[game_edu] ED SIG Roundtable Feedback / Debrief

Fri Apr 29 03:55:33 EDT 2016

Hi all.
 It's a very interesting approach David. We are facing the same challenges
and have decided to implement a similar idea for our projects:
- We always close terms with a full-time two weeks collaborative project,
as a long GameJam.
- Each student chooses a particular role.
- Lecturers act as Leads.
- The final assessment is 25% overall performance of the team (final game)
and 75% individual performance, just to push them to work actually as a
team.

Best regards

José Luis Soler
http://www.floridauniversitaria.es
http://www.floridareplay.com

2016-04-29 9:47 GMT+02:00 David Wessman <wessmaniac at gmail.com>:

> Thanks for the report, Derric!
>
> I was unable to attend GDC this year, but am always interested in sharing
> knowledge about game education. I moved to the Netherlands last year and
> have been teaching at NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences
> <http://t.sidekickopen50.com/e1t/c/5/f18dQhb0S7lC8dDMPbW2n0x6l2B9nMJW7t5XYg4XyQGWW4WJ7Kg3MPnysW3MhGXn56dJW0f14_cgM02?t=http%3A%2F%2Fmade.nhtv.nl%2Fgame-architecture-and-design%2F&si=6196514236399616&pi=1e9072f8-f246-4df1-a43a-6dde09c2b730>.
> We've completely restructured our curriculum to be almost entirely
> project-based. Students select specific roles (texture artist, level
> designer, gameplay programmer, producer), and assessment is focused on how
> well they apply themselves to learning the skills and knowledge needed in
> that role. Grading is done on an individual basis, not based on the overall
> project's success. So far, engagement has definitely improved.
>
> Best regards,
>
> David Wessman
> https://linkedin.com/in/wessmaniac
>
>
>
> On Tue, Apr 26, 2016 at 11:43 PM, Derric Clark <dclark at uat.edu> wrote:
>
>> Hello List,
>>
>> tl;dr
>>
>> Curriculum Framework progress has stalled with some ideas on what could
>> be added to help those who would use it. Framework and SIG communication
>> seems to be lacking with some ideas on what could be done to get this
>> rolling.
>>
>>
>> Full debrief:
>>
>> I just got the feedback from the GDC session. I will be combining this
>> with my notes from the session in this debrief post. This is not
>> necessarily my opinions, just a report on what was observed, submitted, and
>> noted.
>>
>>
>> Official feedback from the GDC system (the evaluations filled out from
>> the session):
>>
>> Overall the feedback was positive although it is worth noting there was
>> some frustration due to the lack of progress made on the framework. This is
>> understandable and made up a good portion of the conversation. There were
>> some requests for more session time (the 30 minute format being too
>> short) and looking for more discussion on our topics. This feedback echoes
>> the discussion we had based on the engagement of the list as a whole.
>>
>>
>> Notes from the session:
>>
>> There were two major themes or topics from the session. the first was the
>> curriculum framework itself and the second was
>> communication/practices/engagement of the SIG as a whole (with the
>> framework work being used as an example of the struggles of communication)
>>
>> Curriculum Framework
>> Some questions were posed as part of the discussion. What is the structure
>> and process for the framework? How do we keep it going? Also, a need to get
>> organization set up for the framework was observed. As part of this, it was
>> noted that commenting and reviewing original framework to update it
>> would be a good aspect or practice for the SIG.
>>
>> Some thoughts on what could be built, changed, considered, etc. will
>> follow here. First a comment was made based on the scope of framework. 4
>> year? 2 year? Make it modular? This moved into discussion about providing
>> example curriculum. Another interesting topic was am idea to create
>> milestones for schools looking to build a new game program instead of
>> trying to launch a comprehensive program at once. Having the framework
>> (this links to modular as well) guide a program through phases of
>> development. This extends to a question of what about middle schools or
>> high schools as well as what about curriculum in other countries without
>> established game industry?
>>
>> There was some discussion on
>> milestones/standardization/measurement/competencies. What should a game
>> developer know at a certain milestone? ACM uses competencies for its
>> curriculum. What competencies does the industry seek? This led to an idea
>> of Education workshops would be nice at GDC.
>>
>> One of the things that came out of the framework discussion was the
>> engagement/communication during the project and then this extended to the
>> SIG as a whole. I personally made a comment based on getting busy and not
>> always living up to my volunteer responsibilities and falling into the out
>> of sight out of mind trap. Without this core things seem to drift and lose
>> traction.
>>
>> (this is my personal assessment). It seems the most engagement happens on
>> this list. We have a page on igda.org that gets little use, including
>> forum, blogs,etc. We have a Facebook presence (group and a page) that also
>> gets light use as well as LinkedIn group with light use. These styles are
>> good at posting or announcing something but have not been used to
>> collaborate or engage all that much.
>>
>> (Back to feedback) There was a suggestion to hold monthly or fortnightly
>> online meetings. Another suggestion made was to consider Slack for
>> communication?
>>
>> Conclusion:
>> I feel we should start with getting the engagement/communication working
>> again. This could include revitalizing our existing channels as well as
>> using new means to get group members involved. Website, Facebook, LinkedIn,
>> Twitter, Slack, or others could be used to increase engagement. Without
>> engagement, the Framework work will continue to suffer. Once we build this
>> engagement base, the we use it to get the Curriculum Framework project
>> running again.
>>
>> Thanks for reading, please respond with your thoughts and let everyone
>> know what would work for you. What can the SIG do to help you and better
>> yet, how can it do it. What types of communications would help? I look
>> forward to seeing the feedback and helping to get things moving forward
>> again.
>>
>> Derric Clark
>> Professor of Game Development
>> Program Champion of Game Studies
>> www.UAT.edu
>> Twitter: @UATGameStudios
>> Facebook: www.facebook.com/UATGameStudios
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> game_edu mailing list
>> game_edu at igda.org
>> https://pairlist7.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/game_edu
>>
>>
>
> _______________________________________________
> game_edu mailing list
> game_edu at igda.org
> https://pairlist7.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/game_edu
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://pairlist7.pair.net/pipermail/game_edu/attachments/20160429/3227a343/attachment-0001.html>