Expertise™ is a collaborative tabletop game that captures pedagogical thinking in the context of technology integration. It is based on two theoretical frameworks (i.e., Playful Assessment, a situated cognition approach to assessment model; TPACK-L, teacher knowledge of technology integration) and is intended to elicit players’ technological planning, implementation, and problem solving skills. The game more closely aligns with TPACK, specifically, than its counterparts CARD-tamen™ and Influence™, and it has been ecologically-validated (see: Schmuckler, 2001) as a playful longitudinal assessment measure for Educational Technology (Choi, 2017).
The game consists of:
- One (1) Expertise™ Game Board
- Three (3) TPACK-L game pieces
- Twenty-four (24) Technology cards
- Twenty (20) Pedagogy cards
- Ten (10) Learning Theory cards
- Separate and shuffle the Pedagogy, Learning Theory, and Technology cards; organize the game board, cards, and game pieces on the table (i.e., one (1) game piece placed on the outer-most [Purple] ring of the game board for each TPACK-L component)
- The person who most recently touched their mobile device becomes the first Speaker; all other players are Team Members
- At the start of a round, the Speaker chooses and announces a specific content objective (e.g., ideally topics selected from state and national standards or other curricular guides; e.g., comparing geometric proofs, identifying bacteria types, analyzing Shakespeare’s Hamlet).
- The group collectively reveals one (1) Pedagogy card, one (1) Learning Theory card, and two (2) Technology cards, placing them face-up on the table
- After all game cards are revealed, the FULL GROUP (i.e., the Speaker and Team Members) spend up to three (3) minutes collaboratively developing a strategy for Pedagogy, Learning Theory, and Technology integration in the context of the Speaker‘s specified content objective and the revealed cards
- Next, the Speaker takes one (1) minute to provide a formal summary and proposal the group’s technology integration strategy (i.e., a one-minute elevator speech that explains the group’s shared goal and intended approach to technology integration using the available TPACK-L components)
- After the Speaker has concluded, Team Members each adopt the perspective of an expert in either Pedagogy, Learning Theory, or Technology; upon claiming or being assigned an expert role, all Team Members roll a twenty-sided die to determine their “Expert Disposition”:
- Dice Roll 1-5 = Easy-Going (e.g., very low expectations, fairly uncritical, tends to focus on strengths over weaknesses)
- Dice Roll 6-15 = Neutral (e.g., approaches the proposal objectively and dispassionately, focuses on both strengths and weaknesses)
- Dice Roll 16-20 = Hard Ass (e.g., very high expectations, highly-critical, provides significant feedback, tends to focus on weaknesses over strengths)
- Team Members, speaking from their expert roles/dispositions, take turns evaluating the effectiveness of the Speaker‘s summary/proposal by determining which TPACK-L components (if any) were successfully integrated and described (i.e., an up-or-down vote as to whether each TPACK-L component was well-described and incorporated into the proposal; each vote should be accompanied by a rationale)
- For each TPACK-L component the Speaker fulfilled, move the respective game piece one (1) step closer to the center of the game board (Gold); for each component the Speaker left unfulfilled, move the respective game piece one (1) step closer to the edge of the game board (Purple)
- Once adjudication is complete, the Speaker selects a “Best Co-Teacher” from among Team Members
- The FULL GROUP is assigned a score based on their collective performance (i.e., total number of the three TPACK-L components successfully addressed in the proposal):
- Center (Gold) = +20 Points
- Ring 3 (Green) = +15 Points
- Ring 2 (Blue) = +10 Point
- Ring 1 (Purple) = +5 Points
- As the FULL GROUP reaches new rings on the way to the center of the game board, Special Powers are unlocked; these can be used by ANY player during ANY round (after being earned), but they can only be used ONE (1) TIME PER GAME:
- Special Power 1 (Unlocked at 45 Points): Success requires only one (1) Technology card this round (not both)
- Special Power 2 (Unlocked at 55 Points): Prevent one (1) game piece move backward
- Special Power 3 (Unlocked at 60 Points): Move one (1) game piece directly to the center if both other game pieces have moved inward this round
- Once all judgments are complete and game pieces have been moved, reset the board for the next round
- Replace spent Pedagogy, Learning Theory, and Technology cards from the top of their respective decks
- Rotate roles so the player to the left of the most recent Speaker (clockwise) becomes the next round’s Speaker
- Continue play in this fashion until every player has participated as the Speaker two (2) times (i.e., two full rounds)
- To win Expertise™, the FULL GROUP must achieve a point total of 45+ points by the time two (2) full rounds have passed; higher scores will result in an improved final ranking and corresponding title