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David Chandross

Action adventure games have a high engagement factor and are useful for education, including learning empathy within the field of social justice. In this presentation we will describe our work with Maskwacis Cultural College and the Cree students on the reservation building games to create digital skills and share traditional teachings with non-indigenous people. The first card game, GONE, has players enter the residential school system in 1925 and understand the impact this had on first nations culture and identity. Other games based on Elder-approved, respectful telling of traditional stories are now being created through a partnership between TMU and Maskwacis. This presentation will coincide with the launch of Gathering of Nations, an indigenous serious game company.

Attendee Benefits

The audience will learn how to create deep learning experiences using card and board games. They will learn how to upskill students in game design to foster new career paths. They will learn how to use empathy-based game mechanics to increase awareness of social justice issues. They will learn about challenges and opportunities facing new indigenous game designers and digital skills can improve quality of life for those living far from major cities.