Information Resource Officer Games in Libraries Laura Kaspari Hohmann Information Resource Officer US Embassy Rome 1

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 3

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 4

“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.” . 5

--Seth Priebatsch, founder of SCVNGR “The last decade was about the social Web. This next decade is the decade of games.” --Seth Priebatsch, founder of SCVNGR 6

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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. From Jane McGonigle’s book… Games are doing a better job of provoking powerful positive feelings of curiosity, optimism, and motivation, while also strengthening social relationships in real life. 8

Think games are just for kids? McGonigle… 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. 9

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. Some facts about adult gamers 11

Why use games in libraries? To bridge generational differences To teach literacy skills To encourage active engagement Help gamers feel connected to the library 12

“It’s inevitable: soon we will all be gamers.” – Rob Fahey, 2008 13

Games in the Library Games in the Library 14

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The Connection Between Gaming and Literacy 17

Why use games to teach information literacy skills? 18

games are fun & highly interactive games are cognitively engaging games motivating & challenging . 19

games help students to make and sustain the effort of learning 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 20

Gaming teaches: -information literacy skills -reading -keyboarding -social skills -eye hand coordination -multitasking skills 21

Gaming teaches 21st Century Literacies: Visual Literacy Media Literacy Programming Literacy Science Literacy Technology Literacy 22

Information Literacy Standards Applied to Board Games 23

for the 21st Century Learner AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner .

AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner Applying the standards to board games 25

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

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Case Study: World of Warcraft Association of College & Research Libraries Information Literacy Standards Applied to Games Case Study: World of Warcraft 33

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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. 35

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. 36

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. 37

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. 38

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? 39

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Game Creation/Game Design workshops in libraries 41

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 42

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)‏

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HjjMv4LvbM 45

Resources American Library Association’s Games & Gaming Resources http://gaming.ala.org/resources/index.php?titl e=Main_Page The Librarian's Guide to Gaming: An Online Toolkit for Building Gaming at your library http://www.librarygamingtoolkit.org/ 46

Additional Resources American Association of School Librarians Standards for the 21st Century Learners http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/guid elinesandstandards/learningstandards/sta ndards.cfm ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/stan dards/informationliteracycompetency.cfm Meet the New School Board. Harris, Christopher. School Library Journal; May2009, Vol. 55 Issue 5, p24-26

Resources for Board Games Games for Educators http://www.g4ed.com/ Board Game Geek http://www.boardgamegeek.com/

Thank you for coming today! hohmannlk@state.gov Questions? Thank you for coming today! hohmannlk@state.gov 49