When the school in South Korea was filmed, a sign hanging in the hallway was included. I cannot recall the exact wording, but its message bluntly said that playing video games makes you stupid. This is a false, negative stigma that unfortunately exists as a common misconception. Video games do not make people stupid. In fact, tons of research has been and is being conducted, which discover results about the elevated level of brain maturity achieved through playing video games.
Recent cognitive neuroscientific studies have demonstrated that bounteous types of video games will result in a variety of positive changes to visual attention, hand-eye coordination and other vital perceptual skills. For example, action video games result in enhanced allocation of visual attention and task switching abilities. All video game players who participated in these studies showed an increased cycle speed, with which they refresh existing representations in a working memory. This means they have an increased memory capacity.
These findings are so extraordinary that neurologists are now encouraging people to play video games for the preservation of sharper minds. Patricio Reyes, a Phoenix neurologist and brain pathologist is only one of the copious professionals considering the revolutionary benefits that video games potentially offer. According to Reyes, brains that have been injured or suffer from debilitating diseases such as Parkinson's have been known to rewire themselves when stimulated.
Scientists who conduct these types of studies explain that the mind must be exercised just as the body should be kept in shape. Video games are the most recent entrant in brain training. Nintendo was the first company to develop games whose primary purpose is to get people to think, thus exercising one's brain. Such games were inspired by the research of Japanese neuroscientist Ryuta Kawashima, who discovered that puzzles can stimulate different areas of the brain, resulting in an all-over workout.
So, I think the problem with this misconception is that games DO offer tons of cognitive benefits, thinking skills, and overall improvements for intelligence. However, the way they help the mind is disguised behind the fun form of media. So, they are achieved through a very nontraditional manner, which is generally rejected before its possibilities are even explored. This ties into the next part of the video I'd like to comment on.
These mental video game benefits cross over to the idea of applying video game technology in school systems, as part of this video covered. Today’s typical school environments are extremely similar to the way they were several centuries ago. A teacher stands in the front of a room and lectures or writes as students (hopefully) absorb the content. The students’ minds often wander off, losing focus because they are required to sit passively and listen or read in order to learn, as the video pointed out. Experts in education are now beginning to recognize the need for alternate ways of learning, specifically through visual, auditory and kinesthetic manners. It is time for school systems to finally evolve.The development of video game software designed to teach students the curriculum would revolutionize school systems, benefiting education by transforming the concept of learning. Rather than passively listening to a teacher or quickly going through the repetitive notions of an algebra problem, students would become engaged in the content.
Along with being more involved with their studies, students would be more challenged as well. Neurologists and other experts such as Professor James Paul Gee have recognized the greater cognitive avails achieved through a video game than in a classroom. Gee explains, “While the computer game industry motivates children by stretching them to the limit of their abilities, schools often alienate and bore students when they try to push them to make similar efforts.” The complex thinking skills required to beat a video game are disguised behind the enthralling sounds and visuals, and the excitement they cause users to produce. Experts have proven that games necessitate immense focus, critical thinking, multitasking and problem solving skills in order to succeed. These are the exact same goals education systems desire for their students to achieve.
Also, games can teach demanding skills needed in most careers because players model complex systems which often simulate the work world. Players also learn behaviors, languages, skills and ideas needed later in life as well. For example, the real-time strategy (RTS) game Warcraft III teaches resource management. The Sims teaches insight into realistic living. Along with teaching practical concepts needed in life, games can educate children about specific content as well. For example, A United Nations agency is utilizing the popularity of games amongst children in order to teach players lessons about the problem of world hunger. Developed by the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), the game called Food Force teaches children about the required steps involved in delivering food to populations threatened by starvation. With over 850 million people suffering from chronic hunger each day, starvation becomes a reality that humans in the developed countries can't quite grasp. The use of game technology allows people to safely experience the reality through simulation, educating players about specific procedures and raising awareness about the cause. Specific knowledge is also taught through games based in historical times such as World War II games and more. They teach the same kind of knowledge which could be read in a book, but expand on it through the access to simulating the experience, thus leading to further interest.
Overall, I clearly support the benefits of video game technology and agree with the people in the video who see this form of media as likely to become further integrated into our lives. I hope to be apart of the transition!
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