eSports class becomes available at Monongalia County Technical Education Center for first time

Students attending Monongalia County Technical Education Center have a new class option in its first ever eSports class.

The class’ instructor, Brigette Barlow, and several students spoke at a Monongalia County Board of Education meeting about the class, and were quoted later in an article from WVNews.

Barlow talked about how the program has been going so far, saying, “Mixing video games with my passion for teaching — it's been a tremendous start of the year. We started the year with not really fully knowing where we were going to take this program, kind of what it was going to look like. It really genuinely was a pilot program.”

The class does not just focus on playing video games. It started with a tear down of old computers to learn the function and purpose of each component before the students worked to rebuild the computers.

The playing of video games only takes up one-third of the class time. That time focuses on competitive team games like Super Smash Brothers Ultimate, Rocket League, and League of Legends. At the board meeting, Barlow noted the team games were important to teach the students to gain communication and team building skills.

“You can hear them coaching each other on how they can make their plays better and how they can develop better team skills,” she said. “It's so wonderful to see them interact with each other, typically in ways you wouldn't see high school boys interact with each other in a video game setting.”

The class’ curriculum is STEM accredited and similar to curriculums used across the country for other eSports classes. It covers IT, networking, PC building, and more.

Barlow spoke on the benefits of the class’ curriculum, saying, “This curriculum teaches these kids how to manage their emotions when they happen. Not just for games, but through games. So with something they're interested in, we're teaching them how to manage those emotions that may come up.”

Other activities that take place in the class include projects like using a limited budget to build the best PC they can.

Ethan Stevens is a student at Monongalia County Technical Education Center and is a student of Barlow’s. He was at the board meeting as well and had positive things to say about the class: “Teamwork and bonding and all the other things that go along with typical sports, or whatever you would call it, can really shine through any form of competitive play.” 

More information about Monongalia County Technical Education Center can be found at the school’s website.