Valid Gains Through Video Games (VGTVG) is officially coming!

WHEN: Thursday, April 27, 2023, from 5:30 PM (EST) until 8:30 PM (EST)

WHERE: Online via Zoom (synchronous)

We just received word that the inaugural 2023 installment of VGTVG will be supported, in part, by a Creativity and Research Grant from Monmouth University. Thanks to this generous funding, we're able to craft a terrific learning experience that will allow for thought-provoking information to be disseminated by the following three carefully curated speakers:

JAMES YORK is a Senior Assistant Professor at Meiji University in Tokyo, Japan. His 60-minute talk is titled "Let’s get ludic: Unleashing the power of games and play in educational contexts."

Games in education.” What comes to mind first? Math Blaster? Minecraft? How about charades? Or, Simon Says? Maybe even “Kahoots,” right? OK. Let’s start there! In this talk, James will introduce a framing concept for discussing games in education, focusing on the humans involved. We’ll start with oft-confused concepts of gamification and game-based learning, and wrap them both up in the term “ludic.” Thus, the bulk of the talk will be spent exploring what it means to be a ludic teacher: 1) using playful objects, or 2) being playful with objects at hand. James will share many examples from his own teaching contexts as a language teacher in Japan, and as a father. A plethora of games and playful activities will be introduced for you to use in your own contexts.

TANNER HIGGIN is the Editorial Director, Learning Content at Common Sense Education in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. His 30-minute talk is titled, "The future of game-based learning isn't more educational games."

As Johan Huizinga has written, "All play means something." Or, to put it another way, wherever there's play there's learning. And yet in schools, so few games count as "educational." This talk will explore how we break this pattern; not by developing better "educational games," but by giving teachers tools and training to connect all kinds of play to curriculum

CLAUDETTE BAÑARES GINDRAUX is a Senior Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist in a Hospital-based Outpatient Clinic in Los Angeles, California, USA. Her 30-minute talk is titled, "Getting on their level: Using video games in speech and language therapy."

Speech and language therapy supports a child’s ability to communicate their thoughts, ideas, emotions, and needs with their loved ones. Pediatric speech-language pathologist, Claudette Bañares Gindraux, discusses how video games can be used as an effective tool during speech and language therapy to improve functional communication and foster strong relationships between caregivers and children with complex communication needs. Educators, therapists, and caregivers can learn more about how to utilize video games in speech and language therapy with multimodal communicators.

Stay tuned for more updates as we inch closer to Thursday, April 27, 2023.