Essential Technologies for Starting an Esports Club at Your School

Essential Technologies for Starting an Esports Club at Your School

Gaming can be an effective learning tool in K-12 schools. Learn about the essential technologies for starting an esports club at your school here.Starting an esports club at your school can be fantastic for the school and the students. Esports is growing in popularity year-over-year, with games like Fortnite becoming cultural phenomena in their own right.

An esports club or organization offers students a place to let off steam and sharpen their reflexes. Esports also offers some fantastic opportunities for personal development. Academics now recognize that there is a place for gaming in learning and that it is important. Gaming has the ability to teach students about a diverse range of topics and improve a number of critical skills.
Gamification in learning can also be useful for helping keep students motivated and interested in their studies.

Some colleges are now offering esports scholarships too, which could open the door to higher education for underprivileged students.
There are a lot of great reasons to start an esports club at your school. What can you, in the role of an IT director, do to establish one? In this guide, we'll walk you through the whole process, step-by-step.
Ready to learn more? Then read on!

1. Find a Teacher to Run the Club
First off, you'll need to find a teacher who's passionate about esports and gaming. This shouldn't be too difficult: according to recent statistics, nearly 70 percent of Americans play video games.
The teacher's role in this will be to mentor the club's members, help hone their skills, and organize tournaments and other events.
If possible, you should look for a teacher who is a gamer and who has experience running school clubs. Ask other teachers if they know someone who would be a good fit for this role and tell them all about the benefits that running this club will offer students.

2. Gauge Interest in the Club
Before you start organizing the club and sourcing hardware, you should gauge how much interest students have in the idea. Ask teachers to mention it in morning announcements and homeroom, and have students register their interest.

You could also make and distribute flyers around the school, send out an email to students' accounts, and ask other members of staff to get involved in spreading the word.

When you know how many students are going to be involved, you can start organizing the club, starting with the most important part.

3. Decide on the Hardware
Due to budgetary realities, it's likely that you will only be able to have a limited number of students participate in the esports club. Buying new hardware for the club can be done cost-effectively and will let you run more advanced software and gaming technology like virtual reality games, etc.

Yet it's also possible to do a lot with existing hardware. Depending on the age of your school's computers, you may be able to run games on existing hardware.
This is especially true with some older or less-demanding games that are still popular in the world of esports. Some of the most popular games for esports teams in K12 include:

1. League of Legends
2. Rocket League
3. Fortnite

You should ensure that the game's content is appropriate for your students, too. The list above is generally regarded as appropriate for all students.

Finding a Location
You will need to have a room somewhere on the school premises where the students can meet and practice. Pick a room that's big enough for all of the students and the required hardware and displays. Don’t overlook the need for power. Space will need to have sufficient power access for all of the devices and displays.
 
4. Find a Partner
There are a number of different esports leagues out there and you want to find the right one for your school's unique dynamics and needs. Different leagues focus on different areas of the country, have different costs of entry, offer different training, etc.

Take the time to research the different leagues in your area and find the right one for your budget and requirements.

5. Get Support from Parents
This might be the toughest part of the process. To some parents, games are toys and nothing more. While this is an entrenched attitude, it is one that you can challenge when trying to garner support for the club.

We would recommend finding articles from journals or other reputable sources that detail the key benefits that gaming offers to students and how gamification in learning is becoming more and more recognized.

Some leagues that you can partner with may have materials detailing these benefits ready-made that you can distribute to parents.

It is also worth mentioning the rise in esports scholarships and how video games could present a route to college if their child is particularly gifted.
This is not a step to skip: you will need parents' support and permission to let students participate to ensure the club’s success.

6. Recruit for the Club and Launch
Now that you've laid the groundwork, it's time to recruit members to your club. You should advertise the club in the school newsletter, post flyers, host tryouts, and send out emails to students.

Due to the significant role that gaming plays in a lot of young people's lives, you shouldn't have too much of an issue garnering recruits. Once you've got enough people signed up, the teacher running the club can start organizing team(s), tournaments, and a whole lot more!

An Esports Club Promotes Gaming in Learning
Gaming in learning is becoming more and more important. Organizing an esports club at your school can help your students in a whole range of ways and it can be done easily and cost-effectively.
If you'd like help organizing the hardware aspect, check out our gaming solution brief! We can help you get the hardware that you need to get started.