At the beginning of the 80s, video games started to become available to the average American household. Around the same time, the average American teenager started replying to the average American career question with a new answer. Kids no longer dreamed of becoming firemen and police detectives. “I want to build video games,” they said.
At which point the average American parent/teacher/guidance counselor laughed their heads off.
World of Warcraft University
But why the visceral reaction against games? In 2009, the video game industry contributed almost $5B to the U.S. GDP. It employed 120,000 people in 34 states, at an average compensation of $90,000. Video games require programming, writing, history, design, mathematics, art direction, physics and linguistics. They cannot exist without collaboration, creativity, dedication and technical ingenuity.
Sensing the turning of the tide, online learning company Zulama partnered with Carnegie Mellon University’s Entertainment Technology Center (ETC) to create a visionary curriculum for high schoolers called The Video Game Academy. Through the Academy, Zulama and the ETC provide kids with an opportunity to apply themselves in the many facets of game-making, from 3D Video Game Programming and iPhone Game Development to Modern Storytelling.
“Our kids are being rewired. They’re learning by playing World of Warcraft and communicating with their friends through online media,” says Nikki Navta, President of Zulama.
The Zulama Curriculum
It’s not just video games. Zulama offers a plethora of rich courses ranging from “Horror: Read it, Write It” and “The Vietnam War: An Inquiry Investigation” to “Geometry and Architecture” and “English for International Business.” Schools can purchase content for their own teachers to administer or pipe it into their computer labs for a low-cost, high-value alternative to electives. Home-schoolers and international students can also pick up classes a la carte.
Even more fascinating are some of the ideas Zulama has about the future of online learning. By offering an easy-to-use authoring tool, the company has recruited teachers and experts across industries to create their courses. In the future however, they hope to encourage the growth of an online education ecosystem – one where classes don’t so much begin or end, but where students continue to “level up.”
Strand-based Learning (& Dragons)
There’s no arguing what Navta calls “strand-based learning” is a huge boon to teenagers. For one, successful completion of the Academy earns students certificates that may help them get into college, obtain internships or even jobs. Two, in addition to the hard skills learned in each course, both the classroom and online settings are designed to reinforce soft skills – teamwork, conflict resolution, delegation, brainstorming.
Finally, the experience may actually aid some of those skeptical parents by exposing students to realities of the field. Because in addition to inspiring wonder and enabling discovery, the Game Academy teaches just how much math it takes to slay a dragon.
