Car News

Thanks for the alert, Bill, and the local data, Paul; this will
hopefully stay an isolated case. I'll see about poking GAMA, since
they historically have had an interest in games in education. I also
found a form for e-mailing the executive assistant to the Board
(http://www.taylorisd.org/CMS/index.php?
option=com_contact&task=view&contact_id=152&Itemid=592) and sent along
an e-mail. (See below.) Critiques of my approach are welcome; I don't
think we have enough advice on the nitty-gritty of what you should say
in these situations.

In service,
M. Alan Thomas II

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, Apr 13, 2011 at 20:13
Subject: Copy of: To the Board re: D&D

To the Board:

I am writing in support of the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) club currently
being considered for termination. I applaud your concern for the
welfare of your students and the decision to gain first-hand
experience prior to making a decision. I also recognize that there is
a significant amount of negative information and attitudes, however
incorrect, regarding role-playing games in general and D&D in
specific, so I do not blame you for being cautious regarding the game.
However, research has shown that such information is indeed incorrect
and that the major campaigners against D&D in the past have been
misinformed or distorted the facts at their disposal.

D&D promotes cooperation, non-competitive play, math skills, and
strategic thinking through its basic method of play. In addition, it
can be used by a competent moderator (the "Dungeon Master" or "DM") to
teach a variety of additional lessons, including social and ethical
ones. While I have never heard of a moderator attempting to teach a
negative lesson through D&D, were that to happen, it would indicate a
serious problem with the person who wanted to teach such a lesson
rather than the method used to teach it. Overall, I would say that D&D
provides more social and intellectual benefits than, e.g., chess,
which does not involve cooperative play or math and is competitive.
These benefits should be taken into account when considering whether
it should be allowed to continue as an official activity.

As a librarian, I believe in freedom of speech. As someone who was
introduced to D&D by his father when he was 11 and played it with
classmates while attending top schools from junior high all the way
through graduate school, usually as part of official student groups, I
believe that D&D has had a positive effect on me socially and
intellectually and is an acceptable school activity. Please, let your
students continue having access to the same positive experiences as I
did.

Sincerely,
M. Alan Thomas II, M.S. in Library and Information Science

Further reading:
Stackpole, Michael A. "The Pulling Report." 1990.
http://www.rpgstudies.net/stackpole/pulling_report.html
Wiseman, Loren K., and Stackpole, Michael A. "Questions & Answers
About Role-Playing Games." GAMA, 1991.
http://www.rpg.net/realm/critique/gama.html

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