BIOGRAPHY
Born and raised in County Clare, Ireland, Fiona began working on her research doctorate in Edinburgh in the fall of 2003. She holds a bachelor in commerce and a masters in management science both from university college Dublin, Ireland. Her doctorate research began in November 2003 and is due to be complete in November 2006. Prior to beginning her research in Edinburgh she worked in University College Dublin faculty of business managing and implementing educational technology.
EXHIBIT
Game Boys and Game Girls in Higher Education
Thursday & Friday
From thirty years ago when a Pong prototype was first switched on in Andy Capp's bar in California, the computer and video games industry has grown to a $30 billion worldwide industry. As video game playing becomes more widespread, and increasing numbers of video game playing students enter higher education, there has been a surge in the number of researchers studying gaming. Research topics vary from considering the reasons people play games and investigating the implementation of these games in education, to looking at the effects this video game playing culture has on the individual and the effects of the game playing culture on society. This exhibit presents an overview of doctoral research currently being carried out in the School of Education at the University of Edinburgh. Through interviews and surveys, the research explores the culture of video gaming among students in higher education in the UK, highlights the perceptions and approaches to formal learning of the students immersed in this culture and investigates how this culture impacts on approaches to higher education. The research aims to understand who these video game players are, the nature of the game playing culture , and how this culture impacts on higher education. To understand these issues it is crucial to bring to bear the work of researchers such as Malone, Papert and Gee on why people play video games and the learning benefits of game play. Preliminary results from the current research, along with a summary of the relevant literature, will be presented.