[Comp.] Reflections 2

What did I learn? Part 2

This reflective composition deals with a rather controversial topic: Video games in education. I am used to be an avid gamer and game designer, so I get easily "triggered" when people talk about video games and how people become violent only because of them. For this reason, I am just going to limit myself to sharing my composition on the subject matter.

Reflection Paper 2

            “Learning by playing” is not, by any means, a new topic in education. For many years, playing games has become the source of educational research. There have been studies whether this takes places or how “useful” the skills acquired through learning can be. With the advent of video games, the topic has resurfaced once again and there has been a lot of controversy about these entertainment devices and their use in the classroom.

            There are two fundamental issues about using video games for learning purposes. One of them is choosing the appropriate one for the lesson to be taught. This writer believes that they should be planned just as if they were a certain story book for a reading class; this means it is necessary to analyze the usefulness, attractiveness and versatility of said game. The other issue is whether the students will get hooked by the game or would be not interested in it, which can greatly support or inhibit the meaningful learning that every teacher expects to generate.

This writer has been surrounded by video games his entire life, and experience has shown that video games do teach many things, albeit implicitly. Not only do players learn game’s characters, story, or mechanics that govern its universe, but also learn to measure, analyze, visualize, anticipate, investigate, and many other skills. There is the wrong perception that video games are just toys or time-wasters, but they are more than that because they go through a very lengthy and complex process to be made. Many people have invested their efforts to make games like they were art pieces, so if education ever discovers the potential that this media has, many doors to new theories and methods would be opened.

Video games rule! There, I said it.

See you soon!