The Philadelphia School Crush Saga
A Teacher’s Point of View
Notes from the Field
Submitted by Joy of Teaching
Over the summer I spent time in doctor’s waiting rooms and began playing the online game sensation “Candy Crush Saga” to whittle away the time. The game is based upon matching three similar colored candy pieces to reach certain goals and advance to higher levels. Although the game is a time consuming distraction, it can also be maddening.As one advances through the levels the goals become more difficult to reach. Impending obstacles, like growing chocolate, race to swallow up a candy combination that you are carefully planning to make. Well placed time bombs explode if you don’t get to them first by wasting precious moves. It was at some point while playing the Candy Crush Saga game that I realized that the game changes the rules as it moves along. A stripped candy mix that once cleared two columns now only clears one. A wrapped candy that would zap those bombs now misses them by a mile. At times, I have seen the game actually cheat! Candy that should move one way in a well planned move suddenly disappears! I came to the realization that the game will let you win, if and when it is ready to.
Alas, if you do not reach the set goal after five attempts, your game is over for 30 minutes. However, you can pay to play! This is how Candy Crush Saga earns revenue of $633,000 per day. The other day, while making the 76th attempt at level 139, and mulling over all of the ongoing Philadelphia School District drama, I realized the teachers of the Philadelphia School District are all just playing one big game of Philadelphia School Crush Saga.
This game begins quite similarly in that teachers begin their days trying to differentiate, or match, curriculum to the ever divers combination of students assigned to them. The goals in this game are test scores. If your
- See more at: http://cityschoolstories.com/the-philadelphia-school-crush-saga/#sthash.ukQyzSKo.dpuf