We're no strangers to the notion that the DS is education-friendly; after all, one of the system's best-selling titles is little more than a learning tool spiced up with a dash of competition. The subject has come up over the years, and it's surfaced again as another education professional is coming out in favor of video games as viable job preparation platforms for children, but most of David Williamson Shaffer's work is centered around specific types of games -- games designed as educational software. But what about regular games? As gamers, do you feel that playing has helped hone your wits? That's today's DS Daily topic: what, if any, benefits does gaming provide, and are only certain kinds of games "good" for you?
DS Daily: DS as educational tool
We're no strangers to the notion that the DS is education-friendly; after all, one of the system's best-selling titles is little more than a learning tool spiced up with a dash of competition. The subject has come up over the years, and it's surfaced again as another education professional is coming out in favor of video games as viable job preparation platforms for children, but most of David Williamson Shaffer's work is centered around specific types of games -- games designed as educational software. But what about regular games? As gamers, do you feel that playing has helped hone your wits? That's today's DS Daily topic: what, if any, benefits does gaming provide, and are only certain kinds of games "good" for you?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-13-2007 @ 9:42AM
Wayward said...
Everyone learns differently, so I think whether or not games can teach you much depends quite heavily on the person. I think it can be done and it can be done very well. Look at Mario is Missing, or any of the Carmen Sandiego games. If a developer can achieve that difficult balance of being both a fun game and something that can teach you new things, it can be a rewarding experience. To often though, edutinment games are either to preachy, boring, repetetive and badly thought out. Most of them just boil down to encyclopedias with puzzles, or horrible clones of popular games with facts replacing any remnant of a plot.
As for games in a whole teaching you things, theres the whole reaction speed and hand/eye co-ordination thing, but thats really quite minimal. I don't think you gain many skills and knowledge playing a typical game. I can't honestly say any DS games has taught me anything or improved my life in any way, beyond just being good quality entertainment, and yes, I include brain age in that.
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1-13-2007 @ 1:34PM
Wendy Fung said...
I am just curious as to what game the accompanying picture is from.
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1-13-2007 @ 4:47PM
bard said...
The current educational system was designed in the late 1800s to prepare people for life in industrial America not today's technologically-steeped world.
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1-13-2007 @ 4:55PM
Matthias said...
Hi Wendy, it's "Kanji no wataridori" by Success.
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1-13-2007 @ 7:14PM
Kefka said...
On a basic level, games can help simple skills - hand-eye coordination, interpretation/recognition of symbols, basic analytical skills, etc...
They can also help with more advanced stuff like tactics and strategic thought - while it's unlikely you'll need to douse torches and sneak up on guards to knock them out irl, it all helps to some extent.
Some people also say that gaming helps kids get used to processing fast/multi-directional information that people need nowadays - TV news has a presenter, ticker bar, background graphic, headline captions... Not all that unlike keeping track of your health, ammo, enemy positions and mission objectives.
And I haven't even started with games that are *meant* to be educational!
To be honest, I thought this topic was going to be about the schools and universities who use the DS in the classroom...
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1-13-2007 @ 11:06PM
20XX said...
Don't forget reading and vocabulary! My reading level was significantly improved by playing RPGs with my dad as a child. Where else is a 5-year-old going to pick up words like "Cleric" and "Avatar?" Also simple things like "inventory."
Man, this is an interesting topic. I'd like to see this discussion continued or resumed on another day.
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1-14-2007 @ 2:42AM
Kefka said...
Yeah, lots of games help expand vocabulary and general knowledge like that. Play any of the realistic racing/driving games for a while and you'll quite likely be able to recognise sports cars you see on the street irl.
Play a medieval RPG or RTS and you'll no doubt become quite familiar with things such as medieval armour and weaponry, units, tactics, siege warfare...
Heck, even games like Counter-Strike and Police/SWAT style games get you familiar with law enforcement tools and basic tactics.
Rhythm games (any Bemani such as DDR, EBA, etc) help with basic music skills (learning to follow music for one), and many of them are even decent exercise!
These skills are NOT life skills for most people, and will never be more important than English, maths, etc. But the large majority of games are not a "waste of time" - even for people who consider having fun to be a waste of time.
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1-14-2007 @ 4:18AM
Andy Robertson said...
Great comments guys! For me the most interesting aspect of games education is when they teach the players something about community and co-operation.
Team games are obviously pretty good at this. But more than just the matches themselves, its the communities that spring up around our favourite games, the clans, blogs and fan sites that teach us a lot about people in general.
When they work well, they provide one of the key aspects of schooling, a safe social space to learn how to relate to your peers.
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1-14-2007 @ 8:57PM
kingwiqid said...
. Hey, before you deify this woman, you might want to consider that she put her own life on the line for a stupid radio show... a stunt that ultimately cost her children their mother.
she didnt do it for radio station she did it for her kids ... maybe you should sue her kids
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