Teaching Vaulable Skills Instead

For students, video games are a leisure activity that is not usually associated with hard work. Using video games to the classroom sends the message to students that school is moving in the direction of being a "fun" place to be, and little hard work is required. Quite opposite should be happening and the only message sent should be that if you work hard and achieve, than it is time to play and reward oneself. Many technology enthusiasts believe that video games and other tech tools teach the skills that were traditionally taught, but that is not exactly happening. For example, according to journalist Todd Oppenheimer, author of THE FLICKERING MIND
The False Promise of Technology in the Classroom and How Learning Can Be Saved, "Students actually do not need extensive computer experience to handle
technology’s challenges (employers prefer teaching most of those specific skills
themselves). What employers do look for is an extensive set of people skills: the ability to listen and communicate; to think critically and imaginatively; to read, write, and figure; and many other capabilities that schools are increasingly neglecting.”(Chapter 6, pp. 177-185.)

Traditional skills such as critical thinking, reading, writing and math are being forgotten so that shortcuts can be taken and the classroom can be "fun". Let's stick with fulfilling the purpose of schools instead of creating a new one.

Jilleen Rickard

Really good sites listing the pros and cons of education through video games

http://www.newman.ac.uk/Students_Websites/~d.b.hickmott/disadv.htm


While both sides of the argument have great points, the cons outweigh the pros in my opinion.

-A. Nicole

The Lottery Film - Trailer - June 8, 2010-A. Nicole

Waiting for Superman Official Trailer

THE LOTTERY Extras: No Excuses

The cost of putting video games in the classroom- A. Nicole

With the money already invested in schools, there are far to many operational improvements still needed for schools currently to attempt to find money for video game integration. Movies like "The Lottery" (2010) and "Waiting for Superman"(2010) both point out the more pressing issues with the education system today. Both movies discuss how uneven monetary distribution is already in education for some Americans. Even if video games would be great learning tools, could equal access to those tools be guaranteed? No!

Not All Students Like Videogames, Jill Rickard

A study done by the Department of Educational Studies at Ghent University in 2009, titled Students’ Perceptions About the Use of Video Games in the Classroom, produced results that measure the usefulness of video games in the classroom. An analysis of the data shows the reasons that explain why using video games in education is ineffective.

"Both the large differences between students concerning their weekly playtime and their preferred medium for gaming, suggest that the student population is more diverse than it is usually hinted at in the digital natives literature. This could be a matter of concern, mainly for two reasons. First of all, students’ resistance to using video games in the classroom could be a threat to the active participation which game-based learning requires (Squire, 2008), and secondly, research has shown that experienced users benefit more from the use of video games than their inexperienced peers."

Basically the study proves that since there are inequalities among students, video games can not have a fundamental place in the classroom and should be left as a leisure activity.

References

Bourgonjon, J., Valcke, M., Soetaert, R., & Schellens, T. (2010). Students Perceptions about the Use of Video Games in the Classroom. Computers & Education, 54(4), 1145-1156.

Link:
http://proxy.buffalostate.edu:2061/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VCJ-4XMD5G4-3&_user=681889&_coverDate=05%2F31%2F2010&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_acct=C000037418&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=681889&md5=d2b1789b354b60a795e27fc2806f7bec

Jilleen Rickard