Education Law

Math, reading, or video games?

What seems like an easy answer for students, isn't going to be quite so easy anymore. Teachers, librarians, and publishing companies are realizing the benefits that video games can offer in capturing an interest in learning and are bringing video games into classrooms to help with reading and math skills. Last week, The New York Times reported in two articles (found here and here) about how they are using video games to reinforce basic learning and promote teaching digital literacy.

It seems that simply reading a book isn't enough anymore, and that future of reading entails extending the world of a book, so that students can take part in it themselves. PJ Haarsma, a preteen author, created a game that required students to answers questions with information from the novel in order to advance. In the article he says:

?You can?t just make a book anymore,? said Mr. Haarsma, a former advertising consultant. Pairing a video game with a novel for young readers, he added, ?brings the book into their world, as opposed to going the other way around.?

He's not the only ones who feels this way. The MacArthur Foundation, Random House, and Scholastic are all brainstorming ways to incorporate visual mediums into curriculums. ( BoardBuzz covered Scholastic's initiative before here.)

The Times also reported new advances in using video to practice math skills. In some New York City schools, middle school classrooms can mirror arcades, as students play video games on personal laptops. Play video games AND answer algebra questions, that is.

The program, Dimension M, quizzes students on slope, fractions, and equations. A right answer can bring you more than 500 points, and enough right answers give you the glory of winning. For more information on the program and to see what other schools are up too, be sure to check out the article.

With the intent of using games to interest students, are these programs working? According to the article:

"You have to be at the top of your game,? said Salma Nakhlawi, 13, who has been brushing up on her math skills along with her hand-eye coordination so that she can play the video game Dimension M with her friends. ?I used to hate math, but I?ve started to like it. I actually understand it more."

Sounds good to BoardBuzz! You can learn even more about education technology and how it's reaching students by attending NSBA's T+L Conference later this month in Seattle. Check out the Web site for more details and registration information.

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on October 09, 2008 (boomark / email).