Carol Anne Germain, chair of the Department of Information Sciences and Technology at the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity and associate teaching professor, has come full circle at the University at Albany, where her student journey began nearly three decades ago. “I came to academia later in life,” says Germain. “I didn’t really know what I wanted to do for a long time.” However, after volunteering in a local library and realizing how much she enjoyed the work, she decided to go back to school for a degree in library science in 1994.
She enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Information Science and Policy program at UAlbany; her experience in the program only affirmed her decision to pursue a career in library science. “I did an internship in the University Library at Albany, and it was the perfect fit,” says Germain. “I knew it was where I wanted to be.” Germain excelled in the program, continuing on to the Master of Science (MS) in Library Science program at UAlbany.
Germain landed a graduate assistantship in the University Library in 1996. Just two years later, she accepted the role of an information literacy librarian at UAlbany, where she developed and taught courses focused on information literacy and digital professionalism. “It was a time when information literacy, especially with digital resources, was really coming to the surface,” notes Germain.
Maintaining information literacy in the digital age presented a challenge Germain felt compelled to solve — a research interest that has served as a connecting thread throughout her academic and professional journey.
Information Literacy in the Age of AI
With the rise of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google Gemini, having the knowledge and skills to identify trustworthy sources online is more important than ever. “Google used to return a list of hits and you would be able to, with information literacy and critical thinking skills, make choices on what to use and what not to use,” says Germain. “I think that’s still true for a number of people, but now at the very top of the results, you get an AI synopsis.”
While Google’s AI overview feature is convenient for finding a quick answer, it doesn’t always provide a complete picture of the search topic. To generate these overviews, Google Gemini is using information from publicly accessible websites, notes Germain. “It’s not using any web articles that are published behind paywalls,” she says. “In many cases, it’s not referencing information that is authoritative in nature, which information literacy promotes.”
As we seek out answers to important questions online, such as which program to apply for or how to become better educated on government policies, it’s important to understand the limitations of AI tools in returning information from quality sources. Meanwhile, as these tools evolve to provide more comprehensive answers to our queries, information literacy will serve a critical role.
“AI is a tool that is trained,” says Germain. “So how do we train it to understand what’s authoritative? What’s real and what’s not?” These questions are key to maintaining information literacy in the age of AI.
World-Building and the Suspension of Disbelief
With over two decades of teaching courses at UAlbany, Germain has turned to film as a medium to engage students in meaningful conversations about information literacy — and why it matters. “With film we suspend our disbelief,” says Germain. “We know that in certain films there’s license to not always tell the complete truth, and we almost always have that buffer to understand what’s not really true.”
With this in mind, Germain asked students to identify aspects of assigned films that they perceived as true and untrue, while citing their reasons for these interpretations. “We used a number of films that had some indiscretions as far as the use of information and truth,” says Germain. This exercise would encourage students to search for the facts — or lack thereof — that lend credibility to the worlds these films exist within.
When it comes to world-building, whether it’s within a film, a novel or a video game, following the rules of that world is necessary to facilitate suspension of disbelief. In other words, it keeps the audience immersed in the world you’ve created — whether real or imagined. With the recent launch of the Bachelor of Science (BS) in Game Design and Development program, students at UAlbany are diving into specialized aspects of video game design to build immersive worlds of their own.
Responding to Demand for Digital Games
The game design and development program started as a concentration available to students in the BS in Informatics program at UAlbany. The university created the concentration in response to growing interest in game design among student groups on campus and the regional explosion of digital game studios. UAlbany sought feedback from these studios to inform the curriculum for the BS in Game Design and Development.
“There’s a large game industry in the Capital District area,” says Germain. “So we talked to these studios about what they need — like networking, cybersecurity and quality assurance — and we’ve added a lot of this material into our courses.”
Focusing on these in-demand areas gives graduates an advantage as they seek positions within these studios, and some studios have even agreed to host internships for UAlbany students while they’re in the program. “Students will be using game engines, like Unreal and Unity,” notes Germain. In these studios, some students may encounter technology that’s not on the market yet.
An Interdisciplinary Approach to Game Design
Students in the BS in Game Design and Development program will gradually build their knowledge, beginning with an introductory game design course and progressing to specialized game design and development courses in topics such as narrative development, art and animation, coding, inclusivity, representation and accessibility. With this interdisciplinary foundation, students will then select one of eight concentrations, or they can opt to design a concentration of their own.
The program nurtures students’ creativity while equipping them with practical tools — and information literacy skills — to bring their vision to life. “This is certainly an academic program, but it’s also a space where students can have fun and be creative while also thinking critically,” says Germain. “You want to make games as intuitive as possible, and we’re looking at that from the aspect of narrative and world-building in addition to the idea of networking and background.”
Explore Game Design and Development Degrees at UAlbany
Aspiring video game creators can build a well-rounded skill set to support their career goals with the online or in-person BS in Game Design and Development program at the University at Albany, offering concentrations in eight industry-relevant areas:
- Innovative Narrative in Game Design
- Game Programming
- Simulation and Serious Games
- Networking and Security
- Emerging Technology in Games
- AI and Game Design and Development
- Design and Animation
- Music Technology
Professionals looking to level up in the game industry or education can learn the leadership and project management skills to advance with the MS in Strategic Game Design and Applied Development program at UAlbany.
If you’re interested in learning from skilled and knowledgeable professors such as Carol Anne Germain, find the program for you at UAlbany.
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