I came across this article today, and while my initial reaction was "That's ridiculous" the more I read, the more I thought there might be some merit to it.
School of hard blocks: educating children through gaming
by Dave Owen
Penelope Trunk, an American mother, has allowed her sons to educate themselves with video games. David Owen speaks to the woman who used Minecraft as a spelling tool.
“Why aren’t people worried that kids go to school all day, then come home and do homework for hours? It’s unnatural. If you look at what’s better for kids, homework or video games, it’s video games. Hands down.”
Remember the days when your mum insisted that you skip school and play video games all day? No, neither do I. Yet for the children of Penelope Trunk, controversial US blogger and entrepreneurial life coach, it’s an everyday reality.
While other children traipse off to school five days a week and occupy their evenings with homework, Penelope’s two sons, aged seven and ten, remain at home on their Wisconsin farm, their education left entirely in their own hands. More often than not, this involves playing Minecraft.
Much more in the article. I'd be interested to see what the homeschoolers think of this approach?
There is certainly something to the idea that video games can teach you certain skills and facts, but I think you'll get a pretty spotty education if you rely on them for everything.
Anything requiring memorization, whether of facts or process, works better hidden in interactive play than in drill for most kids. Drill was developed to make it easier for teachers, not kids.
I had a student who could not sit still, nor seem to do a lick of anything resembling school work. However he was a wizard at a game called Stronghold, which is a Medieval sim/RTS game where you build a kingdom. In order to succeed you have to manage resources against production, deal with a population, balancing such things as rations, punishment, amenities and general quality of life... the complexity of things he could do and stay focused on in that rather "boring" game exceeded the demands of the classroom.
Of course the main thing games have going for them is immediate and continuous feedback, even in a game such as Stronghold where one must keep an eye on long term objectives in order to win.
Assassin's Creed and the Total War series are wonderful for fostering an appreciation for history and the arts.
