I\u2019ve always struggled with paying attention unless I\u2019m doing one of two things. The first is drawing. I lose myself when I draw. The other is when I am gaming\u2014especially tabletop gaming (board games, card games, role-playing games). I can reach that level of distraction Rheingold describes about the story from Cathy Davidson when I am in a small group of five to eight people. Online gaming isn\u2019t quite so consuming because I do get a bit bored sometimes. However, when researching online, documenting, or digging through Galileo, I find it hard to focus. That\u2019s why the words of Rheingold ring true when I see others with the same problem, \u201cGaining control of your attention while you are online requires, first of all, intention.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is where the challenge begins with our goal as instructional designers and course developers. How do we influence instructors and trainers to motivate their audience, as much as I am when playing tabletop games? Shirky (2008) states, \u201cHuman being are social creatures\u2014not occasionally or by accident but always\u201d (p. 14). Tabletop gamers generally meet face-to-face, or at least in a virtual synchronous format. This connection helps to deal with social side of our human needs to interact while still maintaining our attention on a focused goal\u2014playing the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rheingold, H., & Weeks, A. (2012). Net smart: How to thrive online (Kindle ed. p. 41-43). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Shirky, C. (2008). Here comes everybody: The power of organizing without organizations (Kindle ed., p. 14). Toronto, Canada: Penguin Group.
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