THUNDER BAY – There’s a new way for local students to get their competitive juices flowing.
Hammarskjold High School, Superior Collegiate and Vocational Institute, and Westgate Collegiate and Vocational Institute have teamed up to form the Lakehead Public Schools eSports League.
“We’re super excited about it,” Lakehead District School Board director of education Sherri-Lynne Pharand said during the official launch of the league on Wednesday at Superior.
“Not only are the kids learning about teamwork and collaboration, but a lot of the games have mathematics, coding, engineering and science lessons embedded into them.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for the students.”
Superior Grade 10 student Connor Singleton has taken full advantage of the new program.
He and several students were squaring off in Rocket League matches during the lunch hour on Wednesday.
“It’s honestly been a lot of fun so far to be honest,” Singleton said. “Everyone’s a good sport and we’re all playing well. It’s a great time and the vibes are really good.
“I’m looking forward to playing the other schools and hopefully winning.”
At the moment, Superior’s club is playing Rocket League, Roblox and Minecraft.
The Ontario Schools Esports Association currently hosts competitions in those games, along with Fortnite, League of Legends and Super Smash Bros Ultimate.
They are also planning to add Mario Kart 8, EA Sports FC and Halo Infinite as options down the line.
“A lot of what we do comes from what the kids want to play,” said Kel Cullis, who is the chair of technologies education at Superior. “We bring those forward to the board to get the okay and we go from there.
“We’re finding already that the kids are finding their identities here. It’s not a traditional club or team. They come when they want and there’s no cuts like in other sports.”
Tbaytel has also made a sizable contribution of $30,000 to help get the league started. They purchased 10 gaming PCs and 10 gaming monitors for each school’s program.
While students can eventually compete against other gamers from around the province and also earn scholarships for esports programs at the collegiate and university level, Pharand said that there are a lot of skills that the students will be gaining from these experiences.
“There’s team-based skills that they are picking up, plus there’s a lot of computer engineering and science backgrounds that are embedded in these games that can push them towards future career paths or goals,” Pharand added.
“They are also more connected to their schools through the club and teams, so that’s a real great benefit to the students in that way.”
