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Tag Archives: education

Polygamer #97: Dr. Carly Kocurek of Save Point & Games for Girls

Posted on January 22, 2020 by Ken Gagne

Dr. Carly Kocurek is an associate professor of digital humanities and media studies at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Her work in the analysis and preservation of games includes Save Point, a zine about the history of video games whose second issue is currently being crowdfunded on Kickstarter. She is also researching the “Games for Girls” movement of the 1990s, courtesy a grant from the National Science Foundation.

In this podcast interview, we discuss why a zine is a format uniquely suited to this topic; how Save Point is able to be published with such a modest budget; how to make academic subjects accessible to a lay audience; what the “Games for Girls” movement was, and how it’s evolved over the last 25 years; the research that the NSF grant enables her to conduct; and how listeners can support game preservation efforts.

Stream the audio edition of this interview below or from Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Overcast, Pandora, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, RadioPublic, or the Internet Archive. Click past the jump for links to resources mentioned in this episode.

Links mentioned in this episode:

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Posted in Podcast | Tags: academia, archive, Barbie, Brenda Laurel, Carly Kocurek, crowdfunding, education, Girls for Games, Illinois Institute of Technology, Kickstarter, National Science Foundation, PhD, preservation, Save Point, zine |

Education & Journalism at PAX East 2017

Posted on February 28, 2017 by Ken Gagne

PAX East 2017 is next week. Though the event is not typically considered a safe haven for a diverse audience of gamers, over the years its programming has expanded to include not only the Diversity Lounge but speakers and panels about LGBT+, PoC, atheism, ageism, and more. As evidence, you need look no further than this podcast, which was launched following a PAX East panel on sexism in gaming. Since then, several episodes of Polygamer have featured speakers first seen on PAX East panels, such as Charles Battersby and Tatjana Vejnovic. There are plenty of open-minded, supportive, encouraging, diverse people and panels at PAX — and I’d like to continue counting myself among them.

In trying to further improve PAX East from the inside, I’ve been moderating panels at the event since 2013, including this year. If you’re interested in getting into the games industry or honing your craft, then do I have the panels for you:

Life After Graduation

Sunday, March 12, 1:30–2:30 PM in Cuttlefish Theatre

Colleges are preparing students for a career in game development and design — but how closely does the classroom match the reality? Are the next generation of creators being given the skills and opportunities they need? We’ll hear from several recent graduates about the reality of their first years in the industry and what they wish they’d known.

Featuring:

  • Ken Gagne [Digital Content Developer, Gamebits]
  • Oleg Brodskiy [QA Tester, Irrational Games]
  • Francesca Carletto-Leon [Co-Founder, Contigo Games]
  • Julie Murphy [Experience Designer, Riot Games]
  • Sarah Como [Chief Operations Officer, Zephyr Workshop]

PAX East 2017: Life After Graduation

+1 to Journalism: Becoming a Better Writer

Sunday, March 12, 4:00–5:00 PM in Bobcat Theatre

What do you need to know to make it as a games journalist? What pitches do editors love to get, and what tropes have been done to death? Whether you’re helping consumers make informed purchasing decisions, unearthing the history of a franchise, or critiquing video games as art, you have to convey a lot of meaning in just a few words before the reader clicks away. Come hear veteran writers and editors share the best in games journalism and our own mistakes we’ve made along the way.

Featuring:

  • Susan Arendt [Executive Editor, GamesRadar+]
  • Jonathan Holmes [Writer, Destructoid & Nintendo Force]
  • Ken Gagne [Digital Content Developer, Gamebits]
  • Alexander Sliwinski [COO, Bithell Games]

PAX East 2017: +1 to Journalism

Although my lineup this year may not directly address matters of diversity, there’ll be diversity on stage. I long ago signed a pledge to diversify my panel lineups — but that wasn’t hard to do, since alumni of Polygamer were quick to sign up, including Sarah Como, Francesca Carletto-Leon, and Susan Arendt.

If you’re attending PAX East, I hope to see you in the audience! We’ll be using the hashtags #paxgrad & #paxjourno, respectively, so feel free to follow along, wherever you are. Be sure to say hello afterward, and subscribe to this podcast for audio and video from these panels!

(Promotional images courtesy Thomas Awrey)

Posted in Events | Tags: Alexander Sliwinski, Boston, degree, education, Francesca Carletto-Leon, graduation, Jonathan Holmes, journalism, Julie Murphy, Oleg Brodskiy, panel, PAX, PAX East, Sarah Como, Susan Arendt |

Polygamer #43: Engagement Lab at Emerson College

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Ken Gagne

The Engagement Lab at Emerson College is an applied research lab in Boston, Massachusetts, dedicated to innovating the ways people participate in civic life and expanding the study of citizenship in a digital era. By working with city and state governments and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Engagement Lab collaborates with partners both locally and globally to develop software that addresses systemic, cultural, and health issues, from global warming to hand-washing.

In this podcast, creative producer Jordan Pailthorpe and lead developer Johnny Richardson discuss how the Engagement Lab uses digital technology to create unique solutions to address problems both big and small; how partnerships form with governments as far away from Egypt, and the workshops such collaborations have produced in both Egypt and Boston; the responsibility of game developers to produce software with social values, and how that’s reflected in the Engagement Lab’s values; how the Engagement Lab fits into the larger mission of Emerson College; and Johnny’s work with The AbleGamers Charity to encourage and implement software and hardware accessibility.

Stream the audio edition of this interview below or from Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Overcast, Pandora, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, RadioPublic, or the Internet Archive. Click past the jump for links to resources mentioned in this episode.

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Posted in Podcast | Tags: AbleGamers, academia, accessibility, Boston, civic engagement, development, digital culture, education, elab, Emerson, Emerson College, Eric Gordon, Johnny Richardson, Jordan Pailthorpe, Massachusetts |

Polygamer #41: Adelle Lin of the Code Liberation Foundation

Posted on April 13, 2016 by Ken Gagne

The Code Liberation Foundation is a New York City-based non-profit that offers free game programming workshops to those who identify as women. The organization was founded in 2013 by Catt Small, Kay, Jane Friedhoff, Nina Freeman, Phoenix Perry, and Kaira Villanueva, seeking to change the female-to-male ratio in video game development. By creating a safe space free of the pressures often found in a mixed-gender environment, the CLF provides students the opportunities to develop their skills and confidence at no cost to them.

CLF directing member Adelle Lin joins Polygamer this week to discuss how the Code Liberation Foundation prepares students to enter a workforce that is traditionally male-dominated and how to address that issue early in the pipeline; the resources that students need that aren’t always available in more traditional academic settings; why students are taught to make games and not another genre of software, and why p5.js is one of the languages of choice for these classes; how the Code Liberation Foundation is unique from other gender-oriented academic programs or even social organizations; and how the group has evolved in its first three years.

Stream the audio edition of this interview below or from Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Overcast, Pandora, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, RadioPublic, or the Internet Archive. Click past the jump for links to resources mentioned in this episode.

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Posted in Podcast | Tags: Adelle Lin, CLF, Code Liberation Foundation, development, education, New York, New York City, NYC, programming, women |

Polygamer #33: Francesca Carletto-Leon on Diversity in Gaming at WPI

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Ken Gagne

Francesca Carletto-Leon is the founder of the Diversity in Games club at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Massachusetts. Currently a senior majoring in Interactive Media & Game Design (IMGD) and Professional Writing (PW), Francesca has been an activist and advocate for awareness and understanding of gender and race in games and gaming community among undergraduates. She recently returned from Japan, where she and her team developed the game Chinmoku for academic credit.

In this episode, Francesca and Ken (also a graduate of WPI’s PW program) discuss founding a diversity group among a student population of mostly white men; how to make diversity fun; the outreach and networking opportunities available to undergraduates; cultural differences in box art; and gaming culture in Japan.

Stream the audio edition of this interview below or from Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Overcast, Pandora, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, RadioPublic, or the Internet Archive. Click past the jump for links to resources mentioned in this episode.

Continue reading →

https://media.blubrry.com/polygamer/www.polygamer.net/wp-content/uploads/podcast/pg33-francesca_carletto-leon.mp3

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Posted in Podcast | Tags: academia, Chinmoku, DIG, Diversity in Gaming, education, Francesca Carletto-Leon, IMGD, Japan, Major Qualifying Project, MQP, student group, Worcester, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, WPI |

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