It’s a mystery. Your kid can spend hours on end playing Minecraft. She can’t still for an hour’s worth of homework time after school.
He can master the complexities of Fortnite in an afternoon. Meanwhile, you’re still trying to figure out how to turn the darn game on. But the mysteries of the multiplication tables are too hard. And too boring.
No doubt about it. Our children belong heart and soul to the gaming generation.
Rather than fight it, some educators are starting to embrace it. Some even use video games in school to promote student engagement.
But is this a good idea?
The Theory Behind Using Video Games in School
It’s pretty simple, really. Educators know that the best way to reach students is to meet them where they are.
And where students are nowadays is, more often than not, plopped behind a screen, gaming.
So, building upon the premise that the most efficient and effective way to learn is to take the skills students already have and expand on them. The goal is to help students develop new knowledge and master new skills by building on what they already know.
After all, when we are familiar with something, we are more confident and comfortable, and that is precisely what is needed when students are introduced to new content.
Using video games as a learning tool, then, is a way to reduce students’ learning anxiety while increasing their interest.
All They’re Cracked Up to Be?
The theories behind using video games as a teaching tool may sound persuasive, but do video games in education really live up to the hype?
The truth is, there’s not a lot of evidence either way.
What’s not in dispute, however, is that the use of video games in the classroom is not as easy as it may seem.
There are a number of hurdles to overcome if educators are to use video games effectively. Here are just a few:
1. Problems with the Technology
Let’s face it: no technology is perfect. No matter how user-friendly, anytime you have a piece of advanced technology, you’re going to have bugs: systems crash, connection speeds lag.
Let’s also not forget that both teachers and students have to invest valuable class time in learning to set up and use the technology.
2. The Money Issue
The digital divide is real and it’s growing. It affects our schools just as much as it affects our communities and our families.
The sad reality is that many school districts will not have the financial resources to invest in these technologies, putting children in poorer school systems at an even greater disadvantage than what they already suffer.
3. The Effect on Students
The perceived educational benefits of video games are increasingly being celebrated. More and more, teachers are using them to motivate and inspire students.
However, the proven negative effects of gaming cannot be forgotten. Studies have shown that intensive gaming is linked to reduced attention span and poor quality sleep.
Both issues can have a profoundly negative effect on your child’s ability to perform well in school.
The Special Case of Special Education
Educators and administrators today are especially interested in the role of video game technology in special needs classrooms.
Supporters of this technology argue, for example, that children on the autism spectrum can benefit from the use of video games for learning because interacting with the technology places less social demand on them.
In other words, children on the spectrum feel less anxiety when interacting with the machine than with teachers or peers.
This enables them to relax and focus more on learning than on meeting the demands of social interaction.
These technologies can offer a means for educators to customize their approach to the individual needs of students – there can be no doubt of that.
Video games can allow students to move through the game at their own pace. Students often have the luxury of revisiting particularly difficult concepts and skills.
This not only allows teachers to better evaluate students’ progress and their needs, but it also allows students to take charge of their own learning.
And this can be very empowering for students, particularly special needs learners, for whom such a sense of independence and control may be lacking.
The Catch
The drawback to all this, of course, is that gaming can be addictive. We like the bells and whistles. We like being able to switch to a new storyline or quest when the old one gets too hard.
No wonder gamers’ attention spans are known to decrease. No wonder sleep quality suffers.
And consider this: When we’re interacting with a video game, we’re under no pressure to learn and respond to social cues. We’re under no obligation to understand or relate to other human beings.
We don’t have to learn to develop empathy or insight or problem-solving skills. Humans place far more demands on us than video games ever could.
So What’s to Be Done?
Recognizing the limitations and disadvantages of video games in education doesn’t mean we have to throw out the baby with the bathwater.
Video games can still have their place. After all, as has been shown, they can be an incredibly powerful tool for motivating and engaging students.
However, they have to be used strategically. Here are some ideas:
1. Set Limits
Video games may become a part of the daily routine in your classroom, but they shouldn’t take center stage.
If you use video games as a teaching tool, do so sparingly. Ensure that they are a supplement to your teaching strategy, not the whole enchilada.
Otherwise, you risk diminishing the value of the learning process itself. Students will start to strive for the game, not for the lesson.
2. Use Video Games as a Reward
There are a couple of advantages to this. First, it helps you to set the necessary limits, ensuring that your students have their priorities straight when they come into your classroom.
Second, and maybe best of all, it disguises their learning. They think they’re getting a treat for good behavior or strong performance–but what they’re really getting is more knowledge masquerading as play!
3. Don’t Forget the Real World and the People in It
All too often, we allow our children to get lost behind their screens. If video games are incorporated into the classroom, the games and activities that require human interaction must be even more prevalent.
As we’ve seen, unlike humans, games place no social demands on us. But if students are to live and thrive in the real world, then they have to learn to get along with people.
So if video games become a part of your curriculum, then as much, and preferably significantly more, class time should be spent on student-to-student and student-to-teacher activities.
Best of all possible worlds: try to use only multi-player and hybrid video games, those that include both human interaction and real-world skills.
For example, you might incorporate a game that sends children on a scavenger hunt around the classroom or requires them to sing a song or make up a story before they can move on to the next level.
Things to Remember
Whether you are a parent or an educator, you know all too well the power of gaming in today’s generation.
There is tremendous potential in the use of video games in school. These can work wonderfully well in sparking student interest while reducing their learning anxiety.
They can help educators monitor student progress and tailor teaching strategies to individual student needs.
They can empower students by helping them to direct their own learning and by allowing students to build on what they already know.
For students with special needs, video games can be a strong learning incentive and great confidence-building. For students on the spectrum, they can provide learning opportunities that traditional teaching methods simply can’t.
But there are also drawbacks: gaming has been linked to decreased attention spans and poor sleep. Video games can be addictive and they can impair rather than promote social skills.
The Takeaway
Modern gaming technology puts more resources into the hands of educators than ever before. The value of video games in school is becoming increasingly apparent.
However, to ensure that students enjoy the full educational benefits of video games in school, they must be used thoughtfully and within appropriate limits.
Using educational games as a reward for achievement and good behavior is an excellent way to turn learning into fun.
Ensuring that the human element is not lost when technology comes into the classroom is also of extreme importance. As much classroom time, if not a lot more, should be spent interacting with teachers and peers than with technology.
Students and educators alike should also always be armed with the financial and technological resources they need to access and use these tools efficiently and well.
Only then can the true power of video games in schools be realized.
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