Why Games?

There is a groundswell of interest among veteran game developers and many learning scientists who believe the future of learning may be well served by video games. Games will soon teach biology, math, and surgical procedures, as well as help first responders update their skills.

Games offer two strong pluses for educators. First the young generation is growing up playing them. The game environment is a comfortable medium for today’s and tomorrow’s youth. Because children are already at home with it, we should embrace the medium to teach real material.

Research shows another positive aspect: Children stay absorbed, not only because games are entertaining but because they are challenging. For a game to succeed, players must find the next game in a series more challenging than the last. Otherwise, players won’t buy it, and the company suffers.

Why are we sure that games and simulations can be effective in teaching real material?

• The U.S. military, which pioneered simu-lated learning environments, found that training for 60 minutes on an F-16 flight simulator equates to 30 minutes of training in an actual airplane. Because the operating costs of an F-16 simulator run about $300/hour compared to $3,000/hour for a real F-16, there is a significant cost savings in using simulators.
• The U.S. Navy changed its training for sonar operators to computer-based training modules, instead of a year-long traditional class. Trainees moved at their own pace through the modules, learning Boolean algebra, among other subjects. On average, the trainees completed the training in half the year allowed, saving millions in training costs.
• The Food and Drug Administration has approved computer-based training component for surgeons to be certified for a new carteroid stent procedure. Other medical boards have allowed certification for other procedures learned in online environments – boosting the skills of practitioners in small hospitals, among others.
• A therapeutic game "Bronkie the Bronchiasaurus,” helps children learn about asthma as they pretend to be a dinosaur with asthma. Players make decisions about their health and see how their decisions affect Bronkie. If players make smart choices and keep the breath blasts coming, they win. Studies have shown that children who have practiced on “Bronkie” handle their asthma better.

Critics cite two objections to the potential of games for learning. One is the problem of training teachers advanced technology tools, including learning simulations. Another objection is that school systems will need lots of money and IT experts to install them. Given the schools’ track record with the first wave of internet technology and the resulting let-down, skepticism is understandable.

But I am correcting this column on a train using the handwriting recognition tools on my PC tablet. And, yes, such systems required a technical specialist and lots of comutational capability to run...a decade ago. Earlier, I drafted this column in my office using speech recognition software that didn’t run reliably just a few years ago. Anyone who thinks today’s IT systems used in learning environments can’t evolve to layperson-friendly systems—once we know what works and what is needed—has been asleep during the past 30 years of computer evolution.

The FAS Learning Federation research plan looks ahead another decade, with 3-, 5-, and 10-year benchmarks. With the right invest-ments in software tool development in less than a decade, we will provide learning software tools to teachers and instructors that will be as familiar as Office or as simple as a textbook.