Foot: Learn by Playing: Video Games in the Classroom

"Quest to Learn is organized specifically around the idea that digital games are central to the lives of today’s children and also increasingly, as their speed and capability grow, powerful tools for intellectual exploration."

Reading through this article, I have come to the conclusion that this is true. Students these days are learning not by traditional methods, but by video games and digital apparatus that is available to them. If I remember correctly, the majority of what I learned came from the internet sources I found while I was just sitting there on the computer bored out of my mind. Not that I think teachers aren't important, because they are in the sense that they have the opportunity to use this technology to help their students learn.

Using it in a language arts class would be very interesting. I'm not sure how I could use video games in the classroom, in relation to books, but I think that it is worth a try. If I had to guess at how I would do this, I would probably see if there are any video games that are closely related to the book that we are reading at the time. From there, I would bring it to class, and show the children how video games like books shape characters, plot, foreshadowing, and so on. I think it would be really helpful for them if I did this, because I know that if I was learning something difficult using something that is familiar to me helps me get passed the difficult part. Now I don't think I could use video games with some classics, but I think I could make my own quest to learn program to help with these difficult texts. I think it's interesting to think about all the technology at our fingertips.

I enjoy playing video games myself. I don't know I am learning anything until I happen to say something with friends that related directly to the video game. For instance, I have Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 for my Nintendo Wii. I have read the books, and seen the movies, but the video game really puts me in the characters shoes so I better understand how Harry feels and reacts during a crisis. This gave me a whole new perspective on the book and movies, and I think I could use this with my own students some day.