Don’t you forget about me

dramandaford78 1 Comment

Hi

I felt it was time to remind everyone that there is education outside of universities and schools. Namely colleges yes, we are here, we exist and hey we even teach courses in games development.

OK I’m being a bit flippant there, but I want to remind everyone that there are other options when you leave school or are thinking of a career change.  I also want to shout out to industry that we exist, and we do produce graduates that overall do go on to university to continue and get their honours degree before entering the workforce.

Why am I even mentioning this? Well, it’s become clearer to me over the past couple of years being involved with Scottish Games Week and leading on the Education Symposium that I’ve heard a lot of talks from industry (and seen other events run) that people just point blank don’t mention college level education. As a college lecturer attending such talks its so disheartening to hear people who do give great talks but then talk about university students and that’s it.  I want people to recognise that colleges also play a part in the games industry, and we work hard to ensure the best for our students to enable them to head off to university for the last 2 years of their degree and gain employment.

For me this is why I set up Scottish Games Education Network to bring together those who teach games but also with the hope that along with Scottish Games Network there will be a better recognition of how the education landscape flows and it’s not just school then uni but can be school, college then uni or even school, life then college & uni.

My hope is that educators within both colleges and universities will get together and talk about courses and how we can ensure the best for our students while also having the opportunity to have interactions with industry which for the best part really has only been open to university. So far between the network and Scottish Games Week things are moving which is awesome and I want to continue with the momentum but also want everyone to realise we aka college lecturers are there teaching and doing our best to ensure a bright future for our students.

Digital literacy before any digital project

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Games based learning, coding & esports. How many in education are probably fed up with the latest fad – looking at the primary teachers here mainly. Who let’s face it have a tough job as is.  But you’re not a primary teacher I hear folk say so why do you care in the least. Well, you are right I’m not, but I am a lecturer in college I’ve also had a lot of experience in projects working with primary schools which is where my experience comes in.  So why am I talking about this because I think some things need said however please take into account these are purely my own thoughts. Last week saw Brian Baglow of Scottish Games Network kick of his workshop roadshow for the Scottish Games Strategy and something that I want to be clear from the start is that its needed and education is vital BUT its not something we can start doing from primary – well not in the every kids got to be a gamer and make games yada yada.  We need to learn and trying to include things like GBL/coding/esports just is not feasible at primary level (as a must in the education system – extracurricular is fine).

I think that first and foremost literacy and numeracy are the number one skill followed by digital literacy (without the 2 former this one becomes hard). I’m not against things like GBL/coding/esports but at the same time not all schools are equal, not all local authorities are equal and therefore educationally children across the country have different experiences. There is still great disparity in computing education within Scotland, which is why asking for a N5 computing as an entry requirement could be an issue as not all schools deliver (this is just an example). 

But wait you have a PhD, and it was about teaching children to make games an dhow to code. Yes, I do but since then I’ve now spent a lot more time working in college and get to see our students who come from school with varying digital skills. It’s made me think that the whole needing to be able to use a pc and the packages makes far more sense first then yeah coding etc.  However, things like iPad programs do kind of hinder this a bit as well. Sorry but they might be able to navigate their way round apps but even the basics of using a pc (file management I’m looking at you) can be a nightmare.

All young people should be leaving secondary school with the same level of digital literacy (regardless of any who take a computing related subject) there needs to be a baseline for sure. I also get the fascination for games whether its for GBL or esports(err I teach it ) but again disparity across the country and access to the infrastructure – that goes for digital literacy I guess as well. However, I feel that by using these the basics are being forgotten. Before anyone uses the term Digital natives – no, no and NO. Just because you were brought up in the digital world, does not mean you are proficient in using the technology – I know the babies can get their apps – that is mimicry though. Theres the good old well they are so good on their phones yeah, they can Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram but that’s not any use when you are on a course that requires computing use. They may be social media literate but not digitally literate and that’s something we need to be aware of.

Once children have those skills then it will help them be able to transfer the knowledge to whatever it is that interests them.

Extra fries? Naw exercise !

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Yeah I know cheesy title hmm chips and cheese lol. OK I know however want to discuss a wee change. Now I am an educator and want to ensure the best for my students for sure and when a call went out for students in one of our other courses who needed help well the clever one here decided ach why not. After all we were all students once right needing some help? I’ll also go back to what a friend and former colleague/mentor Julie said to me before giving my first lecture go do something that scares you and well I did by sending that email to say yeah I want to help the students out.

Whats so scary then you say? Well its not just any help I’m helping a HND Sports student with their personal training (for those that know me you know I am a shape but not in shape hehe). However I’ve blogged about mental health before and exercise is a real help to boost poor mental health. So I decided I have nothing to lose at all and go for it. 

Did the first week of getting the statistics and then this week was my first real workout. I was scared a bit I mean weights and all those machines that you don’t know what they do are a tad terrifying for the uninitiated. However I need not have worried for my awesome PT soon put my mind at ease. She’s a fab lady who honestly has such a great positive energy it made me feel supported and ready to take on anything she had planned. She really did take the mystical fear of weights even away from me (I’m talking dumbbells nothing bigger or the leg machine doo dah (I’ll learn). One key thing I’ll take is the communication its totally a two way thing and she’s been reminding me that I need to speak to her as well as to whats fine and whats not, mega important by the way if you are doing exercises. Since you are putting trust in someone but also you need to let them know your limits and what is comfortable or not no point in not pushing yourself or pushing too hard. Took me until now to get this down since well on Friday bits were sore haha (she warned me given its been a long time) however I am so looking forward to the next session as the positive boost when leaving on Thursday after that session its worth it and I get why it helps with your mental health. So if you see me on a Thursday after 12 and I’m cheery but knackered you’ll know why.

Our Mental Health – not just for a day.

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World mental health day oh wait I’m a day or two too late for it.  

Guess that’s it then.  See you next year.  

Wait what no why? Every day is mental health day and why? well funny enough we all have it EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US. Its just that some of us don’t have great mental health and need a bit of help to keep on going on the day to day.  

I’ve blogged previously on this especially when COVID first hit and I’d heard so much “I’ll go mental being at home for a few weeks” that spurred me into sharing my own mental health journey dealing with anxiety and depression. I’ve had ups and downs however my life changed when my daughter died in 2021 and I’m battling each day as it comes some are smoother than others, but my life will never be the same again. However, I’m far more aware of my own mental health and when I need that little bit more help than normal.  

What’s the point of your post I hear you say? Not a lot but I want to emphasise that while there are days such as World Mental Health day we need to be far more aware and remember every day is mental health day good or bad. We need to be aware of those who are having the bad days for sure and ensure they have the support needed – so please make sure you do check in on your friends that’s all it takes a wee check in especially if you know they are not being themselves.  

I’d also add given my job as a games lecturer who’s students are primarily male its OK to ask for help and honestly, please men you are not alone there will be someone willing to listen and help you.  Do you know how sad it is talking to a student who needs help but won’t go to a GP because “I’m a man and don’t get taken seriously” breaks my heart it really does and the college has great help for sure but GP help is also a must for them. You are not alone nor is it anything but trying to look after yourself to ask for help. We all matter but you know what young men You matter, you really do.  

Melanie’s Gift of Stationery

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Hi everyone as you know I’m Amanda and I’m Emma, Bethany and Melanie’s mum. Our beloved daughter and sister Melanie died in Jan 2021 suddenly age 21. We have now decided to do something to share her love for stationery that she had, and this is our way of doing so.  Never known a student to spend so much SAAS money on pen and paper hehe.

We planned on giving out some small starter school stationery packs with help from a local association. In turn though we will then look at ensuring at the start of each school year more packs are given (or in January for those going to college). Its not just a school thing its for those going to school/college/uni who might need a little start no matter what age and this way we can give something in her memory.

We have now been able to give out the first wee lot that we had and have a bunch more at home thanks to some kind donations (I’m still working on how to deal with that as well as I’m looking at becoming a proper registered charity). I want this to be something that benefits my community in Royston first and foremost given over the years they have been there for us and helped so much and now its our time to do something to give a little back and help out.

Keep up to date by following us on twitter and facebook.

Much love Amanda, Emma and Bethany x

Easter coding fun

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Its been such a long time since I’ve been able to run a coding club for children and thankfully during the Easter break I was given that opportunity thanks to funding from Digital Xtra I was along with my colleague Sean able to run a 3 day club for Renfrewshire children at our games lab in the Paisley campus.

The club was run to introduce children in the Renfrewshire area between Primary 5 and S2 to some gaming and coding in a fun environment. On day 1 we made games with Scratch, there were varying levels of knowledge given the range of ages however all the children got a game made by the end of the session. We were lucky enough to have been given funding to provide lunches each day for the participants which yes we know can be a barrier for sure for children attending.

Day 2 saw us do some storytelling with Twine this was by far the most popular day the children loved creating a chose your own adventure story in twine. We wrote out the basics first and then they used Twinery online. The children were then given a chance to create something else in Twine or make a short joke animation in Scratch which you can watch here and one or two continued to make their morning Twine story more elaborate. You can read and enjoy their stories by following this link

On the last day we made music with Microbit and made some Makey Makey game controllers. Another good session with the microbits and the children created music for the Microbit one or two of the older children created their own tunes as they played piano. The Makey Makey session they were put in to groups and got to test out various material/objects to see what would control the keyboard for the game.

To end the club the parents were invited along for the last 30 minutes to get an idea of what their children had been doing and this was relatively successful with most children having a parent or family member show up so they could show off things they had made.

For me this was such a good way to finally get back into running a club for children and I can’t wait to get more done for sure seeing how this group worked together and helped each other made it worthwhile and seeing some children totally flourish was for me the best. Though I’ll leave you with this best bit of feedback from one of the kids which made me realise yes I’ve done the right thing and they will remember this for sure.

Thank you DigitalXtra for this opportunity.

We all dream about making changes

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So a couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about my good friend Brian and how it was inspired by some poetry my darling Melanie wrote.  Brians dream was Scottish Games week and man did he work hard to make it happen it did and was a roaring success. I saw the similarity I guess with someone having a vision and making it come true and yes before anyone says they are 2 different scales of things but I’m not comparing impact merely that if you have a dream you follow it and make it happen.

I only found these poems a couple of weeks ago I’ve been slowly taking my time but had a wee search on her laptop and found them – still feel I’m invading her privacy and its just so hard to break that but harder knowing she’ll not give me into trouble for looking either.

Melanies poems are about Jim Cronin MBE who set up Monkey World in Dorset in 1987 along with Jeremy Keeling. Melanie admired they work they did when she got to know about them around 2011 and we then became big fans of the show Monkey Life. In 2012 she won a competition which was a pass to the park (Dorset’s not really round the corner now) However in 2013 I made the trip with my girls and we had the best time getting to be there seeing all those amazing primates that had been rescued in one way or another either home or abroad.  It really made her mind up in wanting to work with animals in one way or another when she left school as well as Jim his wonderful wife Alison was a big inspiration to Melanie and she also totally adored Jeremy just for his quiet get the work done and care for the primates never mind anything else attitude. This got her to study Science at college and then move to Zoology at Uni sadly she passed away through her 3rd year at Glasgow Uni and never got to realise her own dream of one day going to work at Monkey World.

I have sent these to Alison and Jeremy just to share my daughters thoughts of their best friend and hope they love it as much as I’ve done reading.

Monkey World do amazing things to support these awesome primates but as with everything could always do with some help https://monkeyworld.org/ they are well worth supporting for sure I use my Amazon Smile to support the Jim Cronin Foundation and its not much but every little helps for them.

For me my change and dream will be in what I do through games education and thats why I’ve started up the Scottish Games Education Network as we all have to start somewhere. I’m passionate about my work and want us to get to a stage where we all can work together for the good of our students.

Thanks Brain

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So I’ve finally found a bit of strength and got to looking at some of my Melanies files on her laptop and found a beautiful poem she wrote about Jim Cronin from Monkey World which I’ll make another special post for. However the opening line of “there once was a dream” made me think about something I’ve been involved in for the past 6 months namely Scottish Games Week which kicks off on Monday.

Why is this even relevant you ask well SGW is the brainchild of the one and only Brian Baglow (or the brian child of Brain Baglow who knows). Brian’s a friend and his dream of making our amazing Scottish games industry stand up and be noticed as the amazing creative industry it is by the world is getting there. SGW is his way of showcasing what we have to offer and he roped in his friends to help him make it happen. His passion and energy and hard work to make this happen (with a few nudges and telling offs from his merry band Friday lunches wont be the same without our group Zoom calls) are what’s going to make next week so amazing. Although Monday/Tuesdays events are sold out there are still a few tickets for the industry conference on Thursday/Friday left and if you use this link you can get a special discount on them.

https://www.citizenticket.co.uk/events/scottish-games-week/scottish-games-week-industry-conference/?code=SGW/IC2022

So thank you Mr B for being you and pushing on championing Scottish Games. Next week is going to be EPIC thanks to you and your vision. I can’t wait to start planning next years after you’ve had a wee break. You inspire me to want to ensure that I make the education network for games the best it can be so we can make everything games in Scotland pure dead brilliant.

Follow the rules

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All the news recently about partygate has really got me angered. Various events being attended by certain politicians while the rest of us do our bit and follow the rules.  

I lost my daughter Melanie on January 21st, 2021, and even the day before my contact was limited until we knew that there was a very really possibility that this was our final time together because we followed the rules.  

She was admitted to A& E early on the 20th while I waited, and I got to briefly see her before she was whisked away for scans etc and had to head home to wait for a call because they were following the rules. 

I was told that she would be moved hospital that day as they had no non covid beds left for her. I was told that when she would get moved, I would get a facetime call with her because they were following the rules.  

I was allowed to visit her while still following the rules.  

I was allowed immediate family to say goodbye because we followed the rules.  

I was able to have my parents with me when we said the final goodbye again, we followed the rules. 

In the days that followed her death we followed the rules.  

No stream of family coming through my house because we followed the rules.  

No interactions with colleagues and friends because we followed the rules.  

Organising a funeral through covid was hard when you follow the rules. 

I had to give a list of 19 other people who would attend – why because we followed the rules.  

The day of the funeral I had to only have a few people in my house before we left because we followed the rules.  

People had to line the street we stayed in and had to stand outside the building at the crematorium again we followed the rules.  

People were counted as they went into the building because we were following the rules.  

I had to stream my daughter’s funeral to those who were not allowed to be inside with me because we followed the rules.  

No one was allowed to carry her coffin because we followed the rules.  

No hugging anyone because we followed the rules.  

No wake or going back to my house with everyone because we followed the rules.  

My daughter did not get a proper funeral because we followed the rules.  

Why did we bother following the rules when it caused so much pain and still does to this day when the Prime Minister and his like couldn’t be bothered to follow the rules themselves what was the point of them then?  

Why did they get special treatment when we had to follow the rules and get hurt in the process while they had fun?  

I know I am only one person and there were many more affected in similar situations by following the rules over that period of time and we all wonder why did we have to go through that?  

Careers Advice?

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I’m not the best person probably to give advice but I’ll share anyway.  I recently stumbled on something 14-year-old me said that well they wanted to be a nursery teacher yup I said that out loud for the world on Radio – well West of Scotland to hear at one point (if you know you know, if you don’t, ask and I may share).

Point is I wanted to be a nursery teacher and then got told at some point in school nah you should aim higher as you are too brainy for that sort of job.  I went into 5th year not knowing then what I should do and well grasped at straws during 6th year, then when UCAS time came around (yes kids UCAS was around then and at that time cost £15) I was thrown into well what are you applying for and why aren’t you going to Uni open days so I clung to the only thing I enjoyed – Maths and applied to universities for that. It was short lived, and I ended up dropping out of uni and going to do voluntary work with Stepping Stones for Families (did a few months with awesome folk working with kids). Life moved on and well children and a job later then I moved back to study.  I chose Computing as that’s what caught me during my work life. Small matter of earnings which I thought was important at that time – kind of was as when computing guy left work it was me who got asked questions and yeah, I was nowhere near the scale this guy was getting paid.  Computing/gaming has always been an interest of mine from when I was a kid (we were the first family in the street to have a Spectrum despite being in a very less affluent area).  This moved through computer games and my younger brother getting consoles to finally me studying at school about it.  So anyway, back to uni I went and lo and behold landed a job – degree then PhD studies – 8 years ago lecturing (3 years into the PhD). I’d like to give the Disney story of happy ever after but yeah got the first job which was only a few hours a week which soon mounted to 2 jobs and more hours. Granted not being full time suited as by this point, I was a single parent to 3 school aged children. At one point I was working 4 different jobs teaching however while this sounds awful gave me experience and one that’s probably a bit rarer as I was able to work in college and university concurrently and so saw the path my college students chose. In one case I ended up teaching students at uni that I had taught at college. While this may sound odd it was a great insight for me and I was able to share that with colleagues from both institutions to help inform progression which I still try to share to this date.

Ok so I have digressed a little (well a lot) why is any of this important. Honestly, I don’t know until you read that statement of “you are too brainy for that type of job” I have my sister-in-law (and her sister) who would strongly disagree on that and I would now as well. Like why would I be too brainy?  How is that even a thing? Sorry, but shaping the future must be THE most important job? I’ve seen what nursery teachers do, it’s not just play, play, play. There’s so much more thought behind what that play is and preparing them for what comes next. It’s not just leave them to it but so much thought and care goes into nurturing your child and well every child in that room.  That goes for all teachers I’m not saying other stage teachers are less important as everyone plays their part in shaping education however nursery teachers are our children’s first interactions with any form of education. I know only too well how important all my girls nursery education was to them – granted they all had varying experience my oldest went when she was 3, middle 2 and youngest 16 months. But it was so important to them all.

 I have only really appreciated how wrong that statement was in the past few years as I have become responsible for students coming through our courses. I would never dream of telling a student that their choice is based on their intellect (how can you fully even judge anyway – every student is unique and has their own interests, so we all don’t get the same version of that student). Some students open up only when they are fully invested in a particular area that really captures them and if its not something you teach then that’s fine you are still part of their journey and still need to ensure they do their best. As an example, I teach 3D modelling to HND Games students and it’s a bit of a marmite thing. For those who love it they are invested and may apply to uni to study 3D work. For those who hate it – they have gained a whole new appreciation of the 3D artists out there and see the bigger picture of how the games development process works. There’s a certain frustration in 3D work that sends students either way. But that doesn’t mean anyone gives up far from it. Those who don’t like it don’t just give up they try their hardest and work on their project but get a sense of relief when it’s handed in and over and done with. However, it at least shapes the understanding of the whole process that all parts (design, art & programming) are needed to create that game – as well as planning and getting things documented. For me what I’m trying to say is no matter what your student wants to study never discourage them. Even if you, yourself have no confidence or knowledge in the subject area your student want’s to pursue then find out more don’t just dismiss it. Did you know even from a young age girls are put off subjects like maths due to teacher confidence in the subject. So yeah ask your local college/university even ask the question on Twitter but don’t just dismiss what your student wants to study as something they can’t do as they are to intelligent for or just because you don’t know. Heck when I was a kid being a games lecturer wasn’t a thing to be fair we did at least have a computer in the P7 class (classic BBC Micro)!!