CDM camp teaches digital literacy to teens
(This article is sponsored by the Centre for Digital Media.)
Parents have many good reasons to pay attention to the rise of the digital economy. It’s already transformed a multitude of industries, including financial services, construction, energy, and tourism.
Not only that but artificial intelligence and machine learning have the potential to displace many existing jobs in manufacturing, retail, and transportation.
Without digital literacy, workers risk being left far behind in the 21st century. It’s never been more urgent for young people to acquire these skills.
Fortunately, the Vancouver-based Centre for Digital Media offers teenagers a chance to get an early start in ways not taught in the traditional school system.
Over a two-week period, the Tomorrow’s Master of Digital Media program enables students to develop a playable digital media product. It’s usually a game or an app, but sometimes it’s a video or virtual-reality project.
Sponsored by gaming giant EA, the TMDM program runs from July 8 to 19 and is open to students entering grades 9 to 12. In addition to doing projects, teens meet guests from industry and explore educational and career opportunities in the digital-media sector.
Those with an aptitude for technology or art and who enjoy solving problems are especially well-suited. Applicants must write a letter of intent and obtain a signature from teachers.
Classes take place at the campus of the Centre for Digital Media, a highly regarded graduate-level tech school. It opened on Great Northern Way in 2007 through a partnership of UBC, SFU, BCIT, and Emily Carr University of Art + Design.
Teens enrolled in the summer tech camps receive mentorship from Centre for Digital Media grad students and are provided with daily lunches and a TMDM T-shirt. In fact, the TMDM program is a boiled-down, young persons’ version of graduate-level tech education. Consider it an hors d’oeuvre.
The first week focuses on developing teens’ foundational skills. They’re exposed to different forms of software and what they can accomplish. Mentors also help students hone their artistic skills for the tech world, which is essential for anyone considering a career in the booming animation or visual-effects industries.
The TMDM program is not just an exercise in being a geek, though geeky students are certainly welcome to apply. There’s also a premium placed on teenagers improving their cognitive skills and learning how to function well in teams.
In the second week, groups of three to five students are presented with a problem to solve. Then they must consider how that can be accomplished on deadline. This entails group discussions as in any workplace.
As Centre for Digital Media faculty member Jason Elliott likes to say: “You’re not a one-man show. We teach how you can utilize other people to build a singular vision and how to align with someone else’s vision as well.”
In past years, teens enrolled in the TMDM program have accomplished amazing feats. One group used the HTC Vive to create a virtual-reality video game. Another group created an app that enabled people to report crimes to the police.
On the final day, students practise public speaking by delivering presentations on their projects to their parents and industry representatives. This simulates what the teens can expect to have to do if they ever embark on a career in digital media.
Then the students are presented with a certificate of completion.
For more information on Tomorrow's Master of Digital Media program, visit thecdm.ca/program/tmdm/. To apply, visit thecdm.ca/tmdm/admission-process/. The program is sponsored by EA.
