I am the video game policeman in my house.
More often than my two younger boys would like, I march downstairs and tell them to turn off the PlayStation or Xbox and head outdoors. They grudgingly turn off the machines, but not without protesting that they were right in the middle of mastering some new 鈥渓evel.鈥� I鈥檝e played this enforcer鈥檚 role for years because the games never seemed good at doing anything but keeping my boys out of trouble. I鈥檝e always believed they鈥檇 learn more by reading a book or just playing outside.
But over the past two years, the idea that video games can actually teach kids something has been gaining traction among researchers and educators. In 2005, the influential Federation of American Scientists recommended that the U.S. departments of Education and Labor and the National Science Foundation play more active roles in working with software companies to study and design games that improve learning. Last year, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation kicked off a five-year, $50 million initiative to promote 鈥渄igital learning,鈥� including educational games. Those developments were followed by the annual Serious Games Summit, in which makers of games designed for education, national defense, and health care applications came together to share ideas and promote their creations.
Why the sudden momentum? 鈥淭here are a lot of reasons converging,鈥� says Michelle Lucey-Roper, whose title at the Federation of American Scientists is 鈥淟earning Federation Project Manager.鈥� To begin with, she notes, learning scientists are framing better research questions about video games. And as games鈥� technology gets more sophisticated, the researchers are also seeing more overlap between the complex skills learned in games and those needed in the workplace.
The federation itself is currently piloting two games in middle and high schools. One, called Immune Attack, teaches students concepts about biology and immunology. FAS鈥� history game, called Discover Babylon, allows students to explore ancient Mesopotamia 鈥攏ow Iraq鈥攁nd the origins of writing.
My 12-year-old son, who is currently obsessed with a role-playing video game that simulates experiences of American and German World War II soldiers, believes the medium is naturally suited for learning history and science. He sees possibilities in other subjects too because the games require players to master easier levels before moving up to harder ones.
鈥淎t first, I like it easy,鈥� he told me recently. 鈥淭hen when I beat the game, I go back and make it harder. I don鈥檛 know why, but when you do [well], you want to play more and more and more. It鈥檚 like an addiction.鈥� That鈥檚 the kind of learning experience educators would love students to have.
I still have no intentions of turning in my video game policeman鈥檚 badge. But like any good officer, I plan to investigate, trying out my sons鈥� pastime for myself to see what I might learn.
