Chester Community Charter School: Learning, teaching via video games

Andrew Roosen, a University of Delaware computer science professor, checks out a computer game developed by UD students for Chester Community Charter School in Chester, Pa. / THE NEWS JOURNAL/FRED COMEGYS

NEWARK -- In one game, a snake slithers across the screen, eating arithmetic symbols until they equal a desired number.  In another, an adventuring character wanders around a virtual world, encountering problem-solving exercises in basic logic.

For 17 seniors in a computer science class at the University of Delaware, these probably wouldn't be the games they'd choose to play, but that isn't the point. Instead, the video games created by five teams will help teach middle school students at Chester (Pa.) Community Charter School.

"Some of these guys came in here, frankly, just because they wanted to make video games," said Lori Pollock, a professor of computer science who teaches the class. "But to see them go from that attitude at the beginning to creating something that helps children learn is amazing."

A $400,000 National Science Foundation grant has funded the project over the past three years. Education experts called the initiative an innovative approach to expanding access to educational technology. And the idea could inspire other universities looking to support schools in their local community.

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