Comments on: Game studies hits the academic mainstream http://grandtextauto.org/2003/08/27/game-studies-hits-the-academic-mainstream/ A group blog about computer narrative, games, poetry, and art. Wed, 19 May 2010 01:52:58 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: nick http://grandtextauto.org/2003/08/27/game-studies-hits-the-academic-mainstream/comment-page-1/#comment-287 nick Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000 /?p=67#comment-287 Note that the questions "Are video games a valid academic field of research?" and "Will video games one day become a teaching tool in the classroom?" have nothing at all to do with one another. Sculpture can be a valid academic field of research (for art historians, for instance) even if we don't ever use sculptures as teaching tools in the classroom. I happen to think that both are true - video games both can be teaching tools and they are worthy of scholarship - but these are two separate issues. They just happen to be confusingly juxtaposed here so as to suggest that they are related. Note that the questions “Are video games a valid academic field of research?” and “Will video games one day become a teaching tool in the classroom?” have nothing at all to do with one another. Sculpture can be a valid academic field of research (for art historians, for instance) even if we don’t ever use sculptures as teaching tools in the classroom. I happen to think that both are true – video games both can be teaching tools and they are worthy of scholarship – but these are two separate issues. They just happen to be confusingly juxtaposed here so as to suggest that they are related.

]]> By: Dennis G. Jerz http://grandtextauto.org/2003/08/27/game-studies-hits-the-academic-mainstream/comment-page-1/#comment-288 Dennis G. Jerz Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000 /?p=67#comment-288 Hmm... well, given that the intended readership of The Chronicle is mostly college professors (and administrators and advanced grad students on the job market, of course), I think the "are video games yet another distraction" can be construed to mean "distraction from established subjects and modes of research that tenure committess traditionally reward as well as from from traditional teaching methods."<p>Yes, the juxtaposition is a bit heavy-handed, but the text cited is a marketing teaser designed to attract people with strong opinions. I'm not defending the accuracy of the text, I'm simply pointing out that its purpose is (sadly) not to be accurate but to generate a response.</p><p>Incidentally, and apropos of nothing at all, it's 5:52 by my watch, but the datestamp for the post reads 5:10.</p> Hmm… well, given that the intended readership of The Chronicle is mostly college professors (and administrators and advanced grad students on the job market, of course), I think the “are video games yet another distraction” can be construed to mean “distraction from established subjects and modes of research that tenure committess traditionally reward as well as from from traditional teaching methods.”

Yes, the juxtaposition is a bit heavy-handed, but the text cited is a marketing teaser designed to attract people with strong opinions. I’m not defending the accuracy of the text, I’m simply pointing out that its purpose is (sadly) not to be accurate but to generate a response.

Incidentally, and apropos of nothing at all, it’s 5:52 by my watch, but the datestamp for the post reads 5:10.

]]> By: michael http://grandtextauto.org/2003/08/27/game-studies-hits-the-academic-mainstream/comment-page-1/#comment-289 michael Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000 /?p=67#comment-289 The transcript of the chat can be found <a href="http://chronicle.com/colloquylive/2003/08/video/">here</a>. The transcript of the chat can be found here.

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