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ABSTRACT
This study investigates how young elementary children engage with conceptions of gender in connection to video gameplay in the language arts classroom. During a three-week unit on video game literacies in a multiage lab school, children learned about, played, discussed, and wrote about video games. Student writing, game reviews, and literature discussion transcripts illuminated critical thinking around gender in connection to video games when explored as texts in school. While teachers commonly value literacy experiences centred around books, this research demonstrates how video games can serve as texts for critical analysis by sharing the valuable critical literacy experiences of two focal students from the study. Recommendations for teachers who want to explore incorporating video games in the English Language Arts classrooms are provided.
Acknowledgement
The authors would like to thank the participants of this study.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Rachel LaMear
Rachel LaMear is a veteran teacher and doctoral student in the Language and Literacies for Social Transformation programme at the University of Missouri. Her research focuses on facilitating critical conversations for elementary students through their engagement with texts.
Sam von Gillern
Sam von Gillern is an Assistant Professor of Literacy Education at the University of Missouri. His two primary areas of research are video game literacies and digital citizenship.