IS SCHOOL FOR LEARNING, OR NOT?

I’m not finished with my exploration of video games in the classroom yet!

Gee tells us that he was blown away by how difficult and complex the video games were that the youth of today were participating in, even more complex than tasks they undertook in school (2011).  In an interview with Derek Robertson (2009), he recalled a situation where he discovered students’ ability to use mathematical reasoning when watching them using a video game.  He had previously reported these students as under-performing in the use of this skill and yet they were employing it quite capably in order to play the game. Williamson (2009) argues that computer games require students to use a complex set of skills such creativity, problem solving, collaboration, systematic reasoning, use of computational ideas and so on. These are skills increasingly referred to for 21^st Century learners and ones that underpin the way in which video games work. It makes sense to utilise video games in education that employ these skills.

In the following video Big Think, draws our attention to the use of video games to simulate learning environments and to arouse curiosity for learning (2011). They assert that the challenge for us is to find the right way to fit games into the educational system.  This may be easier said than done!

The message from Big Think and James Gee is the same; that customised learning for problem solving and innovation is what we should be aiming for, but the current way our school system operates stands in the way of doing this. From the way our school day is timetabled to the testing and assessment regime employed by educational bodies, it is difficult to immerse students in learning situations where they solve problems in order to learn. Currently students are immersed in a system of learning where success is measured through a test at the end and yet we don't test students at the end of a video game. We assume that because they have reached the end of the game that they have mastered it! The reaching of levels in-between is the strong motivation needed to continue and learn more! Gee's (2011) "situated and embodied learning" concept empowers the learner. The learner is able to solve problems with what he or she knows and to learn and articulate their knowledge to others. The assessment is integrated with the learning, not outside of it. Until we change the practices of our education system it is more difficult for us to embrace the gaming world of our students.

So "is school for learning, or not?" Yes it is but we have to be mindful of the culture that our students live in and learn through, outside of school. If these gaming activities that they are immersed in are challenging them to use a complex array of thinking skills then we need to be providing opportunities for them to be challenged and think in creative and innovative ways. The use of games sends a message to students that their activities and their youth culture is valued and important but the teacher needs to plan for this appropriately. Williamson says the role of the teacher is paramount, 'the role of the teacher is to design a learning experience and to identify how a video game or a certain part of a video game can support that learning experience' (2011). No longer can teachers sit on the fence and say that they don't know what their students are doing with video games. As a teacher in the 21st Century we are obligated to know what the students are using and evaluate ways that they may be used in the curriculum so that the students can see the real applications for these skills in their lives and how they connect to their school learning.

Reference List

Big Think (2011) Playing games in the Classroom. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA7KuOyH3PQ

Wiliamson, Ben & Robertson, Derek (2009). Games and learning. Benefits and challenges of using computer games in the classroom.  Futurelab UK (podcast 14 mins) http://media.futurelab.org.uk/podcasts/becta_talks/games/

Gee, James. (2011) Digital Media: New learners of the Twenty-First Century (video 5mins 50secs) http://video.pbs.org/video/1767377460