In October, I was honoured to lead a discussion about games and learning in the classroom at the Melbourne Games for Change Asia Pacific festival.

 

Strangely, I felt G4C was catching up with me in New Zealand. At the same time, it also seemed like I had come full circle with G4C because it has been instrumental in shaping the work that brought me here. More than anything, I was extremely proud to contribute to G4C's ongoing conversations about how we use games for impact.

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I started attending the G4C festivals in 2009, when it was a small gathering of game developers and academics. The entire conference occupied a single room in the basement of the NYU Science Building. As a classroom teacher, I felt out of my depth but also found the discussions fascinating.

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It was impressive to see how G4C has grown to have a global reach since then. I couldn't help but think about my professional journey and reflect on how G4C influenced my practice. The sessions I attended over the years challenged and refined my thinking about designing relevant learning spaces for students. 

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One of the most formative presentations I heard was James Paul Gee's 2012 keynote. He shared his research about the learning in affinity spaces that developed around games. I had already observed the phenomenon with my students using virtual platforms I provided in my classroom. Gee's presentation helped me refine my understanding and galvanised my passion for creating these learning spaces, both real and virtual, for my students. 

 

During Gee's keynote Q&A session (49:00), I asked him how we get developers to build these kinds of spaces. I laugh to listen to that now because it became my mantra over the years that followed. It paid off because I started working with many excellent developers. My students and I play-tested their awesome Products and gave feedback. However, getting a developer to build an affinity platform for the classroom continued to elude me until I moved to New Zealand. 

 

Jim Taylor and Theta not only took on my challenge, they did the unthinkable; they wanted to build it with client input. They didn't ask the teachers what they wanted; Theta asked the students! That blew my mind. No one had EVER consulted with my students in the pre-production of a product meant for them. It's weird if you think about it because what developer doesn't consider their end user? 

 

CEO Rob Lee explained to me that Theta does not develop in isolation. Theta believes it is essential to connect with the community to create meaningful products. It's so simple, logical, and shocking that it is such a unique approach when working with students. Both Theta and Newlands Intermediate have seen the positive impact of this strategy. Mixiply is now a remarkable XR maker space gaining attention globally. Its eloquent design was shaped by how students work, connect and collaborate. 

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It is powerful for students to work with real developers, contribute their ideas, know they have been heard and have helped to shape and create an authentic platform.

 

Theta and the MiniDevs have collaborated on this project over the last six years. While Mixiply and MiniDevs continually evolve, the one thing that remains consistent is that we continue to meet weekly. The MiniDevs who have gone on to high school come back to join us. It is OUR affinity space. You can see by the promo they created to recruit new students what being a MiniDev means to them.

 

I'm grateful that Theta has invested in building something so meaningful for students. Imagine how we could make an even more significant impact on education if more developers took Theta's lead and teamed up with students to co-design meaningful products for their community.