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Engineering Play : A Cultural History of Children's Software

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Title: Engineering Play : A Cultural History of Children's Software
Description: How the influential industry that produced such popular games as Oregon Trail and KidPix emerged from experimental efforts to use computers as tools in child-centered learning.Today, computers are part of kids'everyday lives, used both for play and for learning. We envy children's natural affinity for computers, the ease with which they click in and out of digital worlds. Thirty years ago, however, the computer belonged almost exclusively to business, the military, and academia. In Engineering Play, Mizuko Ito describes the transformation of the computer from a tool associated with adults and work to one linked to children, learning, and play. Ito gives an account of a pivotal period in the 1980s and 1990s, which saw the rise of a new category of consumer software designed specifically for elementary school-aged children. “Edutainment” software sought to blend various educational philosophies with interactive gaming and entertainment, and included such titles as Number Munchers, Oregon Trail, KidPix, and Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?.The children's software boom (and the bust that followed), says Ito, can be seen as a microcosm of the negotiations surrounding new technology, children, and education. The story she tells is both a testimonial to the transformative power of innovation and a cautionary tale about its limitations.
Authors: Mizuko Ito
Resource Type: eBook.
Subjects: Computers and children, Entertainment computing--United States, Children's software--Development--United States--History, Computer-assisted instruction--United States
Categories: EDUCATION / Computers & Technology, GAMES & ACTIVITIES / Video & Mobile, TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / History
Database: eBook Collection (EBSCOhost)
FullText Links:
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  Availability: 0
Header DbId: nlebk
DbLabel: eBook Collection (EBSCOhost)
An: 291825
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AccessLevel: 6
PubType: eBook
PubTypeId: ebook
PreciseRelevancyScore: 1024.62744140625
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  Data: Engineering Play : A Cultural History of Children's Software
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  Data: How the influential industry that produced such popular games as Oregon Trail and KidPix emerged from experimental efforts to use computers as tools in child-centered learning.Today, computers are part of kids'everyday lives, used both for play and for learning. We envy children's natural affinity for computers, the ease with which they click in and out of digital worlds. Thirty years ago, however, the computer belonged almost exclusively to business, the military, and academia. In Engineering Play, Mizuko Ito describes the transformation of the computer from a tool associated with adults and work to one linked to children, learning, and play. Ito gives an account of a pivotal period in the 1980s and 1990s, which saw the rise of a new category of consumer software designed specifically for elementary school-aged children. “Edutainment” software sought to blend various educational philosophies with interactive gaming and entertainment, and included such titles as Number Munchers, Oregon Trail, KidPix, and Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?.The children's software boom (and the bust that followed), says Ito, can be seen as a microcosm of the negotiations surrounding new technology, children, and education. The story she tells is both a testimonial to the transformative power of innovation and a cautionary tale about its limitations.
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Classifications:
      – Code: 790.20285
        Scheme: ddc
        Type: prePub
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Computers and children
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Entertainment computing--United States
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Children's software--Development--United States--History
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Computer-assisted instruction--United States
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Engineering Play : A Cultural History of Children's Software
        Type: main
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      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Mizuko Ito
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            NameFull: Mizuko Ito
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          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 01
              Type: published
              Y: 2009
            – D: 04
              M: 02
              Type: profile
              Y: 2014
          Identifiers:
            – Type: isbn-print
              Value: 9780262013352
            – Type: isbn-print
              Value: 9780262517386
            – Type: isbn-electronic
              Value: 9780262258913
            – Type: isbn-electronic
              Value: 9780262291552
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Engineering Play : A Cultural History of Children's Software
              Type: main
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