Fortnite creator advocating for virtual education opportunities in Utah
Mar 21, 2022, 12:59 PM | Updated: 3:45 pm
Presentation held by Epic Games staff on possible education benefits.
KAYSVILLE, Utah — Epic Games is trying to connect with teachers to show them how they can implement video games, like Fortnite, into their everyday classrooms.
The company held a 35-hour course for Utah teachers to demonstrate the benefits of educational opportunities within the video game. The meeting was held in the Davis Catalyst Center in Kaysville, Utah.
The Davis Catalyst Center is a magnet school, connecting high school students with industry leaders in high-demand career fields. Epic Games and Fortnite are looking to use their Unreal Engine to boost both student relations and curriculums.
Besides obvious coding and engineering-related skills, Fortnite’s creative mode provides an interesting presentation alternative for teachers.
Davis School District Computer Science Instructor Derrek Bitner agreed.
“What if we could do a lesson on Martin Luther King Jr. on Fortnite? What if we could do a lesson on object-oriented programming except we are going to do it running down the hallway of a haunted mansion? It’s the same concepts, just a new way to do them,” Bitner said.
“It’s like they’re using a tool like that to create an experience that is much more engaging and immersive than a PowerPoint and they know it as well or better than PowerPoint,” said Epic Games Education Program Manager Steven Isaacs.
Epic Games and Fortnite have done an excellent job of expanding on operations and company missions. A once small-scale company has reached markets they couldn’t have dreamed of just years ago. Examples include competitive gaming, virtual fashion, and now education.
