Video Game Design/Developers

What is the goal of your program or pathway? (ie. what do you want students to get out of it?)

My program's goal is to get students exposed to any many of the different domains and areas of expertise included in Game Development. (Game Design, Computer Graphics, Software Engineering). I basically want to be as wide and shallow as possible to include as many aspects of it as possible. I am not really trying to get kids "industry ready", so much as "industry aware". I want them to leave with a portfolio of some analog game designs, digital art and a completed self-directed digital game. 

If I had limitless time and resources I would have add a narrative design course, I would split my art into separate 2D and 3D classes and I would have a "studio" class at the end of the pathway with no actual lessons or tutorials and just turn the kids loose on making a video game for an entire semester. 

**I want my kids to be able to problem solve and think critically- use all their resources to find the answer to their own questions.
**I want my kids to enjoy the process and struggle (as much as possible).
**I provide opportunities for students to learn a subject they are interested in. I am looking for participation and effort, perfection is out of reach and unreasonable. I am finding that I am more and more able to allow students to choose a direction and pathway and that is why I have designed my curriculum the way I have. I expect kids to be fully engaged while in my class.
**Would love if my kids left this class feeling empowered, there is so much fear of failure.

Currently working toward a very open ended curriculum where kids can explore their interests more and more. I would like kids to play to their strengths and create teams to manage big projects where they can all contribute based on interest/ability/time available.

Would love to add:
**a course based on digital design/art 3D or 2D
**a computer science class (currently A-G (g) designation)

My goal is to get students involved in the creative process in a way that feels relevant to them. Whether they decide to focus on creative problem solving in programming or game design, creative storytelling and worldbuilding, or a new avenue for visual art or sound direction. I would love it if students left my program feeling like they are able to keep learning what they need to express their creativity.

I also want students to be able to speak critically and thoughtfully about the games they make and play, learning how to develop their opinions in a space that doesn't really "matter" so that they can take those conversation/conflict/expressive skills into other avenues.

My campus' goal with my program has two specifics that I also need to consider:
1. Because my school competes for applications with other campuses in the district, the Game Dev pathway should be a draw for passionate, excited students.
2. The pathway needs to prepare students for the Unity Certified User Programmer exam. I know I've heard that's a difficult test, but admin really wants that in order to earn more "points" for the campus, so it's what I need to work for. Hopefully it will be doable for the majority given a full pathway instead of just one class.

My courses are part of a CTE Pathway so I'm supposed to align it with industry, but it doesn't work out that well, so . . .

1. When you leave my course sequence you will be a better independent, creative problem solver than before
2. You will be able to make a fully functioning game working on a team
3. You will know the games industry includes a lot more than just programming
4. You will believe that it is an industry you COULD work in
5. You will struggle, succeed, sometimes fail, but you can have fun at all those points

#5 kinda comes from my students, at the beginning of the year I kept asking them, what makes you keep playing a game after you die, over and over, and seem to make barely any progress? We agreed on, you can die every time and want to try again and keep playing, you can struggle but make incremental progress and still want to keep playing, and you can also succeed and want to keep playing. You can thrive in the struggles. Dying isn't the end. We tried to apply it to school, although most of my students say, but school is boring, so I have to keep at the message, if you approach every low grade, failing grade, struggle you cannot grasp, like you do playing a video game, you will succeed and you can find the fun in the struggle. While not everyone believes me, more do by the end of the year.

Each summer I re-read SuperBetter by Jane McGonigal and keep wishing I could read it with students and turn our school experience into a giant game like that.

For CTE as a whole, our goals are to improve our student's competitive advantage and to make every student career ready, period. Specifically for my pathway, my goals are:
1. Develop students who are independent problem solvers
2. Make sure students have a compelling portfolio for college/job applications
3. Internalize the requirement that great games are made by great teams and it is the responsibility of every team member to meaningfully contribute

My Pathway is CS, not Game Design, but I use Game Design to gain interest and grow my program. My program focus:
1. Provide a breadth focused program introducing my students to many different fields and topics in computer science (programming, robotics, web dev, and game dev - If I can include cybersecurity in the future, I will).
2. Provide enough depth opportunities that students are prepared for a computer science college program.
3. Provide independent study opportunities for students to develop their CS talents in something they're interested in (usually, this involves more game development).
4. Make students better problem solvers and critical thinkers.
5. Improve diversity within my program (largely through more inviting course opportunities).
6. Help students see that computer science is about problem solving, not just coding (coding is usually the vehicle we solve problems with).

For Game Development specifically:
1. Captivate a love for programming through game development
2. Identify practices within Game Development that will help students when they cover more advanced, difficult topics in future programming classes (functions, Objects, Instance Variables)
3. Focus on problem solving
4. Provide creative outlets within Game Development