As a liaison at the U.S. Department of Education, J Collins watched as colleges by the dozen rolled out varsity esports programs, complete with scholarships, coaches and even some arenas.
Collins had a gnawing concern: Gaming was beginning to have an impact on education, and at least anecdotally, the benefits were going largely toward male students.
Now, Collins is on the ground attempting to solve a puzzle that’s perplexed an industry approaching $1 billion revenues — where are all the female gamers?
Collins helped a private school near Cleveland become the first U.S. all-girls school to launch a varsity esports program during last school year. With Collins as coach, the 10-person team at Hathaway Brown competed against local schools and libraries, with players ranging from novices to avid gamers. The players reported many of the benefits associated with traditional sports — bonding, teamwork and improved confidence among them — and some say they might pursue college scholarships. Collins hopes the program can set an example for how high schools can attract more girl and gender minority gamers so they can take advantage of expanding opportunities at the university level.
Collins has a background in game-based education and was the first to broach the topic of esports at the Department of Education late in President Barack Obama’s final term. Football became a go-to analogy — the sport has impacted high school and college education in major ways, with resources poured into aiding its almost exclusively male participants.
Esports has already begun to spread in similar fashion. Over 100 colleges have varsity esports programs, and more are joining each year, with many smaller schools using teams as recruiting tools. That expansion could open doors for students of all genders, especially since video games don’t have the same physical barriers as most traditional sports.
“There was an imperative for us to be involved with it from an early outset, so that we could ensure there was equity across implementations,” Collins said.
Denne historien er fra July 26, 2019-utgaven av AppleMagazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra July 26, 2019-utgaven av AppleMagazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
AUSTRALIA PROPOSES LEGAL MINIMUM AGE FOR CHILDREN ACCESSING SOCIAL MEDIA
The Australian government this week promised to legislate this year to enforce a minimum age for children to access social media, but it has yet to announce how ages will be verified.
SWEDEN JOINS COUNTRIES SEEKING TO END SCREEN TIME FOR CHILDREN UNDER 2
Sweden says children under the age of 2 should not be exposed to any digital screens.
TELEGRAM CEO DEFENDS HIMSELF AGAINST FRENCH CHARGES IN FIRST PUBLIC COMMENTS
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov promised to step up efforts to fight criminality on the messaging app, his first public comments since French authorities handed him preliminary charges for allegedly allowing the platform’s use for criminal activity.
GOOGLE AND APPLE LOSE THEIR COURT FIGHTS AGAINST THE EU AND OWE BILLIONS IN FINES AND TAXES
Google lost its last bid to overturn a European Union antitrust penalty, after the bloc's top court ruled against it Tuesday in a case that came with a whopping fine and helped jumpstart an era of intensifying scrutiny for Big Tech companies.
EU'S TOP COURT DISMISSES APPLE'S FINAL APPEAL AGAINST ORDER TO PAY IRELAND 13B EUROS IN BACK TAXES
Apple this week lost its last bid to avoid paying 13 billion euros ($14.34 billion) in back taxes to Ireland, in a finale to a dispute with the European Union that centered on sweetheart deals that Dublin was offering to attract multinational businesses with minimal taxes across the 27-nation bloc. The final decision by the EU's top court was quickly hailed as a landmark victory over corporate greed.
US POSTAL SERVICE SQUEEZE ON SHIPPING CONSOLIDATORS COULD RAISE CONSUMER COSTS
The U.S. Postal Service said this week that it is ending discounts that shipping consolidators such as UPS and DHL use to get packages to the nation's doorsteps, in a move meant to help the Postal Service slow losses but that could see the higher costs passed on to consumers.
BATTERY-POWERED DEVICES ARE OVERHEATING MORE OFTEN ON PLANES AND RAISING ALARM
Devices powered by lithium-ion batteries are overheating more often during airline flights and passengers often put them in checked bags that go into the cargo hold, where a fire might not be detected as quickly.
GEORGIA SCHOOL SHOOTING HIGHLIGHTS FEARS ABOUT CLASSROOM CELLPHONE BANS
Huddling for safety in classrooms as gunfire rang out, students at Apalachee High School texted or called their parents to let them know what was happening and send what they thought could be their final messages. One student texted her mother to say she loved her, adding, “I’m sorry I’m not the best daughter.”
TEXAS PARENTS GAIN NEW TOOLS TO CONTROL THEIR TEEN'S SOCIAL MEDIA USE
Parents of Texas children under 18 can now monitor and restrict their child's activity on digital platforms including Facebook and Instagram - but only if they know their child uses the service.
APPLE EMBRACES THE AI CRAZE WITH ITS NEWLY UNLEASHED IPHONE 16 LINEUP
Apple on Monday charged into the artificial intelligence craze with a new iPhone lineup that marks the company’s latest attempt to latch onto a technology trend and transform it into a cultural phenomenon.