Compressed HTML file (zip file) of my Twine: ETEC 523 Task 5 Student Decisions.html
This was my first time using Twine and as I was playing the game, I thought this type of interactive text could be very useful for breaking down complex topics. In particular, for topics that involve decision trees or different ‘pathways’, a hypertext could help students understand the connections between ideas, better than if presented in a linear way. I also thought this type of non-linear text could be useful for students who are navigating decisions; a Twine could help them make their decisions through a series of choices.
I intended to create the latter concept when creating my Twine, but it evolved into something a little different…
I envisioned a student coming to office hours to discuss their career, which is a common topic of choice for my students. As a starting point however, it felt too linear and unnatural to stick with one ‘storyline’ so I added a choice on the first screen, which then opened up the different pathways and a non-linear web of storylines.
I found working in a web to be a more natural way to capture how our thoughts work, and how conversations flow. Similar to what Bolter (2001) stated, I found myself “being overwhelmed with ideas as I [wrote]” (p. 34), and my ideas didn’t always flow in a linear way. It was helpful to capture ideas within a web rather than having to form them linearly. My hypertext grew exponentially, as each time a choice was offered, a new pathway and web would form. This seems similar to how conversations flow, as conversations often branch off of what is said, with one idea leading to another, but not necessarily in a linear way. A conversation may eventually loop back to earlier topics, but it may not.
This experience was very different compared to writing a story using a word processor, which requires that I order things from start to finish (i.e. top to bottom, or left to right). As Bolter (2001) discusses, this innately creates a hierarchical organization. A hypertext allows for non-linear flow of thoughts.
I am eager to try using Twine for a topic that involves decision trees and seeing how my students navigate through the topic. I think it may be a very effective tool to break down complex tasks.
Reference
Bolter, J. D. (2001). Writing space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print (2nd ed). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Hi Shannon,
I really enjoyed reading your post and found myself relating to many of the points you made. The concept of decision trees also resonated with me as something I could integrate into my own practice to benefit students (though in a very different context – specifically, oral pathology). I appreciate how the outcome of such a process reflects the choices made along the way, mirroring life in general, as you aptly noted.
I absolutely agree that this would be an excellent exercise for students – not only in engaging in the Twine exercises we created, but also in creating their own. Though a little intimidating to start, this process was relatively painless and the act of creating pushes students towards constructive learning (something I’m always trying to incorporate in my classes).
Initially, I too used a web to start this process but found it overwhelming due to the sheer volume of ideas generated. What worked best for me was to take some of those ideas and then determine my end results and work backwards from there. Kind of like backwards design.
Unfortunately, for whatever reason I’m unable to access your Twine project, which is unfortunate because I’m eager to see what you’ve created. It seems we had very similar approaches but on very different topics. If you have the time, could you perhaps share your file with me via DM on Mattermost?
Thanks,
Steph