The document discusses using the location-based gaming app SCVNGR to create library "treks" or tours at two universities. "Treks" are made up of challenges that students complete by checking in at various locations in the library. This encourages exploration and learning. Examples of treks described include ones made by librarians at Oregon State University and Boise State University, as well as one created by a student. Completing treks earns students points and rewards like coffee shop gift cards. The presenters aim to engage and teach students through these social, location-based games.
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1. Beyond FoursquareLibrary Treks with SCVNGRAmy VecchioneAssistant Professor/LibrarianBoise State University@librarythinkingamyvecchione@boisestate.eduMargaret MellingerAssociate Professor/LibrarianOregon State University@ultravioletbatmargaret.mellinger@oregonstate.edu
60. Margaret MellingerAssociate Professor/LibrarianOregon State University@ultravioletbatmargaret.mellinger@oregonstate.eduAmy VecchioneAssistant Professor/LibrarianBoise State University@librarythinkingamyvecchione@boisestate.edu
61. Works CitedZickuhr, Kathryn and Aaron Smith. 11/4/2010. 4% of online Americans use location-based Services. Pew Internet & American Life Report. http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Location-based-services.aspx
Editor's Notes
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MargaretThe thing that makes it possible for you to check in at a destination is the geolocational capabilities of your mobile device. This means that your GPS enabled phone or other mobile device can know where you are and can show you things that are nearby. How many people are using location based services? A Pew Internet & American Life Report that came out in November 2010 found that 4 percent of all online users are using these services. As Lee Rainietalked about this morning in his keynote, this number may really be as high as 17-18 percent. The greatest number of adults who use location based services are between the ages of 18-29..http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Location-based-services.aspxKey findings include:7% of adults who go online with their mobile phone use a location-based service.8% of online adults ages 18-29 use location-based services, significantly more than online adults in any other age group.10% of online Hispanics use these services significantly more than online whites (3%) or online blacks (5%).6% of online men use a location-based service such as Foursquare or Gowalla, compared with 3% of online women.
MargaretWhen looking at location-based services, Facebook is the gorilla in the room with over 500 million users (although not all these are checking in with Facebook Places).
MargaretWhen you take Facebook out of the mix, its easier to see the distribution of users across the most highly used location-based services. Whats more difficult to compare is registered users vs. active users. Foursquare has the greatest penetration at this time. But this may this may change quickly Because popular sites as Twitter & Facebook now give users the ability to share ones location, there is a blurring of the lines between the so-called status-updating services and location-based services. The Pew report we referenced says that this blurring makes it increasingly difficult for survey respondents to always pinpoint exactly what sort of software they are usingespecially on their mobile devices. { By September 2010, 24% of online adults had used status updating services. }
Amy and Margarethttp://www.scribd.com/doc/48978436/Location-based-tools-comparison
MargaretSCVNGR is a SCVNGR continues the tradition of vowel-dropping Web.2.0 services. [To play any trek via SMS, simply take that treks keyword (each trek has a unique keyword) and send it as a text message to 728647 (SCVNGR). This will work for any phone on any carrier in the United States and Canada. ]
MargaretSCVGNR is a game about going places, doing challenges and earning points. The app is free and users can download it for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android. A Blackberry app is in development.You can also play via SMS.
MargaretThere are three types of things you can build on SCVNGR for users to do. Challenges are quick fun to do at places. Rewards are things users can unlock by doing challenges at places. Treks connect places and challenges into themed paths. To build these things on SCVNGR, you need a builder account. So SCVNGR is part game for our students and part gaming platform where we can actually build challenges for users to help them learn about the library.
MargaretWhen users open their SCVNGR app at a location, they will see what kinds of things there are do to there. Users can simply check in as you do on Foursquare, do a social check in with another person by bumping phones together , make comments about a location, and take photos to share. If someone has built challenges or set up a trek, those will show up as things to do, as well. If a user gains enough points playing SCVNGR, they will earn the ability to create challenges of their own.
Margaret: Amy will show more of what the SCVNGR looks like on the users end, but for now, lets do a quick video about building a challenge in a trek. Remember there are three types of things you can build on SCVNGR: Challenges are quick fun to do at places. Rewards are things users can unlock by doing challenges at places. Treks connect places and challenges into themed paths. For this brief illustration, Ill show you how to add a new challenge to a trek 1) Center the map2) Name the challenge3) Set the points 4) There are 4 types of challenges to choose from Specific Text Response (responses must match the correct answer) Open Response (answers are variable), Photo Challenges (take a photo ) and QR codes (scan to check in from a location)5) Multimedia optionsImages or videoMessages can be customizedCharacter limit: 160Activate the challenge and you are good to go!
Margaret OSU Libraries has built a trek for international students BSU is using SCVNGR in an instructional setting. Amy and I will each talk for a bit about what weve done at our institutions.
MargaretInternational Students bring a wealth of experience to our campuses, but that experience does not always include using US libraries. While they figure things out quite quickly, we thought it would be friendly and fun to develop a trek for them to learn more about the library.
MargaretWe have a new program at Oregon State University called Into OSU. INTO is an international network of university based study centers in the US and UK where students from various countries prepare for undergraduate and postgraduate degrees
MargaretAt OSU, we have a goal to increase our international student population from 5 % to 10 % of the total student body. The housing we currently use for the INTO program is not going to be adequate therefore
MargaretThis is the new Living Learning Center, where there will be 350 new rooms. 遜 the residents will be international students, 遜 home country students.
MargaretInternational students love to study in the Valley Library. In fact, one of our librarians calls the library the most culturally diverse place on campus. While students love studying here, they are not fully aware of all the services in the library. SCVNGR allows them to explore the library in groups and share what they find with each other. Another issue for international students is that they dont realize that fees are charged for late return of laptops, study room keys or books. The greatest number of fines appeals are coming from international students who were unaware of these consequences. We think that future challenges in SCVNGR could address this issue in a friendly, non-threatening way. It might be best to have students write these challenges; Amy will talk about the way her students are writing challenges.
MargaretAnother reason we chose to work with the INTO program is that the international students are purchasing new phones after they arrive in the US. Most of these phones are smart phones. So, we have an audience with smart phones, who love to do fun things in groups, and have a need for information about the library. We will be testing SCVNGR with the students at the beginning of March, promoting it through their own calendar and communication channels.
MargaretINTO is social online and face-to-face. The student cohorts have taken trips to Portland for hockey and basketball games and to visit Chinatown. They recently went on a snow trip and skied, sledded and played around in the Cascade Mountains. They have activities every weekend: this weekend they are going shopping and ice skating. The SCVNGR trek will be one of their activities early in spring term. The INTO staff will promote the activity through their social networks, email and posters/flyers.
MargaretThis is what the trek looks like on the iPad and iPhone -We have 13 challenges covering most of the services and spaces in the library. We especially want to test the language of the questions weve used some jargon and idioms within the challenges INTO students are learning about idioms, but we want the trek to be fun, not overly frustrating. Amy will show more of what a trek looks like from the user end.
We are working on t-shirts as rewards for the INTO students, and well work with the coffee shop to get them a free cup of coffee or tea. The rewards are set up within SCVNGR and INTO students will show their phones to INTO staff to collect the t=shirt or the certificate for a drink. Now its your turn to think about what group you might make a trek for, and who you might partner with to do it
MargaretI could see this type of location based game working for International studentsFirst year student orientationTeens Parent orientationOn-the-fly tours No one at our institution
MargaretTo summarize SCVNGR is great for new and international students because they own the devices they need to access the trek, they can learn and share tips as a group and they can have fun doing it.
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AmyU106 class to create a trek for them last semester, and then as a final assignment, I had them build a trek for this semester.
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AmyThe questions I wanted to ask would direct students around the library to get familiar with the library in a non-traditional way. We have a paper scavenger hunt that students would take every semester, but I wanted to create something that used tools that they were already using. The students really enjoyed using the SCVNGR hunt I created via text, and every student was excited to be able to use it.
AmyThen, I offered students two options for a final assignment in Fall, one option being to redesign the SCVNGR hunt, which they overwhelmingly chose. Students had to think about the library like an instructor, or like I would, and chose quiz questions based on what they thought students needed to know the most. The most successful quiz was to determine their hardest class for the semester, lets say it is Military Science, and then introduce themselves to the liaison for that subject. Students created this trek as part of their final assignment for class.
AmyEnglish majors, Theater arts majors, or Environmental Studies students taking the trek would have to go locate Kims office and introduce themselves to her. Librarians reported that was a good addition to the scavenger hunt because they got to know their students, and the student also had to break down the barrier for any library anxiety they might have. This could also be left as a tip on FourSquare.
AmyAnd it went viral, because people started creating their own challenges.
AmyAnd it went viral, because people started creating their own challenges. It is a lot like students leaving tips on FourSquare, or reviews on Yelp, only they can create a right and wrong answer, hence there is more instruction to it.
AmyOpen ended question
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AmyLimited to only the campus community and you must have an iTunes account with your campus email address in order to download it. This prevents people from outside the university from learning what students are up to, and therefore it protects the privacy of the students.
AmySince ASU has over 3000 students in online degree programs, they thought that this would help their students better connect with one another.