This last reading was pretty lengthily, but from reading it I got that there was a big part that focused on whether or not using technology in the classroom would be effective because of the students ability to comprehend abstract thinking. One part in particular stated that it was worrisome that if you used a video game like Civilizations in the classroom whether the students would see the plot and actions of the video game as historical fact. This got me thinking of a story my friend had told me recently about his dad in grade school.
He told me that his dad was in grade school when people came in from the census bureau or something like that to interview the elementary students. They used cartoon characters as references when asking students about violence and other topics. The part that interested me was that he said his dad was pretty confused when being interviewed, the grown-up was using cartoon characters to explain real life behavior to the students but he understood that but knew that the actions in cartoons were unreal and couldn't happen in real life so as an elementary school student didn't understand why an adult was using cartoon characters to explain real life. The way my friend explained it to me was that the children can think abstractly to an extent, they know that they things on cartoons are not real and can't happen outside of the television. For example; a kid knows that just because hes seen in on television, an animal can't get run over by a car and be flattened just to get back up and walk around again.
This story made me think that perhaps adults under estimate the abilities of children. I think that is exactly what is happening in that section of the article where they worry that students will think what is on the video game is real. I wouldn't be worried about that, students have a previous knowledge of what a video game is and know that they are not real, the ideas and concepts may be based on fact but since the player is in control of the events, they do not mirror real life.
For example; using the video game Civilizations, students choose to be a world leader and help cultivate a civilization from cave men to space age. The game is not meant to teach world history, its meant to teach the concepts on civilizations, research, diplomacy, war, culture. I believe it is underestimating students by assuming that they would consider everything they are told to be true. From the story about cartoons it seems clear that children are able to separate whats real and what is unreal at an early age, that just because they see it on television doesn't make it true, that there is a concept called fantasy which bases stories on made up ideas.
I think it would be beneficial to bring games that taught things like the game Civilizations into the classroom, not to teach a subject but to aid in the students understanding of how these concepts they are learning about can be applied to everyday life.
To have a better understanding of the game Civilizations, here is a trailer giving the basic concept:
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