Despite the popularity of video games in the 21st century, there remains a stigma that gaming has a negative impact on the learning process. Though some educators may dismiss gaming as mere entertainment that distracts from actual learning, they are missing an opportunity to capture their students’ attention while invigorating the learning process. Video games certainly could not replace the knowledge taught by a teacher, but they could, if harnessed effectively, enhance material on a level that students not only understand but also enjoy. For example, one game provides an accurate retelling of history for the selected country, while allowing students to run the selected country by managing finances, population, and foreign policy. If properly implemented, this video game reinforcement allows students to not only learn history in a hands-on format, but also be introduced to governing choices that drastically affect the country. Scientific research has shown that utilizing video games properly in the academic classroom improved test scores by up to 41%. Furthermore, students retained that information for at least seven weeks. Through this and other studies, it is evident that video games can be used to support the learning experience when effectively implemented in academic curriculums.
- Paper Presentation
- Education, Technology
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In the 21st century education system, video games are seen as a stigma, a blight on the learning process. However, scientific research has shown that utilizing video games properly in the academic classroom improved test scores by up to 41%. The time is now to renew students' interest in learning.
Thank you for your work, Brandon. I enjoyed this presentation and would be interested in furthering this research. Let’s talk!
I love this idea of creating a more academic way to utilize video games! It makes it relatable for those who find normal teaching styles static and non-engaging. I also loved the idea of “failure” encouraging growth, and how video games really teach this as a motivational tool.
I am for sure going to look up some of the games you mentioned and try them out!
Good stuff!
This is such a great idea to use video games to help teach and help people get engaged in such as a way to help peak their interest to investigate further. Do you have any games that would be good for a middle school student? Great job on your research!
As someone who’s also a fan of video of games, I love this! As you discussed, I find video games can really promote resilience and problem solving skills. Also, like you mentioned, there’s such a wide variety of video games, many of which are educational. It makes me wonder if these should even be called “games”.
I agree that video games have the potential to be so much more engaging with their combination of visuals, sound, and interactivity. I think they’ll be the future of learning in many topics, especially with the development of virtual reality.
Great job on this, Brandon!
This is really great; thanks for taking the time to put it together and share it! I’d be interested to know if you’ve encountered or thought about video games in other disciplines. The examples here are terrific, but it occurred to me as you were speaking that history and engineering are particularly well-suited for gamification. Lots of the hard sciences seem amendable to this format too. My own background is in philosophy, however, and I’m wondering what a video game designed to introduce students to philosophy might look like. Similar questions could be asked about literature and many other humanities disciplines. Any thoughts?
Adaption is key in all aspects of learning. Whether it be by incorporating video games or by adjusting teaching methods to best suit the students in the classroom, seeing as all students learn and respond differently. I also enjoy that you decided to focus on the positives of video games, rather than the negatives.