Course Syllabus
From Solitaire to Skyrim , from flight simulators to Flappy Bird , videogames are one of the major modes of media consumption today. Games create common experiences among users that we can share and learn from, and they are touchstones in popular culture. As digital texts , videogames allow different kinds of expression and new rhetorics, and as cultural artifacts , videogames join a larger ecology of media which contain and construct cultural values like representation , diversity , social justice , identity , equality , freedom . As products of a culture with these and other values, videogames in turn, reflect those values and can become vehicles for motivating change. This class, “games and culture”, is an investigation of these cultures and conversations. The class also serves as an elective for the Communication and Digital Studies Major or the Minor in Digital Studies. It is Digitally Intensive and counts as an Honors Credit for students in the University Honors Program.
Logistics
The Class
| Where: HCC 329 |
When: TR, 12:30 - 1:45, 2:00 - 3:15 |
Who: Dr. Zach Whalen |
The professor
| Office: 1201 William Street, Room 16 |
Website / Social: zachwhalen.net / @zachwhalen |
Office Hours: Virtual (for now), by appointment |
E-mail: zwhalen@umw.edu |
Learning Goals and Outcomes
Because this class meets so many requirements, there are quite a few outcomes and goals each student can be expected to achieve. Thankfully, most of these are rather general and there is a fair amount of overlap. For the sake of accountability, these are all listed here, and annotated with an explanation of how you will work toward those goals in this class.
| Outcome | Means | |
|---|---|---|
DI Learning Outcomes |
successfully locate and critically evaluate information using the Internet, library databases, and/or other digital tools. |
Independent research will support a game analysis project |
|
use digital tools to safely, ethically, and effectively produce and exchange information and ideas. |
students will use media to reflect on and creatively critique games | |
|
creatively adapt to emerging and evolving technology. |
students will use media to interact with each other and to produce artifacts that comment on games | |
Honors Learning Outcomes |
formulate an academic argument with appropriate research documentation. |
students will get to know the field of video game studies including current scholarly conversations |
|
articulate the value of the goals of the Honors Program as it relates to the liberal arts as a multidisciplinary, systematic approach to knowledge |
game studies is inevitably interdisciplinary, so students will see multiple approaches to knowing things about games | |
|
apply specific academic solutions to broader, interdisciplinary fields of study |
games are texts with diverse applications that students will experiment with in their own designs | |
|
integrate multiple viewpoints involving different cultures and/or perspectives |
video games are played by people, and people playing together is a basis for human culture, generally speaking |
Requirements
Books
This class will include several required readings, mainly from the three books listed below. All readings are either freely available on the web or are available via in electronic versions via our library. You can find those linked in the "Library Reading Lists" tool in our course navigation.
- Bogost, Ian. How to Talk about Videogames. 1s edition, Univ Of Minnesota Press, 2015.
- Egenfeldt-Nielsen, Simon, et al. Understanding Video Games: The Essential Introduction. 3rd edition, Routledge, 2015.
-
Boluk, and Lemieux. Metagaming: Playing, Competing, Spectating, Cheating, Trading, Making, and Breaking Videogames. 1st edition, University of Minnesota Press, 2017.
Games
This is a course about videogames so we will be playing videogames. Many of the games we play on a daily basis or in class will be free, but for two assignments, students may need to purchase a game from a list (TBD) of options. Prices and availability by system will vary, but most games should be around $20 or less.
Assignments
Daily Homework and Activities
These are small, low-stakes assignments due on or after nearly every day we have class. You will usually have options for completing these, and generally speaking the homework should not take more than an additional 5 or 10 minutes beyond whatever else has been assigned for that day.
Gaming Journals
Throughout the semester, you will play two games to completion (as much as possible) and keep a journal or log document and reflecting on your process. You may write this as a series of blog posts, record a series of videos on youtube, or even live stream your game commentary.
Retro Commercial
As we discuss the history of video games and their cultural contexts, you'll create a retro-style commercial for a video game.
Close Playing / Game Criticism
When we learn about the formal elements of games and how to analyze them, you'll prepare an analysis of some game of your choice and model that analysis after a "close reading" essay like you might write in a literature class.
Metagame
For our purposes, a metagame is a game played with the "equipment" of some other game. You'll design or create one.
Participation
Be in class every day prepared to contribute to the discussion. Read or play the assigned homework to completion, and come to class with a question or two about what you experienced. Join discussions in our Discord server and comment on other students’ project. At the middle and end of the semester, submit a participation report summarizing how well you’ve been meeting these expectations and what grade you feel you are earning in the class.
Final Project
The culminating project for this class will be something you design as a way to explore games and culture in some way. This will involve a proposal, a draft, a final version, and a presentation where you share the results of your project with the class.
Grading
For all projects in this class, I’ll be implementing a minimal grading scale with four possible values: 0, ✓-, ✓, and ✓+. Generally speaking, a 0 is for a missing assignment, a ✓- is for an assignment that is incomplete in some way, a ✓ is a completed assignment that met all of its goals, and a ✓+ exceeds expectations in a significant way.
These values do not correspond to letter grades or percentages — they’re merely a way to mark your progress and verify that you’ve completed an assignment.
To determine your actual final grade — because I do need to enter something in Banner — I’ll ask you to submit a self-evaluation reflecting on your work and proposing a final grade.
Policies and Expectations
Online Community
You have a great deal of freedom in this class, but freedom undirected can be intimidating, leading you to make overly-cautious choices. Instead, we'll work to build a community of support and trust so that by the time you create your big project you'll feel emboldened to take some bigger risks and try something different.
We'll use Canvas for the logistics of the class, and Discord for day to day conversation and activity. Make sure you join our Discord server with this invitation link. We'll also use Google Drive, so make sure you have a Google account.
Once we know more about the daily schedule for this class, each student will be assigned to a specific cohort of fellow students that will coordinate and communicate together for every peer-related assignment or activity this semester.
Technology in the classroom
You are welcome to use computers during class, including tablets, smartphones, whatever — so long as what you're doing isn't distracting someone else. I simply ask you to be responsible. Proper uses may include taking notes, reviewing the reading material, looking up something related, or participating in a constructive backchannel conversation such as Slack or Twitter. Improper uses may include watching movies, and working on homework assignments for other classes.
Decorum
Students are expected to treat the instructor and fellow students with the appropriate degree of respect, both in class and in online discussions. Communication, either in person or through electronic media, that is deemed abusive, threatening, or harassing in nature will not be tolerated.
Content Warning
Through the course of this semester, we'll look at a wide array of content that may include literature, film, comics, television, memes, and any manner of things that people post on the Internet. It is possible that some of this material may be disturbing, offensive, or upsetting, possibly including subject matter or themes related to race, gender, sexuality or violence. For some of these conversations to take place, it is important that we grapple with these uncomfortable things, but we will always treat all such material with appropriate maturity and as much ethical clarity as possible. That said, if you find for some reason that discussing a particular text is too upsetting or traumatic, it is always OK to excuse yourself from that discussion. Just let me know.
Status of Student Work
Much of the work you'll be creating for this class has the potential to be shared online, ideally on your domain. Some of the work may also be shared with others in the class via a closed system like Slack or Google Drive. Wherever possible, we will discuss and think carefully about the divide between public and private sharing and when to post what, where. All grades and feedback will be in Canvas or some other private medium only accessible by you and me.
Academic Integrity
The UMW Honor System applies to everything you do for our course. I may authorize specific assignments as collaborative work, but all other work must be your own, as per Article 1, Sections 1 and 2 of the University of Mary Washington Student Honor Code.
Academic dishonesty typically boils down to taking credit for someone else's work. Whether you've done so accidentally or maliciously, it's still an honor violation. Some examples include:
- Including a quote in a blog post without identifying the source of that quote
- Using an image in a blog post without permission from its copyright holder
- Asking another student to "edit" your project for you
- Creating a blog entry or essay that is mostly quotes, even properly attributed quotes
Disability Resources
The Office of Disability Resources has been designated by the University as the primary office to guide, counsel, and assist students with disabilities. If you already receive services through the Office of Disability Resources and require accommodations for this class, get in touch with me as soon as possible to discuss your approved accommodation needs. Please bring your accommodation letter with you to the appointment. I will hold any information you share with me in the strictest confidence unless you give me permission to do otherwise. If you have not contacted the Office of Disability Services and need accommodations, (note taking assistance, extended time for tests, etc.), I will be happy to refer you. The office will require appropriate documentation of disability. Their phone number is 540-654-1266.
Title IX
University of Mary Washington faculty are committed to supporting students and upholding the University’s Policy on Sexual and Gender Based Harassment and Other Forms of Interpersonal Violence. Under Title IX and this Policy, discrimination based upon sex or gender is prohibited. If you experience an incident of sex or gender-based discrimination, we encourage you to report it. While you may talk to me, understand that as a “Responsible Employee” of the University, I MUST report to UMW’s Title IX Coordinator what you share. If you wish to speak to someone confidentially, please contact the below confidential resources. They can connect you with support services and help you explore your options. You may also seek assistance from UMW’s Title IX Coordinator. Please visit http://diversity.umw.edu/title-ix/ to view UMW’s Policy on Sexual and Gender Based Harassment and Other Forms of Interpersonal Violence and to find further information on support and resources.
ResourcesStefanie Lucas-Waverly, M.S. Crystal Rawls |
Confidential ResourcesOn-Campus Student Health Center Off-Campus Rappahannock Council Against Sexual |
What about basic needs?
If you have difficulty affording groceries or accessing sufficient food to eat every day, or if you lack a safe and stable place to live, and you believe this may affect your performance in this course, please contact Cedric Rucker, Dean of Student Life, for support. Additionally, please talk to me if you are comfortable doing so. This will enable me to provide any resources I may possess.
Can I record class?
Classroom activities in this course may be recorded by students enrolled in the course for the personal, educational use of that student or for all students presently enrolled in the class only, and may not be further copied, distributed, published or otherwise used for any other purpose without the express written consent of the course instructor. All students are advised that classroom activities may be taped by students for this purpose. Distribution or sale of class recordings is prohibited without the written permission of the instructor and other students who are recorded. Distribution without permission is a violation of copyright law. This policy is consistent with UMW’s Policy on Recording Class and Distribution of Course Materials.
Dealing with Covid-19
All students are expected to adhere to the policies and expectations of the University to mitigate risk and support the health and safety of the UMW community. A comprehensive set of the current policies and expectations can be found at the COVID-19 information page and the policies page.
This includes the requirement that all unvaccinated employees, students and visitors are required to wear masks inside any university building and are strongly encouraged to do so when outside in group settings.
The Fall 2021 preparedness plan ALSO stipulates that all employees, students, and visitors, regardless of vaccination status, must wear masks indoors in public spaces (which includes all classrooms, laboratories, meeting spaces, foyers and hallways, and auditoriums) through at least the first few weeks of the semester. Changes to this requirement will be communicated to the campus community by the COVID-19 Director and updated at the university’s COVID-19 information page.
No food is permitted in classrooms and other instructional areas; drinks permitted in closed containers only and not in areas where expressly prohibited.
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|