Video Games in Education

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Video Games in Education

Since the Early 70’s video games have been giving a bad name. Parents state that video games rot the minds of children and are influencing them do be violent. These accusations are far from the truth. In my research I found that there are many positive effects of gaming. Some of these effects are increased skills, creativity, general knowledge, and also help those in need. Parents can also take proper precautions and look into a game before buying it to see if it meets the criteria discussed in this paper.

Video games challenge the player and expand his ability to react fast with very little lag time. With years of practice the player becomes quicker and more accurate with the movements. Thus hand and eye coordination is better, the player sees something on the screen and has to physically react to it. Not only is hand and eye coordination improved but so is manual dexterity (Taking Children Seriously). For example Madden 2004 is a football game, which requires fast reactions. If the player does not have the quick reaction skills develop then the other team will most likely sack him. The player needs to realize he has a limited time to throw the ball and most get the pass off quickly, he needs to scan the field, look for a possible escape route, and watch for the defense closing in. Another type of game, which improves hand and eye coordination, is shooting games. Although these games, such as Time Crisis 2, are being criticized for its violent content, these games force the player to quickly scan the screen for criminals to shoot before they are shot. The police force uses similar methods to train their officers to raise reaction speed when they are out on the streets. Related to h...

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...the ideas that are taught in schools. Games also need to intermix instruction with demonstration. This is a big difference from the basic way of learning in school, which is memorize and regurgitate. Demonstrating shows the student what it looks like and they retain the content longer.

Video games have been an influence part of our society since the early 70’s. The bad named that they are given is false, the only reason they have this bad name is because kids like games, so anything that is fun is bad for you. If a child loved playing chess he or she would be rewarded but it to is a game. Video games can help the learning process and should be incorporated in to the school system. If a child loved playing chess he or she would be rewarded but it to is a game. Video games can help the learning process and should be incorporated in to the school system.

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