Games in Libraries

Laura Kaspari Hohmann

Information Resource Officer

US Embassy Rome

A profile of today’s kids & their gaming habits*

*The Pew Internet & American Life project survey on Teens, Video Games and Civics - 2008

• 97% of teens play games(computer, web, portable, or console)

• 50% played a game yesterday

• 48% use a cell phone or handheld device to play games

• 80% of teens play 5 or more different game genres

• Girls play an average of 6 different genres

• Boys play an average of 8 different genres

“Social game play is thought to offer the possibility for youth to have collaborative and interactive experiences, experiences that potentially parallel may real-world political and civic activities.”

“The last decade was about the social Web. This next decade is the decade of games.”

--Seth Priebatsch, founder of SCVNGR

Consider….

• We spend 3 billion hours a week as a planet playing games

• There are 183 million active gamers in the USA.

• There are 100 million active gamers in Europe

• 5 million Americans spend 40 hours a week or more playing games.

Think games are just for kids?The average young person will spend 10,000 hours playing games by the time they’re 21 – as many hours as they’ll spend in the class room.

Think games are just for kids?

• 40 % of all gamers are women

• 1 out of 4 gamers is over the age of 50

• The average game player is 35 years old and has been playing for 12 years.

• Most gamers expect to continue playing games for the rest of their lives.

Why use games in libraries?

• To bridge generational differences

• To teach literacy skills

• To encourage active engagement

• Help gamers feel connected to the library

“It’s inevitable: soon we will all be gamers.” – Rob Fahey, 2008

Games in the LibraryGames in the Library

The Connection Between Gaming and Literacy

Why use games to teach information literacy skills?

• games are fun & highly interactive

• games are cognitively engaging

• games motivating & challenging

• games are a welcome break from traditional library instruction (or classroom) activities

• games help students to make and sustain

the effort of learning

• games enhance problem solving skills

Gaming teaches:

-information literacy skills-reading-keyboarding-social skills-eye hand coordination-multitasking skills

Gaming teaches 21st Century Literacies:

-Visual Literacy-Media Literacy-Programming Literacy-Science Literacy-Technology Literacy

Information Literacy Standards Applied to Board Games

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AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner

AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner

Applying the standards to board games

AASL Standard 1 AASL Standard 1

Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge.

AASL Standard 2

• Draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge.

AASL Standard 3

• Share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of our democratic society.

AASL Standard 4

Pursue personal and aesthetic growth.

Guidelines for Developing a Games Collection

• Select games that are authentic and fun

• Factor in time it takes to play the game

• Consider return on investment

For School Libraries

• Align games with state/provincial/national curriculum standards

• Describe games as instructional tools that can be used to boost student achievement

Association of College & Research Libraries

Information Literacy Standards Applied to Games

Case Study: World of Warcraft

WoW & ACRL Information Literacy Standards

• ACRL Standard 1: Determines the nature and extent of the information needed

• WoW: Player has a goal, but needs to figure out how to get there and get to the next level.

WoW & ACRL Information Literacy Standards

• Standard 2:Accesses needed information effectively and efficiently

• WoW: Players must figure out where the necessary tools are. If they don’t get them, they run out of

energy or supplies.

WoW & ACRL Information Literacy Standards

• Standard 3:Evaluates information and its sources critically and incorporates selected information into his or her knowledge base and value system

• WoW: If you don’t evaluate a source’s validity, you may die or be slowed down in your quest.

WoW & ACRL Information Literacy Standards

• Standard 4:Uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose (individually or as a part of a group)

• WoW: Teams of people play together and must work together to figure out their goals and how to best reach them.

WoW & ACRL Information Literacy Standards

• Standard 5: understands many of the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and accesses and uses information ethically and legally

• WoW?

Game Creation/Game Design workshops in libraries

Why Game Design?

• Constructivism: Learners create their own knowledge

• Constructionism: New ideas developed when an external artifact is created and shared

• Benefit: Long-term retention

Why in Libraries?

• All the benefits of playing games– Bring in people, engage them with each other

and library resources/staff

• Artifacts of Creativity

• Motivation to learn and explore

• Diverse groups engaging deeply

• Literacy (digital, traditional, gaming)

Resources

• American Library Association’s Games & Gaming Resourceshttp://gaming.ala.org/resources/index.php?title=Main_Page

• The Librarian's Guide to Gaming: An Online Toolkit for Building Gaming at your library http://www.librarygamingtoolkit.org/

Additional Resources• American Association of School Librarians

Standards for the 21st Century Learnershttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/guidelinesandstandards/learningstandards/standards.cfm

• ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Educationhttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/standards/informationliteracycompetency.cfm

Resources for Board Games

• Games for Educators http://www.g4ed.com/

• Board Game Geekhttp://www.boardgamegeek.com/

Questions?

Thank you for coming today!

hohmannlk@state.gov