I am specifically interested in how Minecraft can now be used as an educational and historical tool. I will be the first to admit that I am not a Minecraft expert, nor have I even played the game. My nine-year-old brother has tried explaining it to me a few times, but as he explains, all I can think about is how it looks like the old 8-bit games I used to play as a child (e.g., Donkey Kong and Duck Hunt).The more I have paid attention to the game and how it works, however, the more I realize it can be used to construct cities and towns to be used as virtual historical tours. Can you imagine taking a virtual walkthrough of your hometown back in the 1940s or 1950s? I can only assume it would be a very surreal experience.

I recently attended the Texas Library Association Conference in Houston, Texas, and a very innovative session was given on using Minecraft as a historical tool. The city of Sugarland, Texas, partnered up with Techno Chaos, a local information technology group, to see how they could incorporate Minecraft as an educational tool in their school system. The result was genius! The information technology group, who are all very savvy and familiar with the game, pitched the idea of using the game to construct what Sugarland looked like in the 1950s.

The school district loved the idea and ran with it. Historical photos of the city were collected and passed around to many of the elementary and middle school classrooms within the school district. Each photo allowed a different class the opportunity to come up with their Minecraft version of that image. The concept was easy: Use the historical photos as a blueprint to construct a virtual simulation of the buildings and streets of Sugarland in the 1950s. What better way to incorporate history and gaming by way of Minecraft? Minecraft has proven to not only be a fun game but a tool that has “transcended into real-life like no other game before, having a positive impact on key areas as diverse as urban development, mapping, history and the arts.”[2]

Minecraft is successful because the game is flexible. Any group, school, or library can manipulate the game to suit their educational or entertainment needs. According to Daniel Short, a professor of environmental science at Robert Morris University, “It is a game changer. Minecraft is now a major educational concern.”[3] It has been proven to be a successful educational tool for children of all ages.

So instead of thinking of Minecraft as merely a game that is a waste of time, think of it as a tool that can successfully educate children across the country that can prepare them for specific areas in engineering, history, and the arts.

References

[1] David Crookes, “Minecraft is much more than ‘Lego online’ – it’s a creative classroom tool,” February 18, 2015.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

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Libraries that offer gaming programs or circulate games should consider attending Gen Con to better serve their patrons.  Gen Con is a great place for librarians to learn about and playtest games to add to their collections.  I was at the convention for 3 days, and I still wasn’t able to experience everything.  While there I learned about many games I’d never even heard of. Moreover, I was able to playtest games that are currently out, as well as upcoming releases.  Reading reviews of board games, and even seeing them played on YouTube, are nothing in comparison to getting my hands on the actual games themselves, and playing through with a group of people.

The convention is broken up into an exhibit hall, a large play hall in the back, and multiple rooms with different events happening throughout the convention center.  Purchasing a badge allows you into the gaming area and the exhibit hall, but many of the events cost extra.  Many of these events require tickets, which often sell out very early. Next year I plan on deciding what events to participate in ahead of time and purchasing those tickets as early as possible.

Librarians are able to get a special pass and attend on Trade Day (Wednesday), which I think could be particularly helpful.  I was overwhelmed by all of the information and gaming that was offered throughout the website and at the convention, and I was lucky to attend with friends.  I would suggest that any librarian who is attending Gen Con for the first time should partner up with someone who has been there before.  Another suggestion would be to look through the programming book, available in PDF form on the Gen Con Indy website.  The program book is currently for this year’s convention (which just wrapped up), but should be updated soon.  Even if the program book is slightly out of date, it gives an idea of what is available at the convention.

Gen Con was an amazing experience.  I left the convention with multiple new games, and an even longer list of games that I want to purchase soon.  As a librarian, I am excited to get some more table-top games to add to our ever growing selection.  I can’t wait to attend the convention again next year.

Cover Image Credit: SuSchu

The post Games, Games, and More Games – Experiencing Gen Con as a Librarian first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

If you have a tween or a young teen, you probably know about this game already. Teen librarians recognized that this patron population was enough of a fan of the game that maybe it was time to introduce this pastime into the library. “Minecraft fit into my library because it was a teens and tweens initiated activity,” says John Gillette, Young Adult Librarian of Bettendorf Public Library in Bettendorf, Iowa. Other library systems agree. This age set is more knowledgeable of the game than the adult librarians. Teens often help the adults learn what is needed to start and maintain Minecraft servers, plugins, and rules. As a result, the teens become invested in the library. Tinna D. Mills, teen services librarian of Chippewa River District Library System, had a teen advisory board member host their first Minecraft event. Now that same young patron has helped advise staff in advancing the servers to all of the system’s branches. Another librarian shared that a reluctant reader started using Minecraft at her branch and since then has become enthusiastic about reading Manga; the student’s teacher has complained to his mother that the student reads too much during class now!

Librarians have been thrilled with the teen enthusiasm this game evokes. They have witnessed shy adolescents thrive and learn to socialize more due to leadership and team building skills the game requires. The game also promotes STEM based learning and programming, a major component lately used by librarians across the country. “With Minecraft, we can offer technology and programming classes, free-style play sessions, and tournaments. There is a wide appeal,” says Teen Services Librarian Katie Kalil of Loudoun County (VA) Public Library.

On average, this game has become a popular component of public libraries in just the last couple of years. But in that short amount of time, there have been valuable lessons learned. First, it is wise to start out with a small server and use it to do an initial Minecraft event. Find out if there’s a truly a patron interest before buying many servers or one for each branch in your system. Realize that there is a time investment needed to build the system in the initial stages of the game. Be sure to learn all of the components of the game. One librarian learned quickly that teens had found the backdoor of the server console, causing a bit of havoc along the way. Senior Library Assistant Matt Williams of Roanoke County Public Library finds Bukkit to be helpful.

Luckily, the appeal of the game and evidence of its positive social, academic, and community impact has led to few criticisms by directors or supervisors. “Minecraft helps libraries build connections between individuals within the community and provide positive growth opportunities for young people,” says Mills. It’s real hard to argue with that.

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If you asked most folks, they would say the video games in the library are all played by the teenagers from the nearby high school. WRONG!!! While there is a distinct majority of teenagers, mostly attributed to the school’s proximity to the library, there are middle school kids who come in with their parents specially to play. Most weeks there are also some initially scared elementary kids whose harried parents push them toward the games so they can finish their work on the library computers. Peppered in are kids on the autism spectrum, a young man with Downs Syndrome, and occasionally a boy with ADHD.  And the best part is, special need or not, everyone is on a level playing field when you’re playing Rockband or Just Dance. There are no age requirements to drive a vehicle in MarioKart. In fact, it’s pretty darn funny to watch an elementary kid soundly beat a high school kid in MarioKart. Everyone is out to win and is fiercely competitive!

What’s the point of playing video games in the library really? And why have more than just teenagers participate? For us, it’s about creating an atmosphere of community. We want crowds to gather at the library, and they do. It’s more common that there are more observers than participants, and that’s ok. We want siblings of different ages to either form a team or be on different teams as they play. As long at the “sibling smack talk” doesn’t get too out of hand, it adds to the familiarity and comfort of the event. At the same time, we’ve noticed particularly our tweens like helping each other and sharing the secrets and tricks that they have found within games. It’s even better when an elementary kid gets to tell a whole bunch of high schoolers that he knows a special element of the game that they do not!

For the unconvinced, there are so many fascinating, or downright surprising statistics you can read in Entertainment Software Association’s 2012 report on sales, demographics and usage. http://www.theesa.com/facts/pdfs/ESA_EF_2012.pdf  And with different consoles appearing to be marketed to different demographics, at the library we own and play all the consoles. We circulate games for each console as well. And the games aren’t buried in the back corner of the library. They are right in front as you walk in the door.

At the library we play multi-player games, so as many people as possible can have a turn. But if you want to play a single or two person game, you can check it out and take it home. It’s about everyone having fun at the library, and maybe bragging to your friends how talented you are?!

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