Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/56523
Technology Online Game Teaches Freshmen Survival Skills Michael Savoie, professor at the School of Management at the University of Texas, Dallas, is tapping a medium that most new college freshmen know well—the video game—to help teach them the skills they'll need to succeed in college. With the help of a $250,000 grant, Savoie and a team are design- ing an interactive online game intended to help acclimate students— and their parents—to the culture of a college campus. The game, says Savoie, could mean the difference between success and struggle for many students. Savoie points to the seemingly innocuous issue of a rainy day. Many students who wake up to pouring rain may choose to stay in bed and miss their classes, sim- ply because they don't have an NEWSBYTES n TECH ADDICTS In a survey of 11- to 18-year-olds recently conducted by the United Kingdom's Cranfield School of Management, more than 60 per- cent of respondents admitted being "very" or "quite" addicted to the Internet; more than 50 percent admitted an addiction to mobile phone use. In addition, 39.3 per- cent admitted that their use of abbreviations while texting has caused the quality of their spelling to deteriorate, and 59.2 percent admitted to inserting information from Web sites directly into their homework. Although they recog- 52 BizEd NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2009 umbrella. Others come anyway, wet and dripping. Savoie envisions the online game asking the right ques- tions: Do you have an umbrella? Can you borrow one? Do you know where to buy one? Savoie is creating his game, scheduled to debut in the fall of 2010, with the help of friends from a University of Texas system program initiative, Transforming Undergraduate Education. Initially, the game will target freshmen, transfer students, and nized this act as plagiarism, more than 28 percent saw nothing wrong with the practice. n LBS AND GOOGLE TEAM UP The London Business School in the United Kingdom, Google, and the U.K. newspaper Daily Telegraph have teamed up to launch a You- Tube channel called "Survival of the Fastest." The channel will offer three streams that cover topics in marketing, e-commerce, and finance. Contributors include academics from LBS and executives from com- panies such as Dell, Virgin Media, and OfficeMax. The channel can be found at www.youtube.com/user/ survivalofthefastest. their parents, focusing on time- and money-man- agement issues. It will take students beyond the school's Web page and student blogs to what Savoie calls the "three- dimensional" aspects of college. It will cover everything from what students need for their classes to where they can do their laundry—that is, the day-to-day choices they'll have to make once they begin their college careers. "We want to reach students through a platform they understand, and gaming has been shown to be almost universally understood and used by people age 25 and younger," says Savoie. Whether the issue is money management, time manage- ment, or social interaction, he adds, "the game will show them the conse- quences of the decisions they make." n SITE FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, a national non- profit dedicated to diversity in business, has launched a Web site to highlight the benefits of business school to prospective minority stu- dents. The site, www.makeyourcareermove.com, includes information about merit- based fellowships and networking opportunities, student and alumni testimonials, as well as a list of mem- ber schools and links to applications.