• CURRICULUM OVERVIEW
     

    Students who complete the Game and Simulation program will be eligible for the Bright Future's Gold Seal Vocational Scholarship*. 

    In addition to students completing the below courses, they will also be enrolled in academic courses required to earn a high school diploma. See the Florida Department of Education Graduation Requirements for more information.

    YEAR ONE

    Video game genres, introduction to coding, several game builds, game immersion, basic level design, digital portfolio & career readiness, NGT Competition- chance to win $10,000 (available in all years)!  Students also learn a variety about the software development industry, including available careers and documentation used in the real world.  Industry documents include: customer surveys, problem statements, charters, use cases, business requirements, project plans, architecture, design documents, storyboards, test cases/plans, and more! Certifications offered in year one include Microsoft Technology Associate Windows Operating Systems. 

    YEAR TWO

    Programming - building 3D games in Unity, creating multi-user games, coding (C#), resume, & continue digital portfolio.  Students also complete a yearlong capstone where all students in a period work together and are involved in the NGT competition. Certifications offered this year include Microsoft Technology Associate Windows Operating Systems, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator. 

    YEAR THREE

    Advanced Applications- capstone project, digital portfolio, & certification focus!  Students have multiple opportunities to earn certifications this year as well as focus on one particular area of interest (choices of interest areas including: project management, programming, assets, or business). Certifications offered this year include Unity Certified User: Programmer, JavaScript (see articulation information for SPC for these certifications below). 

    YEAR FOUR - Option to Dual Enroll at SPC or attend class on campus at Tech High

    Tech High: Diversified Study- senior capstone project, finalize digital portfolio, & certification focus!  Students have multiple opportunities to earn certifications this year as well as focus on one particular area of interest (choices of interest areas including: project management, programming, assets, or business). Certifications offered this year include Unity Certified User: Programmer,  JavaScript. 

    SPC Dual Enrollment: Dual Enrollment Info and DE Course Flow. 

    PTC Dual Enrollment: Dual Enrollment Info. 

    Students who earn at least five CAPE certifications are eligible for the Bright Future's Gold Seal CAPE Scholarship.* 

    More Information:

    Game and Simulation programming is project-based and focuses on production planning and design, level design, programming for single and multi-user environments, and collaboration/teamwork (soft skills, soft skills, soft skills). Students also learn about business documentation including customer surveys, business requirements, use cases, architecture, report outs, and more. The program provides technical skill proficiency and includes competency-based applied learning that contributes to academic knowledge, higher-order reasoning and problem-solving skills, work attitudes, general employability skills, technical skills, occupation-specific skills, and knowledge of all aspects of IT careers.

    It is recommended that future students have basic computer knowledge before entering the program.  Students should know how to open/save documents, use Microsoft products, have basic typing skills (40+ words per minute), and know how to use Windows operating systems. Students should be self-motivated and ready to put in extra-effort in game builds. Students also need to be able to communicate effectively with peers as we have several large group build projects. The bulk of the program involves coding games in Unity using C# language. Due to this, attention to detail is essential to the debugging process and students should be comfortable in front of a computer. In coding, every semi-colon, capital letter, and bracket makes a difference and anything out of place will cause an error that needs to be found and fixed (debugged). It is important to note that a passion for playing games is not necessary. Successful students in the program have a passion for learning how games work behind the scenes and how to code from scratch (not play games).

    *Bright Future's scholarships have GPA, ACT, SAT, and service hours requirements. See the Bright Future's website for more information.