Borough of Manhattan Community College, Fiterman Hall, 13^th floor, 245 Greenwich St

(Note: Only elevator #9 leads to the 13th floor. It has a little gate and a security guard.)

 

9:00am – onwards (13th floor lobby): Registration and check-in

9:30am-10am (Room F1306/1307): Welcome and icebreaker

9:00am -4:30pm (Room F1306/1307): Casual Gameplay and Play-testing

 

WORKSHOPS 1   10:15am-12:15pm

F1005 (Computer Lab) Introduction to Game Design and Programming in Unity, with Deborah Sturm

Digital games offer unique affordances for learning. Deborah Sturm has taught hundreds of undergraduates how to build games in the Unity game engine, and will guide you through the process. Attendees will learn many skills related to digital game development for education including (1) how to use the Unity game engine; (2) how iterative design can be used to build effective software;(3) scripting with C#; and (4) principles of object oriented programming.

F1302 Redesign: Modifying Tabletop Games for Instruction, with Joe Bisz and Carolyn Stallard

Max Capacity: 50 people

The best way to understand how to make our instruction more playful is to play more games. In this workshop, we’ll play a well-designed commercial board or card game (e.g. Pandemic, Red7, Forbidden Island). Next, we’ll study reference cards that meticulously break down how the game might be modified to teach any academic goal. Finally, you will pick such a goal, and with the other smart people on your team, brainstorm a new learning game inspired by the game you just played. You will walk away with several ideas for enhancing your own instruction.

 

12:30-2:30pm (Room F1306/1307) LUNCH & MORE 

Open Space

Open Space is an “unconference” format that allows attendees to self-organize and discuss topics of interest. In our version, participants share resources, ideas, questions, etc. on an interactive billboard. Visit the poster/demo room at any point during the conference, grab a pen, and add anything you’d like to share to the wall. Attendees may also use this space to announce topics for casual discussion in our unconference room any time throughout the day. Check back at the end of the day to see what new resources and ideas have been shared in this space.

Lunch, Posters, Game Demos (see poster/demo list below)

 

WORKSHOPS 2   2:30-4:30pm

F1005 (Computer Lab) Introduction to Game Design and Programming in Unity, with Robert Duncan

Digital games offer unique affordances for learning. Robert Duncan has taught hundreds of undergraduates how to build games in the Unity game engine, and will guide you through the process. Attendees will learn many skills related to digital game development for education including (1) how digital games can be used to shape behaviors in a target population; (2) how iterative design can be used to build effective software; (3) how to use a commercial game engine; (4) the basics of the C# programming language; (5) game asset creation; and (6) the principles of object oriented programming.

Room F1302 The Allure of Play: Designing for a Creative Classroom, with Joe Bisz

Max Capacity: 30 people (This workshop is not for undergraduates)

What if you could be given a method for designing learning activities around lessons you already use? Are you interested in making your lessons and activities more innovative and playful? Joe Bisz will discuss the principles behind game-based learning, then explain his “Complex Mechanics” method for designing rigorous classroom games. Next, Joe will show you how to incorporate game mechanics and learning principles into your exercises, as you work together with fellow faculty to build a non-digital game for your classroom. This workshop is born from methods researched in his upcoming book for faculty, with Tori Mondelli.

Room F1304 Game up your Math and Science Courses, with Kathleen Offenholley

Would you like to get your students to actually want to work together? Get them excited about doing problems? This workshop is for you! Learn some easy math and science games you can use to get your students ready to work together, then create your own game.

 

5:00-11:00pm (Room F606): Casual Gameplay and Play-testing

Enjoy some games after the conference! You can get dinner off-site and come back.

Throughout the day, we will have board and card games for you to examine or to try playing together. They will be divided into categories from “easy to learn” to more complex, so that even if you’ve never played a game before, you will find something comfortable and fun. You can always just watch as well! You will also find “cooperative” games where everyone helps each other (rather than competing) and more socially oriented games. Studying games by playing them together can help you generate ideas for your own activities.

 

Posters/Game Demos

Note: Presenters may decide whether to present Wednesday, Thursday, or both.

Browse the Abstracts for more details on each poster or demo.

Posters

CS4AUTISM – Game Design
Darlene Bowman, Matthew Henschke, Joshua Henschke, Jonathan Hannam, Katie Marrow, College of Staten Island, CUNY

The Cognitive, Behavioral, Affective, and Physiological Components of Social Cognition in Esports and Education
Daisy Reyes, The Graduate Center, CUNY; Robert O. Duncan, York College, CUNY, The Graduate Center, CUNY

Toward a Physiological Understanding of Presence and Embodiment
Evan A. Owens, Robert O. Duncan, York College, CUNY

Candidate
Robin P. Andreasen, South Texas College

Association Between Playing Board Games and Pattern Recognition
Melissa Makak, Nicholas Sibrava, Baruch College, CUNY

Gaming for Instruction & Engagement at UT Libraries
Amber Sewell, Allison Shepard, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Computer Science Education Through Immersive Experience
Jessica Ross-Nersesian, Eric Nersesian, Adam Spryszynski, New Jersey Institute of Technology

By Students, For Students: Student-Developed Games in Higher Ed
Devorah Kletenik, Brooklyn College, CUNY; Deborah Sturm, College of Staten Island, CUNY

Game Incentivizing Student Academic Behavior through Badges for LinkedIn
Sahana Sen, Omar Johnson, Nicolas Becker, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY

Gamification to Improve Engagement of Criminal Justice Students
Brian Harte, St. John’s University

Arcade Game Demos

Pittsburgh 10
S.L. Nelson, University of Pittsburgh

Rethinking Gaming & Representation within Digital Pedagogy
Anthony Wheeler, Raven Gomez, The Graduate Center, CUNY

Using Board Games like Bee Lives: We Will Only Know Summer for Pedagogy
Matt Shoemaker, Temple University

“Fresh Start” – An Interactive Video Game With Narrative Immersion to Promote Mindful Drinking Among College Freshmen
Joshua Fishburn, Yifeng Hu, Kathryn La Capria, Deanna Amarosa, The College of New Jersey

The Rutgers Arbor Trail Game
Kenny Chen, Greta Donato, Rangoli Mittal, Sagarika Rana, Yuri Alegria, Michael Gradin, Rick Anderson, Rutgers University

Classification: The Game Arcade game demo
Sharon Lintz, San Jose State University