Jane Jensen
1. What, if any, connections do you see between learning and
computer/video game playing
?
Well, certainly games help people learn to be comfortable with computers and technology and improve dexterity with mouse and keyboard (depending on the game). For the type of games that I write, adventure games, they’re essentially like role-playing the main character of a novel, so there are the general benefits of literature – exploring a reality outside of your own and understanding the basics of cause and effect. Generally they involved puzzles as well, which can challenge your logic and reasoning.
2. What connection, if any, do you see between computer games and the teaching of writing at either the high school or college level?
I would think that giving an assignment of writing a short game story would be an interesting exercise similar to writing a short story. The challenge with game writing is that you have to provide for interactivity with the reader and what possible responses your story takes to that input.
3. What do you suppose might be an interesting computer game for the teaching of writing (either currently out or not yet imagined)?
It’s hard to imagine a game that, by playing it, would teach writing. I think a better exercise might be to dissect a game and try to plot out it’s branches – or, as already mentioned, try to outline a game yourself.