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La mia conferenza su videogiochi e apprendimento linguistico e culturale per il Festival della cultura videoludica Game Ground di Bolzano – 21 ottobre 2021 / My conference on video games and foreign language & culture acquisition at Game Ground in Bolzano, Italy, October 21, 2021

Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed Discovery Tour, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Game-Based Learning, Gamification, Intensive Italian for Gamers @SLU, Intro to the Classical Humanities, Learning, Education and Games, Microsoft, Non-serious gaming, Online Education, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox



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https://fb.watch/8NU43cMC11/

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My three chapters in Learning, Education & Games vol. 3

Assassin's Creed Discovery Tour, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Discovery Tour, Game-Based Learning, Gamification, Intensive Italian for Gamers @SLU, Learning, Education and Games, LEG 3, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, VGBL in F/L2 Publications, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

My three short chapters for LEG BOOK 3 were published on November 20, 2019!

The volume “Learning Education & Games – Vol. 3 – 100 Games to Use in the Classroom & Beyond”,  a guide for educators, parents, researchers, designers, written by members of the @IGDA, @LearningEdGames, SIG, #edgames #igda, @etcpress, @IGDANYC, #teachers, #educators is available in print version and as a free download at http://press.etc.cmu.edu/index.php/product/learning-education-games-volume-3/.

I wrote on The Invisible Hours and Rise of the Tomb Raider and a co-authored a chapter on the Assassin’s Creed series.

@HoursInvisible
@tombraider
@assassinscreed

 

Presentation on Gamification & Video Game-Based Learning in the High School Classroom at the SLU 1818 Foreign Language Professional Training Day, & SLU Esports.

Assassin's Creed Discovery Tour, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Discovery Tour, Esports, Game-Based Learning, Gamification, Intro to the Classical Humanities, Learning, Education and Games, Microsoft, Nintendo, Non-serious gaming, PlayLink, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

Today I spoke on gamification and video game-based learning at the Saint Louis University 1818 Foreign Language Professional Training Day, organized by the Department of Languages, Literatures, & Cultures.

Glad to have met such a dynamic group of dedicated high-school foreign language teachers! Their students in Italian, French, Spanish, Russian, Classics and Chinese receive SLU credits. My presentation, “Video game-based learning in the high-school classroom?” was very well received.

On a related note, today I was asked and accepted to serve on the SLU Esports Advisory Committee. Looking forward to spearheading the educational value of Esports at my institution.

S. Bregni, Video Game-Based Learning as a Preparatory Device & Simulation Strategies for Study Abroad Programs, Beyond – The ISI Florence & Umbra Institute Journal of International Education, 2, 2019.

Game-Based Learning, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, VGBL in F/L2 Publications, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

Thank you ISI Florence and The Umbra Institute. My new article on video game-based learning, (Digital) Narrow Streets of Cobblestone: Game-Based Learning as a Preparatory Device & Simulation Strategies for Study Abroad Programs, appeared today on the new issue of Beyond – The ISI Florence & Umbra Institute Journal of International Education:

https://www.beyondjournal.online/post/video-game-based-learning-as-a-preparatory-device-simulation-strategies-for-study-abroad-programs

Abstract
For decades now, video games have been a pervasive part of our culture (NBCNews.com, 2013). About half of all American adults play video games (Duggan,
2015), while 97% of teen boys and 83% of teen girls also play video games
(Anderson & Jiang, 2018).
The potential for utilizing gaming in learning has been explored in a variety of
fields, including language acquisition (e.g., Reinders, 2012). Some commercially available cinematic video games are fully-interactive multimedia experiences. Thus, including such games in the curriculum as realia (Spurr, 1942; Dlaska, 2003) can help students reinforce, and expand upon, materials they learn through traditional methods. Realia reinforce second/foreign language (F/L2) acquisition through development of specific personal interests. Cinematic games, similar in nature to movies, also add agency, which improves learning (Deters et al., 2014). They also involve problem-solving and critical thinking that can be applied to group interaction, all of which is particularly conducive to learning (Wenger, 1998) and F/L2 acquisition (Nunan, 1992). Video games can
contribute to the goal of transforming our students into life-long learners of (a)
F/L2 language(s), a process explored by CALL (e.g., Smith, 1997).
This article is a case study on teaching practices with video game-based learning, its benefits in the foreign language classroom and, in a more general sense,
in second/foreign language & culture acquisition (F/L2). I argue that utilizing
video games as part of F/L2 experiences, including in the different phases of
the study abroad experience (pre-departure, during the program, and post-departure), can enhance the learning of F/L2 language and culture. Video games
are simulations that challenge, based on repetition, which involve players at a
deep level, thus affording agency. In recent cinematic “AAA” commercial video
game titles, the simulation aspect engages players in a dialogue-based, narrative context that can prepare students for real-life conversations. The article
also serves as a practicum, by providing suggestions on how to use commercial video games to enhance language & culture acquisition as part of independent, autonomous students’ learning that educators and administrators
can foster, structured learning experiences such as study abroad (including
pre- and post-departure), and courses.

Keywords: Game-based learning, CALL, CAI, gamification, foreign languages,
second language acquisition, SLA, video game-based learning, VGBL, gaming,
non-serious gaming, Italian, Italian as a Second Language, Assassin’s Creed,
Tomb Raider, Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, Sony PlayLink.

* This research was supported in part by a fellowship and an award from the Saint Louis University Reinert Center

#VGBL , #gamebasedlearning, #studyabroad, #studyabroadprograms, #italian, #italy, #esl, #sla, #fla, #videogames, #CALL, #CAI, #Gamification, #Gaming

Gamification and (Video) Game-Based Learning in the Second/Foreign Language Classroom – Roundtable Session at the AAIS 2019 Conference – Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC

AAIS 2019, Game-Based Learning, Microsoft, Nintendo, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

On Friday, March 15, 2019, I presented in the roundtable session “Gamification and (Video) Game-Based Learning in the Second/Foreign Language Classroom” at the American Association of Italian Studies Conference at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC with fellow Italianists Prof. Camilla Zamboni, Wesleyan University and Dr. Brandon Essary, Elon University. Prof. Zamboni talked about analog “AAA” games, board games and RPG’s, while Dr. Essary and I shared our developments on using “AAA” video game titles.
The session was very well attended and we received very positive feedback.

[Photo: Dr. Bregni (center) with co-panelists Prof. Camilla Zamboni, Wesleyan University, and Dr. Brandon Essary, Elon University]

My Interview with the National Museum of Language

Game-Based Learning, Microsoft, National Museum of Language, Nintendo, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

Grazie/Thank you National Museum of Language for your interview! The interview was published on 3/19:

http://languagemuseum.org/interview-with-simone-bregni-professor-at-saint-louis-university/

I talk about my passion for language learning, video game-based learning with “AAA” titles and my methodology (Identify, Acquire, Create), my research and teaching practices at Saint Louis University, Intensive Italian for Gamers, Assassin’s Creed and Sega’s Shenmue as the best game to learn Japanese language and culture.

 

Presentation in the Session “Can AAA Games Be Used to Improve Education?” at the SXSW EDU Conference in Austin, TX – March 6, 2019

Game-Based Learning, Nintendo, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Game-Based Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

On Wednesday, March 6, 2019, I presented in the session “Can AAA Games Be Used to Improve Education?” at the SXSW EDU Conference in Austin, TX. The session was organized by Maxime Durand, Ubisoft’s historian in charge of the Assassin’s Creed series.
The session was very well received, with a lively Q&A session at the end, and very positive feedback.

https://schedule.sxswedu.com/2019/events/PP85160

Session Description:

Playing videogames has become an integral part of mankind’s cultural habits. A huge gap still divides “AAA” entertainment games (such as Assassin’s Creed) from “serious’’ games (games created by educators for specific educational purposes) in terms of appeal and defined learning objectives. Using data and sharing their own in-class experience, the panelists discussed how AAA games can help advance learning (formal and informal) for students at all stages of their education, from grade school to college.

It was a pleasure to present with Maxime Durand and Brian Stottlemyer, and I look forward to collaborating with them in the future.

Thank you Maxime Durand @TriFreako and @Ubisoft for a great professional opportunity!

A Productive Sabbatical – Spring Semester 2018

Microsoft, Nintendo, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

During my sabbatical in spring 2018, I traveled to Asti, Italy, where I continued conducting research on video game-based learning (VGBL); coordinating contacts with colleagues in the field, who are interested and willing to cooperate on research projects; writing invited articles and chapter contributions; and delivering a series of invited lectures and workshops based on my research, expertise and teaching practices at academic institutions in Spain, Italy and Austria. Both my workshop and presentation formats were created with the assistance of the Saint Louis University Reinert Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning. Some of my research was founded by the James H. Korn Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award, which I received in fall 2017 for developing and teaching “Intensive Italian for Gamers.” The course, which applies game-based learning and digital media to second/foreign language acquisition, will be offered again at SLU in spring 2019.

While on sabbatical:

• I gave six invited presentations and workshops on VGBL at academic institutions in Spain, Italy and Austria.
I performed outcomes assessment and results have been very favorable. Over 95% of the participants gave favorable feedback on my presentations and workshops.

• I gave invited lectures on VGBL at three high-schools in the Piedmont region, Italy.

• I had an article published in Profession, the Journal of the Modern Language Association. The article, which was published on April 14, 2018, and the related SLU press release, resulted in a cascade of international recognition for me; for the Italian Studies Program; for the Department of Languages, Literatures & Cultures; for Saint Louis University; and for the SLU Reinert Center. In fact, as of today (August 19, 2018) over 100 news sources from all over the world have cited and/or reprinted my scholarship and teaching practice. Also, I was interviewed by several national and international news sources (radio, newspapers, educational).

• I submitted final revisions for one article; also submitted one invited book chapter, and three short chapters.

• I made substantial progress on suggested editorial formatting revisions to my manuscript on Dante’s Divine Comedy, “Locus Amoenus: Imitatio intertestuale/Interdiscorsiva nella Commedia (Intertextual/Interdiscoursive Imitatio in Dante’s Comedy.)” Final edits will be submitted to Longo Editore, Italy, in late September, 2018.

Presentations and Workshops
• On Wednesday, February 14, 2018, I delivered the workshop “(E-)Life is (not) Strange: Using Video Games in Foreign/Second Language Acquisition” to an audience of professors, instructors and MA students in Spanish and ESL at the New York University Campus in Madrid.

• On Thursday, February 15, I delivered a presentation entitled “Assassin’s Creed Taught Me a Foreign Language: Video Games in Second/Foreign Language & Culture Acquisition” to students and faculty at the SLU Madrid campus.

• On Thursday, March 8 and Friday, March 9, 2018, I delivered two VGBL sessions to an audience of instructors and students in Italian at the Spring Hill College Campus in Bologna.

• On Friday, March 16, 2018, I delivered delivered a 3-hour seminar on VGBL in Foreign/Second Language Acquisition to an audience of approximately seventy first-year students in Modern Languages in Prof. Elisa Corino’s Didattica delle Lingue Moderne course at Università degli Studi di Torino, my Alma Mater.

• On Wednesday, June 6, 2018, I delivered one presentation (Video Games & Learning in Higher Education) and two workshops (Video Game-Based Learning in Higher Education; Video Games in Second/Foreign Language & Culture Acquisition) at the “Lehre und Lernen” E-Learning Conference (Teaching and Learning Days) at the Alpen-Adria University of Klagenfurt, Austria.

• On Thursday, June 14, 2018, I presented the paper “Teaching Italian for Gamers – A Textbook Project” in the session “Teaching Italian with (Video) Games” at the American Association of Italian Studies conference in Sorrento, Italy. I was also the co-organizer of the session with Dr. Brandon Essary, Elon University.

Publications
• I published the invited article “Assassin’s Creed Taught Me Italian: Video Games and the Quest for Foreign Language Acquisition” in Profession, the Journal of the Modern Language Association: https://profession.mla.hcommons.org/2018/03/22/assassins-creed-taught-me-italian/

• I submitted final revisions for “Using Video Games to Teach Italian Language & Culture: Useful, Effective, Feasible?” that will appear in NEMLA Italian Studies XXXIX special issue “The Italian Digital Classroom: Italian Culture and Literature through digital tools and social media.” Expected publication date: fall 2018.

• I submitted three short chapters (1,000-2,000 words each): Assassin’s Creed; The Invisible Hours; Rise of the Tomb Raider, accepted for inclusion in “Learning, Education & Games Vol. 3: 100 Games to Use in the Classroom,” ETC Press/Carnegie Mellon. Expected publication date: spring 2019.

Media Reception and Interviews

My research and teaching practices were quoted in stories about teaching Italian through gaming that ran in Variety, Science Daily, Newswise, Eurekalert, La Stampa (Italian national newspaper), TGCom24 (Italian national TV news/website), IGN Italia, Forbes Italia, Brightsurf, Der Standard (Austrian national newspaper), Movies with Butter, Bioportfolio, PhysOrg, Science Magazine, India Today, Business Standard, The Asian Age, Tribune India, Deccan Chronicle, Hindustan Times, The University Network, St. Louis Magazine, El Mercurio, Fibonacci, Mastergame, Mid-day News, Multiplayer, Everyeye, the Google News feed, and more.
– On 4/29/18 I was interviewed in French by Radio Canada – Channel One. The interview can be found here: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/premiere/emissions/dessine-moi-un-dimanche/segments/entrevue/69870/simone-bregni-enseignement-italien-apprentissage-langues
– On 5/1/18, my course and research at SLU were mentioned on Radio Monte Carlo (Italian language radio station in the Principauté de Monaco) in the show: “Kay is in the air,” as well as on Radio Erft—Germany.
– On 5/5/18, I was interviewed on Radio Cusano Campus, the radio of Niccolò Cusano University ( https://www.unicusano.it/ ), a private institution in Rome and Milan, as part of their show “Giochi a fumetti”: https://t.co/OWVAbuhJ2K
– On 6/9/18, I was interviewed by the Italian national private radio station Radio Deejay as part of the program MegaJay about my research and teaching on video game-based learning at Saint Louis University. The interview, in Italian, is available here: https://www.deejay.it/audio/20180609-7/565158/ [40:37-43:40; comments: 46:50-54:20]
– On 6/28/18 an interview article was published by Altagram, a video game localization company based in Germany, on their company blog: https://altagram.com/learning-languages-through-gaming-interview-with-simone-bregni/
I would like to thank the SLU College of Arts & Sciences, the Reinert Center, and the Madrid Campus. I would also like to thank the NYU Madrid Campus; the Spring Hill College Bologna Campus; my alma mater, Università degli Studi di Torino; Villa Nazareth in Rome; and the Alpen-Adria University of Klagenfurt, Austria.

Photo: Dr. Bregni with 5th year students from Istituto Enogastronomico “Penna” in San Damiano d’Asti, Italy – April 2018

My Altagram Interview & More Great Video Games that Should Be Localized in Additional Languages (Italian included, Of Course) [But are Great for ESL]

Microsoft, Nintendo, Non-serious gaming, PlayStation, Sony, Switch, Video Game Localization, Video Game-Based Language Learning, Video Games in Foreign Language Teaching & Learning, Xbox

I was delighted when Altagram (altragram.com) approached me a few weeks ago about an interview for their website/company blog. My research and teaching practices are based on commercially-available video games with high-quality localization in multiple languages. The fact that a company such as Altagram showed interest in my work gave me an awareness of related areas that my research on video game-based learning and foreign language (& culture) acquisition might impact.

In my interview (available here:
https://altagram.com/learning-languages-through-gaming-interview-with-simone-bregni/)
I make two main points:

I) Some excellent current games are, alas, not localized in Italian (nor in other major languages). Such is the case of  [quotes from the Altagram interview]:

a) “Square Enix’s Life is Strange [….] is an excellent portrayal of the life of American teens in a small, Northwestern US coastal town. Life is Strange has not been fully localized in Italian, which is really unfortunate, because I would have loved to use it in my courses, since it has many topics that would “speak” to my student population, and, more importantly, it provides opportunities to discuss and develop empathy.” [Same goes for the two other games currently out and taking place in the Life is Strange universe: Life is Strange – Before the Storm, and Captain Spirit]. 

b) Tequila Works’ The Invisible Hours: “I am also disappointed that the amazingly innovative and well-written The Invisible Hours by Tequila Works has not been fully localized in Italian. But for ESL students it is an excellent learning tool: being able to observe lip movements up close and personal, especially in VR mode on PlayStation VR, greatly enhances listening comprehension, especially given the in-game ability to review and fast-forward time at will.”

“[…]not all games are fully localized as I feel they should be. Full localization is an investment that I believe all companies should make. The interest that my research and teaching practices have generated (as of today, they have been mentioned in ninety news sources of various kinds, for general audiences, educators and gamers, all over the world) show that there currently is a high interest in video games as learning devices for foreign languages and cultures.

II) The localization of lip-syncing

“I believe that the next frontier of localization will be the localization of lip-syncing also. The market of commercially-available games as foreign language learning devices may be exploding soon, as I am inclined to believe given the positive response I received regarding my research and teaching. This spring semester I was on sabbatical in my native country Italy, and while delivering presentations and workshops at a number of European institutions, I met a number of young men and women who instantly connected with what I was talking to them about, games as foreign language tools, because those kids had experienced exactly the same: they noticed that their foreign language skills improved rapidly while playing video games.

Currently, I believe that the Assassin’s Creed series [by Ubisoft] and games by Quantic Dream are excellent examples of strong localization, which, to me, is much more than “simple” translation. High-quality localization makes every single in-game data and reference fully understandable and accessible to people from other cultures.”

Other excellent examples of video game localization are the 2013-present day Tomb Raider series by Square Enix and the Syberia series by Microïds. The latter has the merit of being suitable for most ages; it is also available also on Nintendo Switch; and it is fully localized in a wide selection of languages (out-of-the-box; the US version of Syberia I, which I own, includes Italian, German and Russian besides the “usual” English, Spanish and French).

PS: Italian Gamers who are familiar with the Final Fantasy series will catch a little typo (which I became aware of, and pointed out tonight): it was FF VIII, not VII [which was alas not localized in Italian until much later. My memory of events that happened 18-20 years ago is not as good as it used to be ;-)]
EDIT on 5/7/18: Thank you Julia Pazos at Altagram for approaching me about the interview. It was a pleasure. And thank you for your prompt edits. 

IMAGE: Life is Strange – Square Enix
Original Image by Spinoziano – PlayStation 4 PlayStation Store screen capture; Copyrighted, https://it.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6161721