Announcing the 2000 New Media Prize
awards at the Bologna Children’s Book
Fair
The world’s leading software points to
a new trend in edutainment: teaching children to reason in order to
free up their creativity. And vice versa
Three
American titles, one French and one Japanese-German
production. These are the
five winners of the fourth 2000 Bologna New Media Prize, the
international competition which the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, in
collaboration with the magazine Children’s Software Revue,
awards to the most ground-breaking, top-quality products in
multimedia publishing.
Announced today, the prizes will be
officially presented on Wednesday 29th March in Bologna,
during the opening ceremony of the Children’s Book Fair, the world’s
leading event in children’s publishing.
The 2000 New Media Prize has been
awarded, for the USA, to Pit Droids (Best Interactive
Adventure category), a CD-Rom produced by Lucas Learning, the
electronic label of the director of Star Wars; to Redbeard’s
Pirate Quest (Best Small Publisher Title category), a game
connected to the computer; and to Intel Play Me2Cam Activity
System (Best Innovation category), a software product complete
with webcam that projects the player’s image onto the computer
screen.
From France, the award goes to the
CD-Rom Uncle Albert’s Magical Album (Best General Learning
Simulation category). The Czech artist Kveta Pakovská also wins an
award for her Alphabet (Best Book Adaptation category), an
extraordinary journey through the world of writing co-produced by
the German publisher Tivola and NHK of Japan. Pakovská wins the
prize for the second year running.
Four titles, all American, receive
honourable mentions: Sim Theme Park, or how to build and
manage a theme park; I Spy Spooky Mansion, an adventure in a
haunted house; JumpStart Phonics Learning System, a writing
learning programme; and 3D Ultra Lionel Train Town, a genuine
test of logic in the form of a railway setting.
The prizes and mentions were assigned
by an international jury which examined over 750 products from all
over the world in 1999.
The members of the jury were Gigi
Tagliapietra of Italy, co-founder of "Progetto Onda" at
Desenzano on Lake Garda; Au Wing Kee (China), Department Head of the
Hong Kong Education Institute; Warren Buckleitner (US), director and
editor-in-chief of Children’s Software Revue; Thomas Feibel
(Germany), author of the Children’s Software guide; Ulla
Gjoerling (Denmark); Serge Pouts Lester (France), director of the
Technology for Education Monitoring Centre; Susan McLester (US),
director of Technology & Learning Magazine; Ingrid
Nordkvist (Sweden), researcher at GPC Learning Lab; Kyung Woo
Lee (South Korea), lecturer in education at the Ewha Women’s
University in Seoul.
"For a long time", commented Warren
Buckleitner, coordinator of the jury, "the world of education has
been dominated by a frequently haughty rationalism. Then came the
equally disdainful fashion of creativity above all else. Now it
seems that common sense has prevailed: it is recognised that
reasoning ability helps creativity and, vice versa, a creative mind
reasons more effectively. In this respect, this year’s prize-winning
products set a new standard of excellence by offering our children
new ways to hone both their reasoning and creative
skills".
The prize-winning titles will be on
show in the Software Arcade, the special showcase which the
Children’s Book Fair dedicates to multimedia and which this year
will play host to around thirty top publishers.
The five winners of the Bologna New Media
Prize
Category: Best General Learning Simulation
Uncle Albert's Magical Album France,
1998 CD-Rom
production: VtechSoft Inc.(www.vtechsoft.com)
Systems: Win 95, 98; Mac OS Subject: logic,
problem solving, science Age group: from 9 years
Price: $29.95, 1998
The player has to set free
a small animal trapped in a magical album by navigating through the
pages of the album and solving logic tests, discovering hidden
passages and collecting certain objects. One innovative feature of
Uncle’s Albert Magical Album is that each problem has not one
but several solutions. Another innovative aspect is the possibility
to interact with "intelligent" animals. In this way children learn,
for example, that insects can lift objects much heavier than their
body weight. One interesting sequence includes races between groups
of insects (ants, snails, beetles, etc.) to establish their
different speeds. Other activities get children to visit an Egyptian
tomb to photograph a mummy, or visit a laboratory to study plants
and animals.
What the jury said:
"This superb CD-Rom uses multimedia and problem-solving methods in a
superlative way. The non-linear activities take children through
page after page of beautiful images and challenge them to think in a
manner that is both creative and non-conventional".
Category: Best
Interactive Adventure
Pit Droids USA,
1999 CD-Rom Production: Lucas Learning
(www.lucaslearning.com) Systems: Win 95, 98; Mac
OS Subject: logic, programming Age group: from
10 years Price: $29.95
The programme features a
series of tests (300 in all) of increasing difficulty, all set in a
Star Wars-type graphical environment. The aim of the game is to help
a group of robots called Pit Droids to overcome various obstacles
until they reach their final destination - the Podrace Arena. The
player has to programme the robots so that they take the right path
through the obstacles. By navigating correctly, the player
accumulates points that take him to higher levels in the game.
Educational value? First, the Droids are fun creatures and both
children and adults are instinctively drawn to help them. Second,
the levels of the game are designed so that each obstacle is
slightly more difficult than the previous one, but with an extra
twist. Moreover, there is a help facility always within reach should
the player get stuck. Lastly, the logic exercise in each test is
designed to give the player total control and even change the
solutions.
What the jury said:
"This extraordinary and compelling exercise in problem solving is
ideal for older children. It is perfect for encouraging children to
think logically and solve spatial problems through play".
Category: Best Small Publisher Title
Redbeard's Pirate Quest
USA,
1999 Toy/Software Production: Zowie
Entertainment, Inc. (www.zowie.com) Systems: Win 95, 98;
Mac OS Subject: fantasy, logic Age group: from
4 years Price: $55
The toy is a pirate ship,
with four sailors, which is connected to the computer through the
serial port of the keyboard (which continues to function). When the
software has been loaded, the ship and its crew appear on the screen
in the middle of the sea. When the real objects are moved, the same
thing is repeated on the screen in real time. By moving the sailors
the scene comes to life and the players can sail towards remote
islands, fight with the ghosts of old pirates and wrestle with sea
snakes, as they hunt for the treasure needed to free Redbeard. The
game has an unusually realistic feel: by moving the rudder, the ship
changes course with the right degree of tension. The games are
automatically saved so that the treasure amassed by the player will
not be lost for later games.
What the jury said:
"This combination of toy and software shows how interactive
technology can support and extend a children’s game. We would have
preferred more depth in the activities. Nevertheless, the skill in
manoeuvring the ship so as to control the computer proves that this
tool works very well".
Category: Best Book Adaptation
Alphabet
Germany, 1999 CD-Rom
Publisher: Tivola Electronic Publishing, Inc. (www.tivola.com)
Systems: Win 95, 98, NT; Mac OS Subject:
Writing and signs Age group: 4-10 years Price:
DM 6g., 1999, b
Animation, no end of
surprises, magical music and the voices of children to guide us
through a fantastic alphabet.
*Co-producer: NHK
(Japan)
The jury’s comment:
"Last year we were impressed by Midnight Play. This year, we had the
pleasure of seeing more of Kveta Pakovska’s work in an even more
compelling setting. This is a dreamlike alphabet packed with visual
creativity. If you want to see the new media as an art form, take a
look at this software".
Category: Best
Innovation
Intel Play Me2Cam
with Fun Fair USA, 1999 CD-Rom
Publisher: Mattel Media, Inc. (www.mattelmedia.com)
Systems: Win 98 Subject: game play, virtual
reality Age group: 4-14 years Price: $
69.99
How do you catapult
yourself into a software product? With this exceptional
videocamera/CD-Rom that is easy to install (on top of the monitor)
and manoeuvre. Simply pose for five seconds, the time it takes for
the camera to film you. Your image will appear like magic on the
screen and star in any one of the five games provided. For example,
in Snow Surfin' you will be on a snowboard: standing up in
front of the webcam and the computer you can ski around obstacles
that appear on the screen, such as rocks, trees and penguins. Other
strange games include Pinball, where your head and hands
appear as flippers, and Bubble Mania, where you can create
bubbles by moving your hands. Is it worth the price? Well, at least
it is one of the few software products out there which get children
up off their seats and using their muscles.
What the jury said:
"Although the activities are limited in number, this
telecamera/software package is a fun innovation for kids in the way
they interact with the computer. The programme allows them to
control their experience with the whole body rather than through the
mouse".
Honourable
mentions
Sim Theme Park USA, 1999 CD-Rom
Production: Electronic Arts (www.ea.com) Systems: Win 95,
98 Subject: economics, creativity, organisation and
management of a theme park. Age group: from 12 years.
Price: $39.95
Once the player has
designed the theme park with scenic railway, go-kart tracks and
other rides, he then becomes responsible for managing the park,
setting admission fees, hiring staff and so forth. Building the park
using the Instant Action facility is relatively simple. The
park is soon packed with visitors and the money is pouring in before
you know it. But not everything is running smoothly. Some strange
characters throw stink bombs and other gadgets which upset the
visitors. The player has to call in the health and safety people. In
Full Simulation mode you can build the park from plans,
creating entrance avenues, hills and other features, hire your staff
one by one and then open the park when everything is ready. The
player has to do his own research and if necessary borrow
money.
Warning: the product
requires systems running at a minimum of 400 MHz and without 3D
accelerator cards.
I Spy Spooky Mansion
USA, 1999 CD-Rom
Production: Scholastic New Media (www.scholastic.com)
Systems: Win 95, 98; Mac OS Subject: reading,
language, rhyme, classification, logic, memory Age group:
6-10 years Price: $29.95
This second CD-Rom in the
I Spy series includes thirteen brain-teasers, set
inside a dark house, created by Jean Marzallo. By solving one
question after another the players have to find the way to get out:
i.e. they have to find objects concealed amongst collections of old
dolls and butterflies, or in intricate assortments of keys, buttons,
safety-pins and similar objects. Also hidden in the rooms are a game
with three concentration levels, a timed game and a do-it-yourself
I spy game enabling children to create their own puzzles and
to write their own brain-teasers. The combination of games and
riddles gives the product special value and provides an original,
fun way to experiment with language.
Jumpstart Phonics Learning
System USA, 1999 CD-Rom/Video
Production: Knowledge Adventure (www.knowledgeadventure.com)
Systems: Win 95, 98; MacOS Subject: reading,
phonetics, writing, constructing words and phrases. Age
group: 3-8 years. Price: $70
The price is reasonable
and the product is good value: there are four good edutainment
programmes, two 30-minute videos and three exercise books for
learning to read. The main programme offers twelve activities,
controllable by mouse or voice-activated with voice recognition
software. An easy-to-install microphone is included so that children
can pronounce the words clearly and read the letters on the screen.
Like a teacher or parents, the software can "hear" if the child has
made the right selections. All of these activities begin by teaching
children to recognise sounds and letters at an easy level and then
progress gradually to reading words and phrases at a higher level.
The other three programmes belong to the Learning Games
series (JumpStart ABCs, JumpStart Phonics and JumpStart Spelling),
which offer fun ways to practise these skills.
3-D Ultra Lionel Traintown
USA,
1999 CD-Rom
Production: Sierra On-Line (Havas)
(www.sierra.com) Systems: Win 95, 98,
NT Subject: logic, problem solving, creativity, space and
time relations Age group: from 7 years Price :
$19.95
Created by Jeff Tunnell
and the team which produced The Incredible Machine, this
virtual train set includes a comprehensive range of locomotives,
carriages and wagons based on the Lionel collection. The programme
allows you to position tracks and towns, the floor of a room, the
moon, a classroom, and a winter village. And whilst it is fun to
create the setting, it is even more of a challenge to solve one of
the 72 games included in the programme. The levels of difficulty
vary (from easy to very hard), but all of them require attention to
timing and strategy. In one of the activities, children have to
manoeuvre a train on an obstacle course in order to deliver a cargo
of Christmas presents on time. In another game, they have to operate
eight switches to keep traffic flowing. They win if they manage to
avoid collisions for 60 seconds.
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