Interview with Professor Amrisha 10/31

Meeting with Professor Vaish October 31st:

1- Explain the game (sent out rationale)
2- General comments/feedback?
3- Appropriate for an inclusive classroom: how will students with disabilities participate (e.g.
non-verbal, on spectrum and thus missing empathic skills)? Age?
4- Empathy specific questions:
A- How do we show that it is promoting empathy and not bullying? Further our goal and not hurt
ourselves how can we best encourage empathy rather than inadvertently encouraging bullying.
B- In what ways can we build empathy?
C- How do we measure if our learning goal of empathy is reached? How can we study that?
D- Any research suggestions we should look at?
___________________________________________________________________________
-

Have you increased empathy? Baseline measure empathy and another post measure
You need a control conditionNeed control coditions about the writing and all the other componenets not just empathy
have them write about something else
Baby eintstein- no evidence that it doesnt do anything
Identify the critical parts and then for control condition for the critical parts
Intra person growth, across two groups of kids.
Empathy makes changes even at an adult age
bullying is bound to happen if you have two different groups i supposed if there is less
that.
Advantage of doing it that we know experience of and that it is mroe fun than the family
life for example and do something imaginary
Task is language
Empathy and language people with autism and struggle from the lack of doing that.
Specifically the autistic population might pose a challenge. Less verbal heavy kind of
way. Creating a task that doesnt require that for this kind of population
They might benefit the most through from this task.
Research: self vs. other in kids we had one
Reconsider the notes section becuase how much are they taking their stand and not just
regugirating what was said
Seperate emapthy and perspective taking task
Baseline task and then interventiona dn second empathy task
Could helping be a task for example sorting task.

Meeting 11/1

Research-based prototype revision: 5 dimensions from readings which we will evaluate

game
Can be in table format
Term, definition, evaluation, how were revising it
Evaluation + revisions based upon the results of evaluation
Assign areas for research (5 areas in which our game is lacking)
Dramatic elements
CAF?
Who will compile/finalize?
Agenda for meeting Thursday

Updated rationale for advertising purposes (playtesting) - CELINA

Adaptations for inclusive classrooms- RACHEL

Portfolio!
Final presentation evaluating effectiveness
CAF within the presentation
Next Steps slide at end of final presentation

Plan for physical prototype for user testing 11/3 (internally?) and 11/10 (target pop/as
close as we can get?)n -SHELBY/CELINA

At least our friends

Boys and Girls club: afterschool setting
Email Jennie to set up - SHELBY
Interview questions for playtesters - SHELBY/mary ellen
More restrictions- GRACE
Notes
Listening activity?- RACHEL
Topics for full implementation of game? -shelby/mary ellen
Make specific instructions for teachers
18 topics (2 new topics per pair for 9 weeks)
More intensive effort to simplify language down to 6th grade level - LEE
Integrate new decisions/relevant info

Decisions:
6th grade (alignment with SOL and loss of empathy in middle school research)
And transition to new school format
Notes still available but as a restriction for later levels
What levels?
Jury style scoring

Group Meeting Decisions:

Everyone get their assignments done by Sunday at 5
Meeting Monday at 4:45 for those available at Clemons

Research Dimension Brainstorming 11/1

Customization (Gee article)

Note from our question to Jennie:

Balanced design reading - conceptual assessment framework (are they definitely developing
empathy?)

Dimensions for Research/CAF 11/2

*Pleasantly frustrating is a concept we should keep in mind for restrictions brainstorming/making
the game more challenging/fun BUT probably doesnt fit into this assignment (since we wouldnt
gain much from research into what makes a game fun)
My thoughts (above and beyond whats already been decided):
On Demand and Just in Time information could be a way for us to improve the
communication of rules/procedures from teacher to student
Challenge-pleasantly frustrating-flow

Final Dimensions for research:

CAF (Lee)
Customization
Dramatic elements: premise
In ALL aspects of the game (intro, interview, scoring, etc)
Mention the Clark et al, 2015 reading
On Demand/Just in Time as a tool to improve rules/procedures
Challenge/pleasantly frustrating/flow

Meeting Notes 11/3

Goals
Finalize proposed solutions for doc due tonight
plan/delegate tasks to be completed before Sunday meeting
Plan next week?
Notes
CAF: check
Just-In-Time/On Demand:
Teacher as bank of information for distributing knowledge as it is needed by
players to engage fully in gameplay
Monthly reflection for reinforcing empathy development
Challenge/flow
Increase time of interviews and add more fun restrictions, pending future
playtesting with young people in the age range were targeting (6th grade ideally)
Past playtesting has not given us great information regarding time frames
that we chose at the beginning, so we need to get more feedback from
our target population to definitively choose if we can add time to
interviews or not
Expanding restrictions: good
Your partner can only respond to your questions with charades (playtest!)
No notes for higher levels
Each question must begin with specific phrase
Violating a restriction = 10 seconds of silence, not allowed to ask questions
Partner holds interviewer accountable
Replaces the point deduction
Dramatic Arc/Premise
Remove premise elements
Music during interview
Complicated scenarios on mission cards
Aesthetics and videos: good
No hanging stuff up in the classroom
Customization
How players are chosen up to teachers discretion (whether its randomization or
their selection)
Customizing games for special education students:
Restrictions-- possibly listening restrictions
Create a template-- sort of like mad-libs
Question suggestions
Customization in tangible detective items students can choose:
Handcuffs, notebook, fancy pen, flashlight, badge, mustache, hat
magnifying glass, sunglasses

Copy of Teacher Guidebook 11/5

Teacher Guidebook
Your Role

You are the head of a detective group that is training new recruits.
You must facilitate and scaffold the gameplay to ensure the game progresses smoothly
and achieves its goal of building empathy and writing skills in your students
We recommend you say to your students anything written in red. Black font is used for
everything else
Everything is up to your discretion. This document should be treated as a general
guideline for how to conduct a successful game of Undercover Detectives.

Lets Play: Round 1

Introduction of the game

Optional: play spy music
Hand out the detective hats to each student.
Congratulations! Youve all been hired as assistant detectives for our top-secret
spy company. I was hired to be the local director of the company. My job is to
oversee your practice and progress being a detective. Your goal is to get
promoted to Private Investigator by earning points during your missions and
passing through the 4 ranks. Dont worry, I will go through each step with you so
you know what to do.
Each week you will be partnered up with a fellow detective. The goal of the game
is to ask them questions, learn about how they feel, and then be able to go
undercover as them by writing from their point of view. Each week there will be
different topics you must learn about your partner and then questions for you to
answer as if you were going undercover as him/her. To make it interesting,
certain restrictions (or things you are not allowed to do) will be placed on you as
you move forward in the game. These might include not being able to say certain
words or not being able to act in a certain way.
Now, you will each get a Detective Kit which has very important information in it,
and I will assign you your partner for the week.
Hand out Detective Kits and break the students into pairs (either predetermined,
or as you see fit then and there)
Are you ready to get started?
Interviews
Detectives: choose among you who will be the interviewer (the one who asks the
questions) first.
Allow students to choose.
Now, all interviewers should take out their Mission Cards and the piece of paper
titled Undercover Work. Write your name and your partners name at the top

right of the Undercover Work paper. Read your mission card: this is the
information you want to get from your partner.
Give the students time to read the mission card.
Now, look where it says restrictions on your mission card. These are things you
cannot do while you are asking your partner questions. Tell your partner what
your restrictions are. Partners: write down their restrictions on your mission card
so that you know what they are not allowed to do. If the interviewer does one of
these things, they will have to be silent for 10 seconds during their interview,
meaning they wont have as much time to ask you questions.
Allow students time to read, communicate, and write down the restrictions.
Interviewers: you will now have four minutes to ask your partner questions in
order to accomplish your mission. You may take notes on the Notes section of
the Undercover Work piece of paper. You must follow all of your restrictions.
Remember, the goal is not just to know what your partners answers are, but also
to understand why they feel the way they do. Try to see the world as if you were
walking in their shoes.
Put four minutes onto a timer at the front of the room that is visible to all students.
Tell them to begin and then start the timer. Once its over:
Now, switch who is the interviewer. New interviewers: Write your partners name
at the top right of the Undercover Work paper. Read your mission card, tell your
partner your restrictions, and make sure they write down your restrictions to
make sure you do not break any.
Give them some time for this.
Remember: if you break a restriction, you must be silent for 10 seconds. New
interviewers, remember to try to see the world from your partners perspective
based on their answers to your questions. You have four minutes.
Put another four minutes on the timer, tell them to begin, and then start the timer.
Written Responses
Now its time to go undercover as your partner! Everybody: answer the questions
on the sheet of paper with the title Undercover Detectives as if you were your
partner. Use the information you got from your interview and think about how
your partner would answer. You should answer in the first person and write in
complete sentences.
Ask students if they have any questions, because its important they understand
this part.
You have six minutes to answer the questions from your partners perspective.
Begin!
Set the timer for four minutes and begin. Once times up:
Times up! Now: flip your paper over. It should read My Profile at the top. Give
this to your partner.
Allow students time to do this, and answer any questions they might have.
Now, answer the questions at the top as yourself. Write in the first person and
answer the questions based on how you feel. You have six minutes again.

Set and run the time for four minutes.

Times up! Return the My Profile paper to your partner.
Voting
Now, of you will be selected to have your writing from the Undercover Work
page judged based on how much it sounds like your partners writing from the
My Profile page. You both answered exactly the same prompts. There will be a
panel of five students chosen to review each of the chosen pairs. They will be
asked five questions when comparing the Undercover Work to the My Profile
writing. Their answers to these questions will determine how many points a
detective receives. The most points you can get is 12; the least is 0. You move
on to the next rank - Cadet - once you receive 10 points or more.
Dont worry if you are not selected for judgment this week; the chances are high
that you will be picked soon in the coming weeks.
Choose and name the of the class to be judged (this should be done randomly,
unless some students have gone a couple rounds without being judged; again, it
is at your discretion); collect their Undercover Work sheets (with My Profile on
the back).
Choose and name the 5 student panelists (this is up to your discretion). Have
them come to the front of the classroom to deliberate. Hand them the
Undercover Work documents one at a time for voting.
For each chosen pair, pose the 5 questions to the panel and have them
determine a response (Yes = 2 points, Somewhat = 1 point, No = 0 points) for
each question
Record the points for each individual on your s corecard based on the panels
responses.
Return the worksheets to their owners.
Collect the Mission Kits from each student.
When you have time, update the master scorecard in the classroom with the new
point totals.

Rounds 2 and Beyond

As the game progresses, adherence to this guidebook will be less and less necessary,
as the students will begin knowing and remembering what to do.
Each round should follow the same arc as described above, with a few additions:
As students level up, they will receive personal detective objects. Ranks depend
upon the scores recorded in your master scorecard. As youre passing out the
Detective Kits for another round of the game, make sure to include the
appropriate detective object for students who have recently leveled up.
Since topics will change weekly, you will have to switch the mission cards in each
of the Detective Kits for each round of gameplay. We provide a bank of topics
with cards for each level, separated by week. Find the appropriate week and then

distribute the topics to the students Detective Kits based on their level (which
can be determined by referencing your scorecard.
Although there are only 4 ranks, the winner of the game will be the player with the
highest score at the end of the 9 weeks of gameplay.
Insert description of monthly reflection activity here (or refer the teacher to another
document that outlines it in more detail).