Every year my gf and I spend a couple months in Thailand as English teachers. And every year we do something special for the last two weeks of school, we teach the students Starcraft. And they absolutely love it. I’ve been doing this for four years now and it has become a sort of end-of-school tradition. They go nuts when the time approaches and study extra extra hard so that they can be eligible to play. It’s funny how quickly they become addicted. Getting to play computer games with your friends, leading vast armies across virtual battlefields, and waging war with your teammates, any kid would eat that up. But this is especially the case for my students. They don't really have the opportunity. Computers are what rich families have and get to play. Computers are strangers to them and you can see it in their hesitant handling of mouse and keyboard. All of them scroll with the arrow keys, they ain't used to mouse scrolling. I’ve visited their homes for parent-teacher meet n' greets and none of them own computers. I’m sure because I would have seen it in their single-room homes (unless it was in the bathroom).
Anyways, I am just thankful for getting the chance to share a small part of my childhood growing up. You would have been happy to see them too. They are already crying about how strong Protoss units are and how weak Terran is (I haven’t taught them how to make tanks yet). We played 1v7 on Hunters and they giggled like hyenas, watching me knock out their friends one by one.
And holy shit do they learn fast. The most shocking thing I saw was a student’s base layout. Gateways and pylons laid out in perfect symmetry. Wtf. She was the only one while the rest were wondering why their dragoons were stuck behind buildings. She was at 150 supply while the others were hovering around 60. A little pipsqueak of a girl kicked everyone’s ass. Very interesting to see how complete newcomers to RTS and BW, play the game.
I also had to stop a kid from making Dark Templars, because detection is hard for elementary students playing their first multiplayer game. Students were asking, “Teacher Golgotha, why are my units blowing up???” And then you see a 40+ kill DT......that kid is going places.
I think the team aspect is what really draws them. Yelling for help, strategizing about who they should kill first, teaching each other how to play, and fighting alongside your team. Hearing them chatter during and after each match brought back memories of my BW lan sessions when I was a youngin’. Without fail, every year the students tell me how much fun the game is and that they can’t wait to play again. Even the students you would expect to absolutely hate the game or have zero interest whatsoever, surprise me and come up to beam about Brood War.
Thanks to Blizzard for making such an epic group experience. Next week will be a lot of fun for my students.
I have a request to ask TL. I’ve shown my students the Jaedong APM video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQRIxq_cJDE&t=42s) and the 2011 BW Starleague highlight video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjkctj71-aU) to blow their minds. Is there anything else I can show to shock and awe them even more? There are many highlight videos but most are potato quality. I'd appreciate your help and ideas, whatever to make them fall more in love with Starcraft.
On March 10 2018 01:14 fLyiNgDroNe wrote: So basically you go there and make poor kids broodwar addicts? That is brilliant! Did you ever receive a thank you letter from their parents?
lol
EDIT : This is really cool, I love the guide you made
On March 10 2018 01:04 ne4aJIb wrote: I remembered 2000, when we had first computer classes. There were Quake 2 installed and Starcraft. Good times.
Best thing about BW is LAN and any toaster can run it. Thank God.
On March 10 2018 01:14 fLyiNgDroNe wrote: So basically you go there and make poor kids broodwar addicts? That is brilliant! Did you ever receive a thank you letter from their parents?
haha yeah once a year we do this! but I am primarily an organizer/teacher who sets up English camps for disadvantaged children. I work with education majors and we set up English language learning events at schools. They will send me a letter in the future, after their kid becomes a pro BW player =)
On March 10 2018 02:54 ppp87 wrote: เสาไฟฟ้า is better for pylon, otherwise it might be a bit missleading.
Thanks man, yeah fai is a bit confusing for pylon.
On March 10 2018 02:35 bovienchien wrote: Thank you so much for you brought Starcraft to students Thailand. I am Vietnamese and I also want to develop Starcraft at my country.
You can! Kids just need the chance to try it out, they'll have a blast. Are you a teacher in Vietnam?
On March 10 2018 01:47 A.Alm wrote: Omg that looks like so much fun!
I showed them micro stuff like this but they don't really appreciate it yet. They don't know what micro is. They are very good at A-click attack though.
very cool. I love how your school permitted (or dont know) about this. I think this is a great alternative education. Incorporate math, geometry etc. So many educational opportunities! Btw, that elementary girl is better than me. I cant even get over 100 supply with 100 apm
I think the B.Net Attacks are a great way to combine both (or multiple) goals. Students learn StarCraft, learn about the magic of Korean Progamers, and they can find the errors in English in the subs! Here is Part 1 of FBH:
On March 10 2018 04:04 art_of_turtle wrote: Someone taking it as their personal responsibility to ensure the younger age learns strategy, multitasking, and creativity.
Those points are actually why I was allowed to do this. I showed the school director that this wasn't your typical mindless game. Thanks man.
On March 10 2018 05:08 Ty2 wrote: dude....By far you have to show them the July sauron zerg video. I'm pretty sure it was one of the first progamer vids I saw that fully convinced me Zerg was gonna be my race.
You should pause the video at this moment and tell them to pay close attention to the minimap and how July has several dozens of units set up. Seconds later you see all of the circles converging into one swarm. Even someone like me who didn't understand the intricacies of Brood War, on a purely visual level I could see the raw power of the zerg.
Dude, those are perfect. The students are going to love these. This is exactly what I was hoping for. Some historic matches from the pros. They love seeing big battles and gigantic armies fighting each other. Sauron Zerg is gonna make them want to play Zerg though. Now I gotta teach them Zerg =)
Haha yes, the close up of Jaedong's face is priceless. I watched this match live on TL, good times in that match thread. Seeing the pro players behind the game is very important in my opinion. I appreciate these Ty2.
On March 10 2018 04:48 iFU.pauline wrote: export the teaching of the "Great Wisdom" oversea.
Just like you always teach us.
On March 10 2018 07:47 fanatacist wrote: Golgotha you sexy beast. Doing the good work.
I think the B.Net Attacks are a great way to combine both (or multiple) goals. Students learn StarCraft, learn about the magic of Korean Progamers, and they can find the errors in English in the subs! Here is Part 1 of FBH:
These are great, even for me. I started watching pro Brood War very late, so you guys know a lot more about good games and BW history. Appreciate it! The GoRush vod is good because it shows the speed of the player and army management and nothing is more hype than Jangi's storms.
I'm at the school right now and I just showed my Thai teachers the help and support you guys have given. So on Monday and Tuesday, they're gonna let me teach the older kids (grade 5 and grade 6) for 3 hours straight. Extra time to watch all the videos ^^
and Jukado even sent me ally spawn maps! gonna have a grade 5 vs grade 6 tournament. they're hella competitive, there's definitely going to be some bad blood afterwards.
you guys are the best. The foreign BW community is legit.
My mannn you're doing God's work here! I too, have fond memories of organising a DotA LAN tournament in my school, I believe they take something away from this.
My pick:
So many things to talk about in this video that are key to BW and some are even applicable to life: micro, key timings, control of one's emotions, patience in waiting for the right moment, perseverence etc.
On March 10 2018 17:51 JieXian wrote: My mannn you're doing God's work here! I too, have fond memories of organising a DotA LAN tournament in my school, I believe they take something away from this.
So many things to talk about in this video that are key to BW and some are even applicable to life: micro, key timings, control of one's emotions, patience in waiting for the right moment, perseverence etc.
that game is the definition of never giving up and perseverance. still gives me chills
This is so cool!!! I remember we used to have "programming camps" in junior high. Learn programing till like 2pm and then starcraft until evening! all those 10min no rush 2v2v2, or team melee (where two ppl control same base and units) games were so much fun!
Do this more, this game is so much better for brain development than current smartphone crap! I hope I get the chance to do such work in the future too <3
is also a candidate for "how great players make a ton more shit than good players" flash vs type-b from that one OSL. type-b is still a good player, since he's a pro...
- flash vs jangbi from the jin air OSL, I've linked to flash's 200/200 push, but Jangbi already has 6 bases going on 7 and 25 gateways. Might be a little bit harder to appreciate since it takes a few minutes for Flash's push to crumble, but watching 50 supply after 50 supply of units crashing into the famously sturdy terran seige line (especially flash's) is hopefully appreciable too
Comebacks include Fantasy vs Jangbi on Pathfinder, from the Jin Air OSL, game 5 (I think this at least appears to be a comeback, you can sell it as "jangbi even lost a stargate but he kept harassing and then pulls off a carrier vs tank, goon vs goliath army split). The best comeback ever is still Boxer vs Joyo, but it's from 2003 and the english commentary is split into 4 videos
In terms of nailbiting battles, Kal vs forGG from Arena MSL 2008 has a 10 minute long battle, deep six vs reavers, not sure about the crowd appeal on this one
and are good examples of JD muta micro, I think it's probably one of the most visually exciting types of gosu micro, "you just catch those pesky mutas!"
I think most of the other games that we reverently worship are either pretty hard to appreciate or already listed.
The dinky Korean music and awesome micro in this one is great!
Straight-up TvB domination can be so complex it can be overwhelming. It's good to also focus on specific fundamentals (macro micro tech).
You can do this via challenges and other game-modes: 'Arena' where they have to bring 12goons vs. 12goons to the middle and micro 'Monster Army' where they focus purely on macro "First to 100 supply wins". Pylons, probes, nexus, gateways, zealots. Even the fanciest tech or micro will die against that. 'Build me 6 of X' where they have to race to tech up and build e.g. 6 Dark Archons.
Lastly, provided the map is being played with Use Map Settings, you can easily modify the map's properties to disable tech you don't want them to build ... or change Mind Control to only cost 20mana
We studied some English, learned some history, and played Starcraft. Not a bad week!
I made sure to tell them about Flash, Bisu, and Jaedong. I showed them Flash’s crazy Korean Air entrance, all of his ASL wins, Bisu’s win over Flash in the SPL Finals ace match, and Jaedong’s victory over Stork in the 2007 OSL Finals. I wanted the students to see how much the game meant to these players. Thank you for all the help, it was very kind of you guys.
Here is a replay of the student's playing 4v4 on Jukado's custom map. They are brand new to the game, at most some of the students have played four matches.
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing the video, photos and replay with us, it was really exciting. For me this was the most rewarding thread on teamliquid for years (I dont mean because you used my map but what an honour that you did). Its fascinating seeing new players learn brood war, seeing things click in their minds as they work things out (with a few pointers from their teacher Im sure). Im very impressed by their play. You can see over the course of the game, they suddenly grasp key concepts and jump up in skill level rapidly, or think of a cool plan and go put into action. Some of the play was scarily like modern day macro monsters, I was shocked. In before one of your students wins ASL 15. There were so many funny moments, I enjoyed it way more than I probably should have lol.
Did you play a 1v7 in the end? Everyone was Protoss, if you were to do it all again, would you have everyone as terran instead? Maybe could change the start location minerals to be 5000 per patch.
Watching new players discover brood war, particularly those that havent played video games before is really awesome, and this thread has reignited my passion. Makes me think Im on the right path with making public domain games etc too. Nice one Golgotha (and photographer), good stuff.
First of all thanks for teaching kids Starcraft. Second of all here are some vods I think you might find helpful with English subtitles + Show Spoiler +
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYthCrf2CM0
Hopefully your students will enjoy Starcraft to the fullest extent :D
Will you be able to stay in contact with the students? If I make a video cast of the replay, will you be able to forward it to them? I'll try to use simple English? Any recommendations for what I should include in the cast or not?
On March 23 2018 04:50 Jukado wrote: Fantastic! Thanks for sharing the video, photos and replay with us, it was really exciting. For me this was the most rewarding thread on teamliquid for years (I dont mean because you used my map but what an honour that you did). Its fascinating seeing new players learn brood war, seeing things click in their minds as they work things out (with a few pointers from their teacher Im sure). Im very impressed by their play. You can see over the course of the game, they suddenly grasp key concepts and jump up in skill level rapidly, or think of a cool plan and go put into action. Some of the play was scarily like modern day macro monsters, I was shocked. In before one of your students wins ASL 15. There were so many funny moments, I enjoyed it way more than I probably should have lol.
Did you play a 1v7 in the end? Everyone was Protoss, if you were to do it all again, would you have everyone as terran instead? Maybe could change the start location minerals to be 5000 per patch.
Watching new players discover brood war, particularly those that havent played video games before is really awesome, and this thread has reignited my passion. Makes me think Im on the right path with making public domain games etc too. Nice one Golgotha (and photographer), good stuff.
Lol yup. They got better as the game went on and were not satisfied with dragoons. I taught one kid basic carrier micro and he started wrecking everything.
We played 1v7 at the start, I was zerg and they were all protoss. that was fun but they don't like playing against me. They want me on their team or to not play. They hate facing me. =)
I taught them protoss because protoss units are beefy and it's an easy race to understand. Terran requires unsieiging, laying mines, medics, etc. Zerg concept of using larvae was a bit confusing for them as well. But I bet that after a couple of games where they are allowed to free roam the tech tree, they will be able to play zerg and terran without my help. The basic idea of gathering minerals and gas, and then building stuff to unlock units is pretty straight forward.
Glad it has helped you Jukado, thanks again.
On March 23 2018 06:09 ne4aJIb wrote: Simly amazing! Is that Stork on the slide Introduction to StarCraft? xD
Sorry to Stork fans, I did not include him =)
I also said some things that might be be blasphemous around these parts. Things like: "Jaedong is the best Zerg in the world and the 2nd greatest player in Starcraft history." hahaha
On March 23 2018 06:38 ninazerg wrote: Be sure to teach them proper bm so that when they get on the ladder, they can start building turrets that spell the words "get out"
Fun fact: In Thai, the number 5 sounds like 'ha'. So if you ever see '55555555', those are my students.
On March 23 2018 06:43 LightningStrike wrote: First of all thanks for teaching kids Starcraft. Second of all here are some vods I think you might find helpful with English subtitles + Show Spoiler +
Hopefully your students will enjoy Starcraft to the fullest extent :D
Thanks for the videos man!
On March 23 2018 11:34 Jealous wrote: *thumbs up*
Will you be able to stay in contact with the students? If I make a video cast of the replay, will you be able to forward it to them? I'll try to use simple English? Any recommendations for what I should include in the cast or not?
Haha, if you could make it funny and poke fun at them, they would love that. It's a bit hard to reach them since school is out for summer, but my school can help stay in contact with most of them. Thanks man.
By the way, I will contact you if I need help with something. Because something might happen and I might be able to do something BW related with the students again.
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