Mark Danger Chen

MISSION

I want to employ my skills as an ethnographer as well as draw from other research methods and my background in web game design to help with game development and user/player experience and community relations.

I am also highly interested in research and teaching at an academic institution, focusing on games for learning, everyday gaming and cultural expertise, and battling injustice issues across educational contexts.

EDUCATION

PhD Learning Sciences, College of Education, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (expected 2009)

DISSERTATION TOPIC: An ethnographic look at communication, collaboration, expertise, and socialization in two World of Warcraft player communities

COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Philip Bell (Chair, Learning Sciences), John Bransford (Learning Sciences), Jennifer Stone (Digital Literacies), Beth Kolko (Technical Communication)

B.A. Studio Art, Reed College, Portland, OR (May 1995)

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Research Assistant, Everyday Science & Technology Group, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Summer 2007-present)

• Working on Phil Bell’s research team to analyze video and write ethnographic accounts of learning across settings. My particular focus is to bring a disciplined view of gaming to the analysis of kids playing video games.
  
• Editing and preparing video for analysis with Final Cut Pro.

Web and Flash Consultant, Dangerous Decibels, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR (Summer 2007-present)

• Working with William Martin in updating website and developing a Flash mini-game for a NIH funded outreach project on noise induced hearing loss.

Member of DNI Summer Hard Problem Program 2008 studying “3D Cyber Space Spillover: Where Virtual Worlds Get Real.”

• Assisted in discussions and debates and prepared an analytic product for use by the Intelligence Community for use on this issue as further studies continue.

Instructor/Teaching Assistant, Teacher Education Program, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Fall 2005-2008)

• Taught the technology class for teachers in training.
• Prepared lesson plans and curriculum focusing on two main themes: fast web design with Web 2.0 apps and issues with technology and digital literacy in classrooms and kids’ lives.

Macromedia Flash Consultant, College of Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Summer 2005)

• Created a mini-web interactive about how asphalt is made in an oil refinery.

Research Assistant, Technical Communication, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Spring 2005)

• Helped Professor Beth Kolko design a new course on Technology and Society.

Guild Officer, World of Warcraft, Silver Hand (Spring 2005-2007)

Guild Master, World of Warcraft, Silver Hand (Fall 2004-Spring 2005)

Research Assistant, College of Education, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Winter 2004)

• Worked with Professor William Winn defining a protocol for analyzing chat sessions in an online virtual environment.

Usability Testing Consultant, Microsoft, Seattle, WA (Winter 2004)

• As part of a class (TC 517), worked with a partner to design a pilot usability test for Microsoft Downloads using think-aloud protocol and eye-tracking hardware.

Graduate Assistant, Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology (DO-IT), University of Washington, Seattle, WA (2003-2004)

• Helped define criteria for assessing higher education websites for accessibility and protocols for contacting those institutions with suggestions and resources for making their sites more accessible.

Ed Tech Developer, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Portland, OR (2000-2003)

• Created educational mini-games for exhibit kiosks drawing on vast knowledge of the conventions of commercial computer games.
  • Exhibits include: Moneyville (Get Real and Lemonade Stand), Hanford at the Half-life (Radiation Calculator), Dangerous Decibels (Save Your Ears), Engineer It!, Explore Technology (Color Mixing), and Animation (Squash and Stretch).
• Created and tested user interface prototypes and wrote and refined software specs for all projects.
• Learned a new science topic with each project, enough so I could portray it accurately yet simply to the general public.
• Worked with both internal and external clients to define learning goals and design engaging games based around those goals.
• Oversaw multiple projects and coordinated art, video, audio, and programming teams for each.

Webmaster, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Portland, OR (1998-2000)

• Redesigned entire website with a focus on accessibility and scalability using ColdFusion.
• Maintained multiple back-end databases to manage the content of the website.
• Worked with external e-commerce vendor for the OMSI online store.
• Initiated and managed the first OMSI mini-sumo robotics competition.

Multimedia Consultant, Geneforum.org (2000-2003)

Multimedia Specialist, Reed College, Portland, OR (1995-1998)

Webmaster, Portland Public Schools Talented and Gifted, Portland, OR (1997-1999)

3D Artist, Sarnath Software, Corvalis, OR (1997-1998)

Beta Tester, Skybox (1997-1998)

Multimedia Consultant, Apple Computer (1996)

OTHER EXPERIENCE

• Officer of Educators for Social Justice, College of Education (2008-present), Member (2003-present)
• Officer of Associated Students of the College of Education (2006-2008), Member (2006-present)
• Rider for the National Bicycle Greenway Mayor’s Ride, Portland to Eugene leg (2003)
• Key member of the Walk the Talk environmental team at Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (2001-2003)
• Rider for the National Bicycle Greenway cross-country ride (2000)

PAPERS

A list of publications and such are found on my Papers page.