BTEC Level 3 Creative Digital Media Unit 1 - Representations Lesson plan - gender and video games

1. BIG PICTURE
A focus on representations of
gender in videogames
KEYWORDS
Abusive – Exploit – Misogyny –
Stereotype – Objectification –
Male Gaze
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Develop skills in reading media texts and taking
focused notes about specific issues
SUCCESS CRITERIA
• Powerpoint on positive and negative
gender representations in two different
games
Take your seat. Bag under your desk.
Have your equipment and planner out.
Unit 1 - Representations
• Do you play videogames?
• What are your favourite games – and your favourite
kinds of games?
• What do you know about the history, or about the
theories of audience, for videogames?

2. TELL ME
STUFF!
TAKE ME
THROUGH
IT…
LET ME
HAVE A
GO…
DO I GET
IT?
1 2 3 4 5 6
SETTING THE
SCENE
JOINING UP
LEARNING
LINKS TO LAST
TIME
PASSING ON
KNOWLEDGE
GUIDED PRACTICE
& MODELLING
INDEPENDENT
PRACTICE –
APPLYING THE
SKILLS TO NEW
SITUATIONS
ASSESSMENT &
FEEDBACK
PULL IT TOGETHER
JOINING UP
LEARNING
LINKS TO NEXT
TIME

3. What do you think you know?
1. 59%
2. 31 years old
3. Women over 18 – 36%.
Men under 18 – 17%
4. 35 years old
5. 62%
6. 47%
1. The percentage of people who play
videogames?
2. The average age of videogame players?
3. Who plays more? Women over 18 or
Men/Boys under 18?
4. Average age of biggest market for game
buying?
5. Proportion of gamers who play with
others?
6. Proportion of gamers playing social
games?

4. Can you think of any obvious
examples of negative gender
representations in videogames?
Can you think of any obvious
examples of negative
representations of masculinity in
videogames?

5. How are sexist attitudes perpetuated in
videogames?
Think around a range of
games and around a
range of game genres,
and discuss and come
up with examples and
opinions about the
following...
• Lack of female characters
• Lack of playable female characters with
narrative agency
• Women as victims of violence / abuse
against women
• Negative portrayals of women
• Over-sexualisation in the visual depiction of
women characters
• Traditional marketing of games to boys/men
• Women as 'background decoration' NPCs
• Women's roles limited to being the reward –
the 'damsel in distress'

6. 1. Choose three female
characters from texts in three
different media
a) Posters and advertising
b) Video games
c) Film or television
d) Music video
Follow up – homework task
For each character comment on:-
i. Body image
ii. Costume
iii. Physical beauty (which is an interestingly
subjective and historically and culturally specific
idea, but I think you know what I mean here)
iv. Abilities / Powers
v. Significance within the narrative
vi. Narrative agency
vii. Narrative outcomes – what happens to them?

7. BIG
PICTURE
MY
LEARNING
How did this
lesson fit into
your other
lessons?
What is my
top take- away
from the
lesson?
Have you contributed to the lesson? Will you be able to improve
next lesson? Do you know what you need to go away and do?
o Keep up with new vocabulary
o Keep looking and watching as
students as well as fans – what
are you starting to notice when
you watch films or TV, or play
games, or watch music video...