Classroom Gaming
I spent some time with a representative from Leap Frog at a conference recently and to be honest, I stopped by to think about the equipment for my own children. But, after a few minutes of quick thinking, I reconsidered and put my focus back to the classroom. If these “games” are so educational for kids at home, why can’t they be used in school? Of course, Leap Frog is known as educational and this equipment might easily fin
d a home in a classroom. Phonics games, comprehension games - kids learning without even realizing it!
Does this then lead to Gameboy’s, PSP’s, cell phones, etc… in the classroom? I bet it will! The question we don’t have to ask is whether the students will be motivated more or be able to use the equipment? The questions we always ask are how will we manage it, how will we track it and how will we control it? I think these questions are valuable, but shouldn’t get in the way of trying something new (to us, not them).
As we educate a world of digital natives, we need to be sure we’re not treating them like immigrants. We shouldn’t expect our students to leave life as they know it at the classroom door and fit themselves into our way of thinking and doing things. We should be stretching ourselves to make our learning environments mirror their way of life. We have no idea what the future holds for them, so we should at least be doing what we can to educate them about the present, as well as the past.
Related article: MIT Hosts A Panel Discussion About Gaming And Education .
Image citation: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cambodia4kidsorg/372258372/
Filed under: Learning From and
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