History Lost/Gained in the Pandemic

 “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons of history.”

– Aldous Huxley

The covid-19 pandemic forced many to alter our lives for the sake of the common good in overcoming a novel virus. Everyone’s lost something. If we’re lucky we only lost more than a year of life’s normal activities, routines, and special events. The less fortunate lost jobs, homes, and, worst of all, loved ones. (I discussed some of my own disappointments before in “The 2020 that Might Have Been.”) Hopefully we’ve gained a little something from these experiences...a perspective on what we lost, how much it meant, and how we might appreciate it all the more in the future. We’re still dealing with covid-19, managing our comfort levels, health, and vaccination status against the risks of returning to the way we did things in the “Before Times” as I sarcastically call them. A “normal” school year for students ranks among the losses young people sustained. Partial in-person learning and part- or full-time distance learning online focused on the most central of the core subjects – math, reading, science – and what little history they had studied earlier simply dropped off the academic map. Luckily for our household we try fostering and engaging an interest in history through films and games.

The 2020 that Might Have Been

 “These so-called bleak times are necessary to go through in order to get to a much, much better place.”

– David Lynch

The insanity of the year 2020 certainly gives me cause to reflect on what could have been if the pandemic hadn’t completely disrupted life as we know it. Contemplating these lost experiences helps me comprehend the scope of our sacrifice and look forward to appreciating them that much more should the post-covid future allow us. Among the canceled vacations, game conventions, family gatherings, summer camps, blockbuster film premieres, and routine excursions to relieve real-world stress – disappointments no doubt shared by many – is one gaming opportunity I’d anticipated immensely, one that might still develop and flourish once America learns to responsibly deal with covid-19. But for now it languishes with the “might have beens” of 2020. I’d long planned to develop a “Wargaming History” talk for the local museum and had finally met with the director to pitch it, even had it scheduled on the calendar, when the pandemic shut everything down.

Games for Learning

 Reinforce Lessons, Inspire Curiosity

“Do not…keep children to their studies by compulsion but by play.”

– Plato

The apparent drudgery of schoolwork – even online as a result of America’s hellscape response to the covid-19 pandemic – reminds me of the important role games play in learning...one often overlooked in the official academic bureaucracy of standards of learning, state-endorsed policies, and administrative procedures. Our full-time online distance learning school year began toward the end of August; already the lament of “Why do I need to learn this?” has begun. As dad I get to supervise academic activity and enforce schedules, deadlines, and long-term projects, sort of an unpaid proxy teacher’s aid. It took about three weeks for the lessons to ramp up to something approximating full-steam, with two or three online class meets per day, a host of online exercises and resources (some game-like), and lots of prodding to stay on target academically within the lax environment of one’s own home. This year’s teacher impressed us with his ability to port his live classroom experience to an online format; though we regret our son can’t really enjoy this first-hand in a traditional classroom environment. Nonetheless I still wish schools integrated more games for learning to reinforce lessons and inspire curiosity beyond the bounds of even a virtual classroom.

Games for Learning: Sol O.P. Grand Prix

I’ve long been an advocate of introducing the adventure gaming hobby to kids and newcomers. I feel strongly that games can enrich our lives beyond their basic entertainment value. For a while I’ve hoped to engage with kids and educators about enhancing learning, reinforcing lessons, and encouraging a sense of curiosity through games. I’ve tried a few times to create games suitable for younger players: Panzer Kids, Valley of the Ape, even the solitaire Lord of the Two Lands. So when I realized my son needed help with his multiplication tables, I started thinking how I might turn a learning experience into a game. (I hated multiplication tables when I was in elementary school and it started a lifelong dislike of math.) But when the pandemic hit everything was canceled during America’s subsequent hellscape response. Including school. So my son’s teacher never had a chance to solidify his multiplication and math skills, teach much about Virginia in the American Civil War, or cover the solar system so kids could do the obligatory project for the canceled science fair. With the new year starting we’re facing more than challenges from full-time distance learning online...we’re dealing with having lost an entire quarter of his previous year’s learning, further diluted with a tedious summer without many of the usual summertime diversions. So I designed a game to help with math.

Same Great Experience, Smaller Package

The board game world offers some amazing experiences, but the prospect of learning a booklet of new rules and spending several hours immersing themselves in an hours-long game can discourage some newcomers from pursuing the hobby...and even longtime gamers don’t always have the patience or time to invest in comprehending and playing a new game. As an advocate of introducing gaming to newcomers and kids, I’m always looking for games that don’t seem too overwhelming or complex, yet still offer a satisfying play experience. So I was happy to discover a few titles one might consider lighter, younger siblings of well-established games – Ticket to Ride: New York and Pandemic: Hot Zone – North America – which provide similar themes and gameplay as the originals without taking several hours to learn and play.