Videogames In The Classroom

SPOnG’s memories of ‘Computer Class’ in school is that of a group of fascinated children all scrambling around a single bulky BBC B Micro, amazed at the fact that the school computer nerd has made the thing print 'Adam is Ace' a million times over.

Games were not on the agenda though, as they were seen as a frivolous waste of time, in very much the same way that we would sit through music lessons and listen to awful recordings of Mozart, yet not be allowed to even mention or discuss the pop music we avidly consumed at home.

Times change (thankfully) although the perception of videogames in school is still worryingly retrograde, according to recent discussions SPOnG has had with younger members of our families and friends.

So it was with a general sense of something approaching relief that we read through the Teaching with Games report this morning – a forward-thinking initiative commissioned by Electronic Arts and carried out by FutureLab, in which around 1,000 teachers and more than 2,300 primary and secondary school students across the UK were polled for their thoughts and opinions on videogames in the classroom.

The overall conclusion is that using games in lessons is motivating and engaging, and teachers believe that they improve students’ computer skills, strategic thinking and problem-solving. Hardly a revelation to regular SPOnG readers, but this could well be an important catalyst in breaking down the generational divide and in educating senior teaching staff of the benefits of using games as effective teaching tools.

Jules Clarkson, international marketing director at Electronic Arts, said of the survey: "EA has recognised for a long time the potential for computer games to stimulate teachers and students….We now have the evidence."

Clarkson continued: "We had three key objectives with the report - to understands teachers' and students' use of computer games in the classroom. To explore how they can be successfully used in a school environment. And to make the most successful partnerships with educators."

Clarkson was careful to outline that the report would not mark any change of strategic direction in EA’s game publishing strategy: "I do not imagine we are suddenly going to get into educational software markets, but it does give us ideas about how to work with educational establishments."

The report showed that 59% of teachers want to use computer games for educational purposes and 53% say they would do so because they are an interactive way of motivating and engaging students.
“We have long recognised the potential of interactive computer games to stimulate the learning process”, said Gerhard Florin, Executive Vice President and General Manager, International Publishing, EA. “The Teaching with Games study in collaboration with Futurelab has shown that commercial computer games have the potential to support education, which has raised the bar for ongoing collaboration between the industry and education sectors. We look forward to continued initiatives to help pave the way for meaningful integration of computer games into school curriculum.”

Teaching With Games has also been supported by Microsoft, Take-Two Interactive Software, as well as the Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE).