Free Esports Curriculum Contains Full Lesson Plans

Free Esports Curriculum Contains Full Lesson Plans

An esports league has launched a free high school curriculum to help teachers use gaming to boost student learning. "Gaming Concepts" from the High School Esports League (HSEL), was written as turnkey curriculum "that almost anyone with even rudimentary computer skills could teach," according to authors Kristy Custer and Michael Russell. The project was supported by Microsoft.

The content covers learning standards in areas such as careers in gaming, maintaining healthy practices, self-management and interpersonal communications, as well as an overview of esports gaming and complete lesson plans.

The authors have both been involved in HSEL's after-school esports program and worked with Wichita State University to create the semester-long elective course. According to HSEL, in a pilot program that used the curriculum, students who took the course experienced an average improvement in their grade point averages of 1.4 points and attendance that reached 95 percent.

"Students with chronic absenteeism who do not feel a connection to the school especially benefit from esports," said Custer in a statement. "Eighty-two percent of students on our team had never participated in an extra-curricular activity prior to offering esports."

"We've known for a long time that bringing students' passion for games into a supportive, educational environment can be transformative for kids who otherwise might be disengaged or left behind," added Mason Mullenioux, co-founder and CEO of HSEL

"Esports has tremendous potential, both to inspire students to learn 21st-century skills and also to include many students who have previously been marginalized with respect to competitive activities," noted Donald Brinkman, a Microsoft senior program manager in charge of Bing esports and video game experiences. The guide, he said, was "designed to teach pro-social and pro-academic behaviors that are positively correlated to better academic performance-all through the lens of esports. We are thrilled to support it."

In April 2019 Microsoft introduced an hour-long online course for educators to help them learn more about esports and how it can be used to teach college and career readiness.

The new curriculum, "Gaming Concepts," is openly available as a downloadable PDF file on the HSEL website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • young educators collaborate with AI tools on laptops and tablets

    Survey: Younger Educators More Likely to Embrace AI Tools

    While educators across the United States agree that AI has enhanced classroom engagement, enthusiasm for AI's benefits is strongest among young teachers, according to a recent survey from learning technology company D2L.

  • red brick school building with a large yellow "AI" sign above its main entrance

    New National Academy for AI Instruction to Provide Free AI Training for Educators

    In an effort to "transform how artificial intelligence is taught and integrated into classrooms across the United States," the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), in partnership with Microsoft, OpenAI, Anthropic, and the United Federation of Teachers, is launching the National Academy for AI Instruction, a $23 million initiative that will provide access to free AI training and curriculum for all AFT members, beginning with K-12 educators.

  • student holding a smartphone with thumbs-up and thumbs-down icons, surrounded by abstract digital media symbols and interface elements

    Teaching Media Literacy? Start by Teaching Decision-Making

    Decision-making is a skill that must be developed — not assumed. Students need opportunities to learn the tools and practices of effective decision-making so they can apply what they know in meaningful, real-world contexts.

  • students using digital devices, surrounded by abstract AI motifs and soft geometric design

    Ed Tech Startup Kira Launches AI-Native Learning Platform

    A new K-12 learning platform aims to bring personalized education to every student. Kira, one of the latest ed tech ventures from Andrew Ng, former director of Stanford's AI Lab and co-founder of Coursera and DeepLearning.AI, "integrates artificial intelligence directly into every educational workflow — from lesson planning and instruction to grading, intervention, and reporting," according to a news announcement.