SECTION 130.127. Web Game Development (One Credit)

(a) General requirements. Students shall be awarded one credit for successful completion of this course. Recommended prerequisite: Web Design. This course is recommended for students in Grades 11 and 12.

(b) Introduction.

(1) Career and technical education instruction provides content aligned with challenging academic standards and relevant technical knowledge and skills for students to further their education and succeed in current or emerging professions.

(2) The Arts, Audio/Video Technology, and Communications Career Cluster focuses on careers in designing, producing, exhibiting, performing, writing, and publishing multimedia content including visual and performing arts and design, journalism, and entertainment services.

(3) Web Game Development will allow students to demonstrate creative thinking, develop innovative strategies, and use digital and communication tools necessary to develop fully functional online games. Web Game Development has career applications for many aspects of the game industry, including programming, art principles, graphics, web design, storyboarding and scripting, and business and marketing. The six strands include creativity and innovation; communication and collaboration; research and information fluency; critical thinking; problem solving, and decision making; digital citizenship; and technology operations and concepts.

(4) Students are encouraged to participate in extended learning experiences such as career and technical student organizations and other leadership or extracurricular organizations.

(5) Statements that contain the word "including" reference content that must be mastered, while those containing the phrase "such as" are intended as possible illustrative examples.

(c) Knowledge and skills.

(1) Creativity and innovation. The student demonstrates creative thinking, constructs knowledge, and develops innovative products and processes using technology. The student is expected to:

(A) research, evaluate, and demonstrate appropriate design of a web-based gaming site;

(B) illustrate ideas for web artwork from direct observations, experiences, and imagination;

(C) create original designs for web applications; and

(D) demonstrate the effective use of art media to create original web designs.

(2) Communication and collaboration. The student uses digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning experience of others. The student is expected to:

(A) understand and evaluate the use and appropriateness of webinars;

(B) examine, discuss, and summarize interactive online learning environments;

(C) distinguish between distance learning, virtual learning, and online learning;

(D) define and evaluate Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP);

(E) identify and apply end-user, peer, self-, and professional evaluations; and

(F) work collaboratively to create functioning programs and gaming products.

(3) Research and information fluency. The student applies digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. The student is expected to:

(A) research, evaluate, and create web forms for database processing;

(B) identify the various programming languages and differentiate among the available web programming languages;

(C) research, evaluate, and summarize content management systems (CMS);

(D) differentiate between Common Gateway Interface (CGI) and computer-generated imagery (CGI);

(E) discuss, analyze, and summarize streaming media/content and game broadcasting;

(F) define and evaluate instant messaging (IM) within a game environment;

(G) analyze and discuss the history of gaming;

(H) discuss, analyze, compare, and contrast game types such as action, action-adventure, adventure, construction and management simulation, life simulation, massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG), music, party, puzzle, role-playing, sports, strategy, trivia, and vehicle simulation;

(I) discuss, analyze, compare, and contrast gaming hardware, including console, personal computer, mobile, and web;

(J) compare and contrast web standards versus browser-specific languages;

(K) research, evaluate, and summarize e-commerce;

(L) investigate career opportunities in programming, gaming, art, design, business, and marketing;

(M) research the characteristics of existing gaming websites to determine local, state, national, and global trends;

(N) compare and contrast historical and contemporary styles of art as applied to website development;

(O) compare and contrast the use of the art elements of color, texture, form, line, space, and value and the art principles of emphasis, pattern, rhythm, balance, proportion, and unity in personal web game artwork and the web game artwork of others, using vocabulary accurately;

(P) describe general characteristics in artwork from a variety of cultures that influence web game design;

(Q) research and evaluate emerging technologies; and

(R) research and evaluate augmented reality (the supplementing of reality with computer-generated imagery) such as heads-up display and virtual digital projectors.

(4) Critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making. The student uses critical-thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources. The student is expected to:

(A) select an appropriate web programming language based on given criteria;

(B) develop requirements for a database and determine the appropriate means to insert, delete, and modify records;

(C) develop Structured Query Language (SQL) statements to retrieve, insert, modify, and delete records in a database;

(D) design and create a flow diagram to plan a database, program, and game;

(E) define and identify proper use of gaming graphics, including skins, textures, environment appearance, environment mapping, raster graphics, and vector graphics;

(F) plan an animation that includes the movement of characters, camera movements, camera angles, user point of view, mechanics of motion, backgrounds, settings, ambient objects, and environments;

(G) compare and contrast two-dimensional (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) animation;

(H) develop and create a gaming storyboard and script that shows the overall development of a storyline;

(I) identify and implement graphic and game design elements, including color, environment, time to completion, difficulty, story complexity, character development, device control, backstory, delivery, and online player(s);

(J) design and create decision trees for a game's artificial intelligence engine;

(K) compare and contrast available audio formats for optimal delivery;

(L) identify the similarities and differences among platforms, including the application of coding on a personal computer, mobile device, and gaming console;

(M) research and identify existing online game development tools;

(N) evaluate and determine network requirements for the delivery of online games to end users; and

(O) create visual solutions by elaborating on direct observation, experiences, and imagination as they apply to original web design.

(5) Digital citizenship. The student understands human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practices legal and ethical behavior. The student is expected to:

(A) explain game ratings and why games fit into certain ratings;

(B) assess games and game ratings in terms of their impact on societal interactions;

(C) model the ethical and legal acquisition of digital information following copyright laws, fair-use guidelines, and the student code of conduct;

(D) define and practice the ethical and legal acquisition, sharing, and use of files taking into consideration their primary ownership and copyright;

(E) examine original web game artwork to comply with appropriate behavioral, communication, and privacy guidelines, including ethics, online bullying and harassment, personal security, appropriate audience language, ethical use of files/file sharing, technical documentation, and online communities;

(F) interpret, evaluate, and justify artistic decisions in the creation of original art for web game design; and

(G) analyze original web game artwork and digital portfolios created by peers and others to form precise conclusions about formal qualities, historical and cultural contexts, intents, and meanings.

(6) Technology operations and concepts. The student demonstrates a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations. The student is expected to:

(A) create a website that includes:

(i) an interactive database with elements such as SQL statements, Extensible Markup Language (XML), and Open Database Connectivity (ODBC);

(ii) JavaScript; and

(iii) server-side processing, including Common Gateway Interface (CGI); bitmap and vector graphics; database creation, modification, and deletion; creation and maintenance of user accounts; user authentication; and documentation;

(B) create a fully functional online game that includes:

(i) multiple game levels with increasing difficulty;

(ii) high-score ranking;

(iii) physics, including center of mass, collision detection, lighting, shading, perspective, anatomy, motion blur, lens flare, and reflections;

(iv) art principles, including color theory, texture, balance, lighting, shading, skinning, and drawing;

(v) graphics resolution, including pixel depth and compression;

(vi) database creation, modification, and deletion;

(vii) creation and maintenance of user accounts;

(viii) user authentication;

(ix) artificial intelligence;

(x) game-level saving;

(xi) mathematical functions;

(xii) varying camera angles;

(xiii) VoIP for online web games; and

(xiv) documentation; and

(C) create a digital portfolio.

Source Note: The provisions of this §130.127 adopted to be effective August 1, 2020, 45 TexReg 4190