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October 24, 2005 (Monday)

Gender and Play [Meeting]

Chess for Girls? [Online Class Reader]

Cassell, J., & Jenkins, H. (1998). Chess for Girls? Feminism and Computer Games. In J. Cassell & H. Jenkins (Eds.), From Barbie to Mortal Kombat (pp. 2-45). Cambridge: MIT Press.
Download this reading. [Password protected: use your UIUC Active Directory Password for access.]

Online Gaming Culture [Web Reading]

PROJECT PROSPECTUS DUE [Deadline]

DUE: Post your prospectus as an entry on your blog before class begins. It must be at least the equivalent of two pages of effort. It may include multimedia. Consult handouts listed at the top of the Project Page for more details.

Advice to Help You Get an "A"
(Not all of this will apply to all projects.)

• Don't forget to do the four things required: (1) Name and describe your "old" or "existing" or "inspirational" playful tech, (2) name and introduce your new playful tech, (3) mention what elements from the menu you expect to use (attaching a list at the end is fine), (4) mention the readings and concepts that will be most useful.
• You may want to explain what you will do for your fieldwork and how it will assist you in your design, if fieldwork will be particularly important in your work.
• It is often useful to spend some time additional time on just a few (2-3) items from the list of project elements that you selected. Many projects have a few elements that are important elements for the design. Explain these key elements in detail. That is, say what you plan to do to address them -- you could spend 1 paragraph each.
• Remember that you are graded on your mastery of course material and not on how marketable or how cool your playful technology turns out. Cite course concepts and readings that are relevant in a way that shows that you understand them. For example, writing, "I will define play (Sutton-Smith, 1997)," is too vague to demonstrate anything.
• It is often helpful to look back over the course schedule, your notes, and list of readings to refresh your memory about things that were covered earlier in the course. Are there particular ideas in the lectures or readings that you found provocative or interesting? Are there particular ideas that are obviously relevant to your project? If so, these are course materials your should return to, mention in your proposal, and use to develop your project.
• Have a good writer proofread your proposal very carefully. (See the Writing Requirements and Expectations [PDF, 1 page] handout for more details).

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Last modified: Friday November 21, 2008.
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