if it might be worth including, or if it's irrelevant because most people jumping in don't have the preconceived notions about power laws. Independently of that, if you have anything to share on that article, I for one would love to hear it!
Ges Gu
I’d love to see more of the behind-the-scenes process. It greatly inspires me in my day to day problems. I also have to (at work) try to efficiently communicate complex ideas and most of my coworkers don’t understand why I take so many iterations over simple or well-stablished ideas. Thank you for such amazing work! And remenber to take it easy to not burn out ;)
Ian Keyworth
I both liked the thought dump (not to demand them, just don't be afraid to post them), and the content of this particular thought dump. I would also argue that Evolution of Trust had some "problem solving" because it asked you to guess which strategy would maximize the outcome before you watched what happened. It's minimal compared to what you're going for next, but don't sell yourself short.
GazelleCenter
Welcome back Nicky .. and thanks a lot for the jewels you brought up with you
