Video Games #2

The videos helped me to discover that video games shouldnt be challenged with our children, they should be embraced. Im not anti video games because I used a lot of educational games growing up that helped me think better, type faster and keep up with the growing technology. As Im writing this blog, my boyfriend is playing Call of Duty while making a lasagna. Talk about multi tasking! :o) I enjoyed the different points of view but I especially liked the male speaker. He talks about gamification in places we would never expect, for example in smart cars when you have a pet plant that grows when you drive more eco friendly and dies when you dont. It just proves that technology is not going anywhere and adults need to learn how to embrace the changes and embrace the learning the 21st century kids enjoy and thrive on. In the first video the woman presents the statistics on the cube test as being improved on still after 5 months of the initial pre test and ten hour game play. This is remarkable to me because it proves that people are learning how to multi task better through these gaming sessions. I also liked her anology of chocolate and broccoli. It tied her entire point together that we need to find a way to challenge our children but let them play too. Katie Salen had some great points and ideas regarding gaming but I liked that she doesnt support a full time gamer status but recognizes the importance in these games and how they can really help enhance students' way of learning.


Artificial Wisdom claims to give educators and parents ratings on different video games to help identify the most beneficial to the students and child in regards to the educational aspects and the skills it teaches. They use a scale called GRADE which will give teachers and parents an idea of how the game specifically targets a certain educational area within the game.