Teaching game programming using XNA

Abstract

As educators work to expand the audience interested in computer science, computer gaming programs have blossomed at a variety of educational institutions. Educators are coming to recognize that gaming is a compelling way to motivate students to learn challenging technical concepts such as programming, software engineering, algorithms, and project management. At the core of many gaming programs are game development courses, which teach technical aspects about software development in a motivating environment. While many game development courses share a common goal, the structure and goals of game development courses can be quite diverse. We describe a game development course that uses the XNA platform to allow a heterogeneous group of students to gain experience in all aspects of console game creation, an approach we believe has some interesting pedagogical benefits.