The January epsoide of Games in Libraries podcast was released today.  The podcast itself is filled with a number of good interviews including one with the Video Game Librarian.  The final segment of the podcast includes a discussion about the multiple literacies being put into practice by some of the bigger games of the holiday 2008 season.  I talk about the traditional, media, visual, and information literacies at work within the following games:

• Little Big Planet
  
• Banjo-Kazooie
  
• Prince of Persia
• Mirror’s Edge
  
• Left 4 Dead
  
• Call of Duty: World at War
  
• Animal Crossing: City Folk
  
• Fallout 3
• Fable II
• The World of Goo
  
• Braid
  
• Valkyria Chronicles
  

(info links provided by CrispyGamer, if you haven't read some of their freelance content now is the chance

 I had initially hoped to get something posted here discussing of number of these games during the holiday season, but time got away from me.  My segment on the podcast is a condensed version of the possible discussion about the literacies at work within these games.  And that’s a discussion I’d like to come back to during this month. 

But until then… enjoy the podcast and please give me any thoughts or feedback on the connection between the video games discussed and literacy.  I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Even though the work of Gee, Prensky, Jenkins, and others have addressed videogames value to literacy. And with the ALA focusing on gaming and literacy, drawing connections, and increasing our patron/students’ ability… students have still struggled on traditional evaluations. Squire (2005) suggest that the failure is not in the students but in the way our traditional education systems are structured. While the discussion of how our education system assesses students is important, it is not the focus of the post. The successful engagement of students in multiple literacies can start with librarians at every level. Continued documented success of these literacies will lead to institutional acceptance and value.

To work toward that end goal, understanding the multiple literacies students engage in is necessary. Our patrons and students are seeking text that have meaningful context within their lives. Videogames and other transmedia stories are shaping their expectations of what a story can do. A non-linear, multi-layered experience that rewards their previous knowledge is a way for students to flex their understanding and thought processes. This application is important not only for increasing students and patrons literacies but also their information literacy skills. We have the opportunity to seek out these multiple literacies and help students and patrons evaluate and responsibly apply their knowledge.

Engaging these multiple literacies through videogames is just on of the many possibilities and examples we can create. I recorded a podcast segment yesterday for the ALA Gaming podcast on fantasy football. My discussions on fantasy football are focused on more than encouraging libraries to use fantasy football to connect with users of their libraries (which is a good thing). My discussion and application here is larger and I believe ultimately more rewarding:

• Seek out and create connections with existing interest (pop culture or otherwise) that students/patrons already value and have an existing knowledge base. Game stories that transcend videogames and move into graphic novels, novels, and other media involve our readers in deep and complex narratives that allow them to flex those multiple literacy muscles.
• Our job can be to use these experiences and help students recognize the traditional, information, and other literacy skills they are currently practicing through their multiple literacy experiences.

I’ve used the bridge metaphor before and will continue to do so. We have the opportunity to bridge our students/patrons existing knowledge and skills in these multiple literacies to the traditional academic skills and literacies our educational systems value. Our successful bridging may be just the evidence and documentation needed to help create the changes and shifts that leaders like Gee, Squire, and others have advocated for so long.

UNDERSTANDING THE POWER OF NEW LITERACIES THROUGH VIDEO GAME PLAY
AND DESIGN (2007)
by Kathy Sanford & Leanna Madill
Canadian Journal of Education (30), 2

Librarians are acutely aware of the literacy struggles of boys. These issues are not unique to age or geographic location. Studies in Europe, Australia, and Canada all have sought to address the complicated literacy practices that boys engage in across media.

This Canadian study looked at two research questions:

1. "What success are adolescent males finding in out-of-school literacy practices"
2. "What literacy practices are occurring when adolescent males participate in instruction and the creation of video games" (p. 439)

The adolescents were very interested and able to communicate how they were learning through videogames, but did not connect it to literacy learning (440). Librarians are in a position to make that connection for them and with them. I've been thinking more and more about this connection and bridge as our call to action with videogames and literacy.

The study found boys taking operational literacy (what to do in a process, how to do it) for granted. One subject said, "Only we need to understand it, if you can understand it - it's okay" (441). This mindset assumes a common set of knowledge and understanding. But if students do not have this knowledge base, communication and application will suffer. Sanford and Madill identified this as a potential reason that boys are less successful with traditional print literacies.

The boys studied wrote journal entries and sketched game ideas. This written and read communication was enhanced through verbal collaboration and social interaction. The verbal collaboration was seen as more successful by those studied. This type of interaction fits with the adolescent's multiple media literacies where they are communicating ideas and knowledge. Those studied found that this social community helped them develop skills and a greater awareness of written and verbal skills.

Sanford and Madill identified a speicfic concern that others, including myself, have raised before:

Unless taught how to notice and critque the social values and assumptions in a game, video game players are mostly unaware of the broader social pratices embedded in video game context (449).

If games are to have education value, then like any other educational technology there needs to be discussion and reflection on the experience and application. Any type of learning is not an isolated affair. It doesn't simply happen with one experience (videogame or anything else) learning comes from interaction during and after events and experiences.

Sanford and Madill lay the charge of learning through games squarely at the feet of educators:

Scholars need to problematize the seamless qualities of video game play and creation and create spaces where players can step back from the powerful, immersive qualities of game play and examine values (451).

We can create environments in and out of our libraries and classrooms that use videogames for play and allow for moments to step back have discussions and learn.

Changing the Game: What Happens When Video Game Enter the Classroom?
From Innovate: Journal of Online Education, August/September 2005

I had a chance over this summer to catch up on some reading thanks to long flights to and from conferences. After reading through this article from 2005, I wondered how much our dialog over videogames in education has changed? I think the scope and acceptance of educational gaming has increased since then. The amount and focus of scholarship has certainly strengthened as well. While the article is dated the findings and Squire’s analysis is still relevant today.

Even today, his introduction reads as an important overview for anyone concerning videogames and education. After the overview, Squire discussed his experiences implementing Civilization III into the classroom. Much has been written and presented by Squire on these experiences, but tracking them back to his initial experiences in 2004/2005 provide useful insight.

Like many educational applications of games since, some pieces of the game and the lessons attached to them connected with students… others didn’t. Squire discussed how some students opted out of the game from the very beginning and were skeptical of the educational value. This continues to be a challenging balancing act with video games in classrooms. Are they not “fun” enough to engage some students and are they not “educational” enough for students concerned with standardized test scores and entrance exams. The break from traditional curriculum turned off the high performing students . These students had “mastered” the traditional system and saw little value in something that broke out of the traditional mold.

I can understand the perspective of these students, since I was one of them. I choose a traditional world history class in high school over a teacher who used the original Civilization. I was concerned with grades and an effort was not made to explain how games teach process, not just events. It is often the process that sticks with us longer than the detailed facts of an event. I remember more history based on the long hours playing Civilization late at night testing out the situations and details I learned during the day in class.

Outside of students stuck within the traditional system, Squire found players with histories of lower educational performances did well with the games and gained meaning and understanding of events, situations, and processes from the game. Success in the game unit increased the students’ confidence and ultimately their success in the overall class. As Squire correctly described the situation, the game, discussion, and reflection created success in those who were failing school – or for those where school was failing them.

Squire points out that there is not a silver educational bullet, and today there still isn’t. But games and gaming should be part of the answer. He discussed how to create a curriculum that reflects on how people learn and interact, while opening it up to real world simulations and gaming experiences.

While the challenge of evaluating and assessing gaming in education is still a challenge as it was for Squire, the groundwork he laid and the work he continues to do provides examples and inspiration to those seeking to use videogames as a teaching tool.

Jessica Merritt compiled a great resource for librarians, of any type, with questions about gaming in libraries, "Bringing Gaming (and Gamers) to Your Library: 100 Tips and Resources."

Jessica's list of 100 collects a lot of previous written information on gaming events, collections, and research. The list adds other items of interest and general tips for libraries looking to bring in patrons, host events, start collection, promote learning, and defend these practices. This list paired with ALA's Games and Gaming wiki are excellent resources for librarians getting started or looking to expand their gaming programs.

Here are a few of the ideas that are relevant for gaming in an educational context:
21. Position yourself as a guide: Gamers will respect you more if you present yourself as a strategy guide for the game, rather than a gatekeeper.

At the reference desk and in the classroom, we need to be seen as guides and "walkthroughs." We are not gatekeepers, that model is past. Gamers often see guides as a crutch when they are stuck. Librarians are there to help when they get stuck, but we can also be there in the beginning as a tutorial.

31. Play games that require collaboration: Get everyone involved when you play games that focus on collaboration and teamwork.

Bee Gallegos from AZ State University described that students responded better to their game Quaratined when paired up an not isolated. Learning and play are not isolated experiences.

32. Be prepared for opposition: Not everyone understands the appeal of gaming, particularly video games, in the library, so you will find that you'll need to defend your actions with academic discussions and statistics.

Resistance and opposition to something new is unfortunately part of the process. Part of the goal of the ALA's Gaming wiki is to provide those resources to librarians to further the discussion and provide assistance.

50. Talking Points about Gaming in Libraries: Use this resource when explaining why bringing games into your library is so important.

51. Games for Teaching Information Literacy Skills: Felicia A. Smith considers how you can use games for education.

I've written about Felica Smith's work before, the link above is her formal article on her word and puzzle games in info lit.

62. Games for Higher Education: 2008: In this piece, Bryan Alexander examines the complexity of gaming, learning through gaming, and more.

When I started this blog back in 2006, there were very few central sources for gaming and education, let alone libraries (The one site I linked to is now dead). But with resources like these librarians have the tools to be successful in gaming for communities and learning.

Thank you Kelly for the link.

Since I'm an academic librarian, my RSS feeds for public libraries are on the lighter side. So this may be old news to some of you, but I'm still excited by the activity of this partnership.

After returning from LOEX tonight, there was just enough time to get to my local comic book shop for Free Comic Book Day. With my previous readings into narrative and transmedia, I was interested in the literacy and library connection. A quick search for "free comic book day" and "libraries" resulted in a large number of libraries partnering with comics.
I was overjoyed to find the sheer volume of libraries actively creating partnerships with local comic stores and taking part in free comic book day. ilovelibraries.org summed up the potential of the day nicely:

Aside from providing free exposure to many of the most exciting projects in the comics industry, Free Comic Book Day also presents an opportunity for libraries with graphic novel collections to partner up with local comic book stores. The expertise and product familiarity of the people at your local comic book store can often prove to be an invaluable resource, and the community outreach emphasis of Free Comic Book Day makes it an ideal situation for letting graphic novel fans know about what your library has to offer.

Local newspaper coverage from Norman, OK

The event is a single day when participating comic book shops and libraries around the world give away books to promote interest in the comic and graphic novel formats.

Some blogs highlighted the comic book store partnerships, As Madison did across the Madison, WI Public library system. Others, like Niles, IL used the day to promote existing graphic novel collection. I like Austin, TX Libraries approach to the day, helping promote the day for their local comic book stores and then providing addition copies at the libraries on Monday. Pikes Peak, CO used the to not only provide and promote comics but to provide some educational programming about the history of comics and show a few comic related films.

New Jersey State Library even got into the act.
And finally having the DIY Librarian blog about it helps raise the connection to libraries a lot more than my post.

As a comics read for over half my life, I am thankful to be able to work in a profession that recognizes and celebrates my passions and works to inspire that passion in others.

It is important to understand the narrative potential of video games, both for their ability to engage players in stories and to motivate players to create their own narratives. The concepts I’ve covered over the last series of posts on narrative including Jenkins concepts of transmedia and understanding part of the larger debate over narrative vs. ludology provides us an important insight into how our students are interacting with stories and text.

This interaction is not only relevant to the literature and composition faculty I spoke with on Sunday at ACLA but it is also vital for us as librarians to understand as well. The changes in students interaction and expectations create opportunities for us to engage readers and address reluctant readers.

The same recommendations I gave to the ACLA conference, apply to us as well: recognizing, engaging, and creating the value-added narratives that transmedia creates.

The next few posts cover issues of literacy and why understanding this change in narrative is important for reaching our students and patrons.