Prof. Dr. Jennifer Tiede teaches how to play

Prof. Dr. Jennifer Tiede: What has always inspired me are strong women who go their own way in domains that traditionally tend to be dominated by men, like my doctoral mother. Unfortunately, there are still too few female role models and leaders in science. I find it inspiring to learn from people who are pursuing their dreams.

Prof. Dr. Jennifer Tiede: I am fascinated by the connection between games and learning. Games and learning belong together, and this comparatively young field of game-based learning offers a lot of potential for research and interdisciplinary perspectives.

I'm an enthusiastic gamer myself and will drop (almost) anything if someone invites me to a round of Settlers, an evening of skat, a game of Hearthstone or a Beat Saber match. On the other hand, I know the value of educational science and media education research and have worked for years to make a reflective pedagogical approach to digital media in general and games in particular tangible for students and to explore opportunities and problems.

We all know how motivating games can be, and most people have a favorite game that they enjoy spending hours playing. I think that effectively integrating this motivational potential into learning processes is an exciting and important contribution to the enrichment of learning in and out of school and, in perspective, to the further development of our democratic society.

Prof. Dr. Jennifer Tiede: Perhaps it would be "Ready Player One". I found this film quite entertaining; it conveys a passion for digital games and virtual reality and at the same time depicts the dystopia of a completely digitalized society that is subject to the media. To a certain extent, I see this film as a cinematic plea for media literacy and the reflected use of digital media, without denying their benefits or demonizing any use of media. The declaration of love for video games remains at the forefront and I think that's a nice perspective.

Prof. Dr. Jennifer Tiede: The rapid developments in the field of artificial intelligence are, of course, omnipresent. From rather trivial questions (how do we deal with the use of automated, AI-controlled chatbots in exams?) to the use of AI in games and the big questions about the impact on us and our society, many answers still need to be found, and this needs to be done in an interdisciplinary and collaborative way.

Prof. Dr. Jennifer Tiede: To be honest, at the moment I'm either reading Paw Patrol books (with my daughter) or specialist literature (without my daughter). Overall, however, I think that reading is the right thing to do if it is captivating and takes you into strange worlds - very similar to gaming, but not as interactive. That's why I like fantasy stories just as much as exciting thrillers.