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LOS ANGELES -- The conventional wisdom about the video-game industry is that it's all about entertainment. But a group of 350 game designers, educators and government officials think that games can be used as a tool to teach critical thinking, and in the process, improve American education.
To Henry Jenkins, host of the Education Arcade symposium held here before the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the connection is clear. He said he remembers that during the 1996 presidential campaign, he gave his son a Doonesbury election game to play.
"My son, predictably enough, disappeared into his room, never to be seen from again," said Jenkins. "When he came out, my wife and I were watching election coverage on CNN. And he said, 'Oh, I get it, Dole is in New York, Kemp is in Illinois ... they're all in high electoral-value states. And he was suddenly explaining to us something that most Americans didn't figure out until after Florida 2000."
Jenkins said he thinks using games to teach new ways of thinking is a no-brainer, especially given how wired many schools are today. He said there are studies showing that a majority of new college students play video games regularly.
"The computers are already in the classroom," he said. "They're already playing games. Maybe the teachers should join them."
But he also acknowledges that anyone hoping to make a difference in learning with games faces a skeptical audience of educators and game companies.
There is a perception that educational games don't sell well, something Jenkins said is contradicted by ample evidence. For example, Zoo Tycoon (a game in which the player assumes the role of a zoo manager trying to attract more visitors) sold well, as did Microsoft's Flight Simulator and Civilization III (a world-domination game). Each helped players learn new things and think in new ways.
But Brenda Laurel, a game designer who has worked with educators, says that anyone hoping to rescue the American educational system with games should be realistic.
"I've been involved in trying to insert games into schools since 1976, and I've come to the conclusion it doesn't work," she said.
In her view, American schools have degenerated from learning environments into production lines for children taught to obey authority figures.
But not all is lost, she said. Instead of relying on schools to teach kids how to use games to learn, libraries equipped with computers and video games may be the place where such learning can happen. Ultimately, she said, new forms of learning are about new ways of thinking. And some game designers are working to help foster that change.
To Henry Jenkins, host of the Education Arcade symposium held here before the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the connection is clear. He said he remembers that during the 1996 presidential campaign, he gave his son a Doonesbury election game to play.
"My son, predictably enough, disappeared into his room, never to be seen from again," said Jenkins. "When he came out, my wife and I were watching election coverage on CNN. And he said, 'Oh, I get it, Dole is in New York, Kemp is in Illinois ... they're all in high electoral-value states. And he was suddenly explaining to us something that most Americans didn't figure out until after Florida 2000."
Jenkins said he thinks using games to teach new ways of thinking is a no-brainer, especially given how wired many schools are today. He said there are studies showing that a majority of new college students play video games regularly.
"The computers are already in the classroom," he said. "They're already playing games. Maybe the teachers should join them."
But he also acknowledges that anyone hoping to make a difference in learning with games faces a skeptical audience of educators and game companies.
There is a perception that educational games don't sell well, something Jenkins said is contradicted by ample evidence. For example, Zoo Tycoon (a game in which the player assumes the role of a zoo manager trying to attract more visitors) sold well, as did Microsoft's Flight Simulator and Civilization III (a world-domination game). Each helped players learn new things and think in new ways.
But Brenda Laurel, a game designer who has worked with educators, says that anyone hoping to rescue the American educational system with games should be realistic.
"I've been involved in trying to insert games into schools since 1976, and I've come to the conclusion it doesn't work," she said.
In her view, American schools have degenerated from learning environments into production lines for children taught to obey authority figures.
But not all is lost, she said. Instead of relying on schools to teach kids how to use games to learn, libraries equipped with computers and video games may be the place where such learning can happen. Ultimately, she said, new forms of learning are about new ways of thinking. And some game designers are working to help foster that change.
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