ESRB Partners with PTA to Educate Parents on Game Ratings, Online Play

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ESRB Partners with PTA to Educate Parents on Game Ratings, Online Play

April 21, 2008

The ESRB and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) have embarked on a new partnership designed to keep parents up to date on the video game industry's content rating system as well as the hazards associated with online play.

To kick off the initiative, the ESRB and PTA will offer a new booklet, A Parents Guide to Video Games, Parental Controls and Online Safety, which will be distributed to all 26,000 local PTA chapters.

In addition, Andrew Bub aka GamerDad will join ESRB president Patricia Vance and PTA national president Jan Harp Domene on a webcast tomorrow evening at 7PM Eastern. During the program Bub, Vance and Domene will explain the rating system and discuss online video game safety. Viewers will also have an opportunity to ask questions.

Of the new effort, the PTA's Domene said:

Using the ESRB ratings and setting up parental controls are important, proactive steps that parents can take to make sure their kids are playing games they deem appropriate. And being aware of the risks posed by online-enabled games and what can be done to keep their kids safe when playing online is crucial information for parents. We’re very pleased to be offering them this guidance with the help of ESRB.

GamerDad added:

Online-enabled games have opened up a whole new world of possibilities... But with that ability to interact comes the ability to introduce content into a game that might not be appropriate for all players. Making sure parents are aware of the tools they can use to protect their kids is a central part of the GamerDad mission, and I’m delighted to have been able to take part in this initiative to arm parents with this information.

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Comments

Submitted by DarknessDeku - April 21, 2008 at 4:14 pm -0500

1st
----

Because we all know games will harm our kids.

Submitted by Ragnaar - April 21, 2008 at 4:15 pm -0500

Commendable efforts. I would rather they decide to use TV rather than webcast, but they can't have the funds for that, especially on a national level. Nevertheless, education on the matter makes a big difference.

Submitted by BaronJuJu - April 21, 2008 at 4:20 pm -0500

Its great to see the ESRB and the PTA out there educating parents on the rating systems and steps they can take to learn more about gaming as a whole. The addition of GamerDad is icing on the cake.

Submitted by WarOtter - April 21, 2008 at 4:24 pm -0500

Now this is proper action on the part of the ESRB. Kudos.

Mmmmmm.... kudos....

Submitted by kurisu7885 - April 21, 2008 at 4:29 pm -0500

Better than advocating bans.

Submitted by JC - April 21, 2008 at 4:33 pm -0500

Haven't heard much from Bub lately. Now that we have, must be fully recovered 8D!

It is a great thing these two are together now, but lets just hope they don't have some ulterior motive to try influence the ESRB in some way. In any case, online games are touchy, as the content doesn't necessarily come from the developer themselves but rather other peers which makes it difficult to ever slap a label on the content. I say a parent watching what happens and educating their child about what they may hear/see isn't something that appropriate to repeat is the better result.

Let's hope this goes well. Good to see you back on the front again Bub!

Submitted by GRIZZAM 512 - April 21, 2008 at 4:40 pm -0500

I'm fine with this as long as they don't jam their views on what games other people's kids should be playing down everyone's throats.

Submitted by ESRB Partners with PTA to Educate Parents on Game Ratings, O - April 21, 2008 at 4:42 pm -0500

[...] wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptThe ESRB and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) have embarked on a new partnership designed to keep parents up to date on the video game industry’s content rating system as well as the hazards associated with online play. To kick off the initiative, the ESRB and PTA will offer a new booklet, A Parents Guide to Video Games, Parental Controls and Online Safety, which will be distributed to all 26,000 local PTA chapters. In addition, Andrew Bub aka GamerDad will join ESRB president Patricia Vance and PTA national president Jan Harp Domene on a webcast tomorrow evening at 7PM Eastern. During the program Bub, Vance and Domene will explain the rating system and discuss online video game safety. Viewers will also have an opportunity to ask questions. Of the new effort, the PTA’s Domene said: Using the ESRB ratings and setting up parental controls are important, proactive steps that parents can take to make sure their kids are playing […] [...]

Submitted by E. Zachary Knight - April 21, 2008 at 4:51 pm -0500

This is a great move. The biggest thing here is that the ESRB is speaking directly to parents and teachers. This is what we have needed for a long time.

I am glad to see this.

I am also glad to see that the ESRB is recognizing Andrew and his work on Gamer Dad. I do hope they use him more often in the future.

Submitted by GRIZZAM 512 - April 21, 2008 at 4:55 pm -0500

So what's the teachers' role in this?

Submitted by GamerDad - April 21, 2008 at 5:15 pm -0500

Hey thanks!
I am 100% recovered and more full of it than ever ("it" being energy to defend parents). You haven't seen me here because I've turned GamerDad into a blog after selling my review archive to someone yet-to-named who can better use it.

But yeah, I'm honored the PTA and ESRB chose me for this. Oh, and to answer some questions, the webcast on Wednesday is for PTAs - I gather a lot of them are having meetings and are going to show it. As far as the teachers go . . . I imagine that games are all kids talk about. They could use some knowledge too.

But yeah, parents are the target. That's why the booklet I helped write/edit is key. That's going to every school in the United States that has a PTA. I remember seeing last year's pamphlet (they upgraded) in libraries and day cares too.

GamerDad.com is five years old.
I've never been given an opportunity to reach parents this "on target" before. It feels good.

Submitted by Conejo - April 21, 2008 at 5:44 pm -0500

there is no knowledge that is not power.

Submitted by KayleL - April 21, 2008 at 5:53 pm -0500

Once of the biggest arguments about baning games is parents not understanding the ESRB rating system. But I just find it strange how parents don't notice "Mature 17+" on the front of the box. Once you see that, it doesn't need to be explained.

Submitted by Dick Ward - April 21, 2008 at 6:18 pm -0500

Huzzah, any step towards education of parents is a great step forward!

Submitted by Jormungander - April 21, 2008 at 6:32 pm -0500

*joyous cheer* proactive step to dispel ignorance on the part of the ESRB and great parents (like GamerDad) is always welcomed. Heres hoping it goes well especially if it helps promote more mergers of this kind which will hopefully stop all the damned "ban" laws and let some tax payers keep a few bucks at the end of the week...or ya know start getting rid of that 4...5 trillion debt?

Submitted by GRIZZAM 512 - April 21, 2008 at 11:33 pm -0500

This I support! :))

Submitted by Zach Adams - April 22, 2008 at 5:53 am -0500

As both a high school teacher and former Best Buy drone, I applaud this as long as it remains apolitical. (For those who've been in the retail trenches more recently than 2002, do parents still come in asking for non-existent things like E-rated pro wrestling games, not understanding that the level of violence in a wrestling match makes an E rating impossible? That always amazed me.)

Submitted by nightwng2000 - April 22, 2008 at 7:22 am -0500

I knew the National PTA would come through on this.

Probably ticked off the Utah PTA branch who supported legislation against video games rather than educating Parents.

Glad to see they're getting behind GamerDad too.

Nightwing2000
Nw2K Software

Submitted by Karsten - April 22, 2008 at 2:19 pm -0500

I think is very good news - at least for the US. Teachers ansd parents and gamerdad working together to educate and inform people, students and the public about this.

I just wish we had some sort of gamerdad here in the Europe.

I mean it looks like the weird stuff finally is sort of coming our way too, now:

http://politiken.dk/tjek/digitalt/spil/article498720.ece

The text is in Danish but it says something like 'violent games to scrutiny from the EU' in the headline. Then the manchet, (the little text before the article) says that 'the Eu-commision has analyzed the laws about violence in computergames and the conclusion is that the business needs to tighten up and the point in doing so is in preventing school massacres' - like the one that's happened in Finland some while ago. (Sorry, if this should have been a news submission, I just thought it went very well along with the theme of this thread)

The article then goes on to say that the gaming industry needs to make the buyers more ware of the PEGI-ratings. It then continues to say that the EU-commisions recommendation is that this also should be done online i.e. on the internet where much of the sale goes on today.

And then I just think :'gee, it would be really nice, if we had a European gamerdad or the like' since the EU-commission doesn't seem to understand (still) that video and computergames aren't just for children anymore. And that if a child under the age of 18 gets say Mass Effect or Crysis or one of the GTA games, there must be something totally wrong, since buying online means having a credit card. And you can't get a credit card unless you're 18+ anyway (at least in most European states).

And Vivianne Reading does not seem to understand that PEGI like the ESRB is an independent organization that can't take orders from politicians as to what rating a certain game should get.

Again, I'm so sorry for this near highjacking of the thread, but I just fear that we are going to have the same arguments as the US have had for the past 5-10 years without having a gamerdad like Andrew to help us, the gaming public, inform the public about games and families that play games. And what good it will do for a family that play games.

That's why I just wish we had something like that in Europe - and in Denmark as well.

Finally, let me say that I'm glad to see the ESRB and the PTA getting behind GamerDad as well.