GG|Interactive Announces “Early Access” for Teachers and Professors to Its Game Development Curriculum
Vancouver, Washington (PRWEB) June 10, 2014 -- GG|Interactive, an established video game developer and technology provider, is announcing the availability of Pro|Dev: Game Development Curriculum™ for review by high-school teachers and professors. Educators are encouraged to try the curriculum and help guide final production through a limited “Early Access Program”.
Early Access, according to GG|Interactive CEO Eric Preisz, is the new buzzword for Beta testing and allows teachers and educators to see the curriculum first and then have direct access to the developers for suggestions on improving it and tailoring the lessons to students.
“We’ve taken our expertise in video game development and created a curriculum no one else can match in terms of real experience in making games. At least no one who wants to share their trade secrets like we do,” says Preisz, “So we know what we bring to the table is going to be something big for digital education as a whole. What we need is the input of teachers and professors to make it work best for students.”
Although a course on video games might seem, to some, a case of dumbing down curriculum for the sake of student interest, according to Preisz, it is, in fact, quite the opposite. “The curriculum being presented is built to rigorous STEM and STEAM standards, is computer science focused, and aligns with Common Core. While we do provide some material on creative writing and art, we spend a lot of time teaching math, science and critical thinking skills.”
The idea is that students are so eager to get hands-on experience in video game development, they quickly come to accept the fact that making games involves some serious thinking and hard work using 21st century skillsets.
“Students accept that challenge because they are driven to one day work in the industry they love,” says Geoff Beckstrom, producer of the project. “Considering video games are an ever growing, multi-billion dollar industry in constant need of creative and technologically educated people: that is not a bad career path to pursue. Even better, everything you learn in game development has value in other industries, as well.”
For more information on how teachers and professors can participate in the Early Access Program, GG|Interactive hosts a video blog directed at educators for this very purpose. Visit them at http://www.gginteractive.com/news.
GG|Interactive (formally GarageGames) is a 14-year-old game and technology provider. They build games, technology, and game-based learning experiences for educational institutions, theme-parks, and other game developers. Their flagship product, Pro|Dev: Game Development Curriculum™, will be available for the fall semester.
Eric Preisz, GG Interactive, http://www.gginteractive.com, +1 (866) 279-3659, [email protected]
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