There are many views surrounding the use of computer games in the classroom. Some argue that computer games are a valuable asset to the education sector while others are skeptical about this view. The truth is that people have changed the way they interact in the 21st Century and technology has played an important role. According to the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2009, only twenty-six percent of U.S. students scored above level 4 (level 4 refers to the ability to complete higher order tasks) in the area of mathematics. This is lower that 32 percent of students in the other 33 countries assessed (Lemke, Sen, Pahlke, Partelow, Miller, Williams, Kastberg, & Jocelyn, 2004). With these statistics in mind, we come to the conclusion that there is deficit in the teaching/learning process of critical thinking skills in the area of mathematics. This study will examine the use of a computer game in the classroom as a mean to increase the critical thinking skills in mathematics. Three schools will be participating in this study with 20 students from each school. There will be a total sample of 60 participants. The students will be administered the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST) as a pre/post test. The students will participate in a 30-minute tutorial class. The treatment group will be using a computer game to enhance their mathematical critical thinking skills for a period of 12 weeks. The expected results should demonstrate an increase of scores in the post-test from the treatment group compared to the comparison groups. Computer Games: An Approach to Increase Critical Thinking in Mathematics In recent years technology has changed the way people interact with one another. The advancements of te... ... middle of paper ... ...motivate today's technology-dependent students. Journal Of Stem Teacher Education, 48(1), 7-12. Retrieved on ------- from ERIC database Przybylski, A. K., Rigby, C. S., & Ryan, R. M. (2010). A motivational model of video game engagement. Review of General Psychology, 14(2), 154. Retrieved on ------- from ERIC database Trespalacios, J., Chamberlin, B., & Gallagher, R. R. (2011). Collaboration, engagement & fun: How youth preferences in video gaming can inform 21st century education. Techtrends: Linking Research And Practice To Improve Learning, 55(6), 49-54. Retrieved on ------- from ERIC database Young, M. F., Slota, S., Cutter, A. B., Jalette, G., Mullin, G., Lai, B., ... & Yukhymenko, M. (2012). Our princess is in another castle a review of trends in serious gaming for education. Review of Educational Research, 82(1), 61-89. Retrieved on ------- from ERIC database
Researchers, however, have found that gaming may not be completely bad for adolescents. A recent study by Paul J.C. Adachi and Teena Willoughby points out that video gaming may satisfy the same criteria for positive youth development as traditional organized activities such as sports, music or clubs. In direct contrast to this analogy, they demonstrate that there may be significant social benefits of gaming, that adolescents are motivated to play video games and that this type of play requires concentration and mental effort (Adachi and
From walkmans to CD players to iPods, technology has evolved over the succession of the years; humans have taken extensive steps towards a technological transformation that has revolutionized the manner in which several individuals communicate with one another. Likewise, various humans have opted for more modern methods to connect and contact their loved ones such as speaking on a cell phone, video chatting, e-mailing, instant messaging, and conversing through social media. With these contemporary methods of communication, global interaction has now been facilitated and easily accessible; conversing with individuals from across the world is as transparent and prompt as speaking with individuals within the same city. Nonetheless, these technological
People have the fundamental desire to maintain strong connections with others. Through logic and reasoning, Sherry states, “But what do we have, now that we have what we say we want, now that we have what technology makes easy?”(Turkle). Face to face conversations are now mundane because of the accessibility to interact at our fingertips, at free will through text, phone calls and social media. Belonging, the very essence of a relationship has now become trivial.
Working thesis: The advancements in technology have caused the social norms of society to adapt to its rapid change, by becoming captivated to its simple access; which is effecting the way we communicate and act.
Video games have become a hot topic recently. There have been a lot of controversy over whether to play or not to play. The controversy is due to them being arguably more captivating than all other forms of entertainment. Video games narrate an epic tale like no other form of entertainment can. You can become immersed in video games, because of this they are both a highly entertaining escape from the real world and a complete waste of time.
Adachi, Paul J.C. and Willoughby, Teena. “Do Video Games Promote Positive Youth Development?” Journal of Adolescent Research 28.2 (2012): 155-165. Web. 12
“The objective of video games are to entertain people by surprising them with new experience” (Shigeru Miyamoto).Video games have been a leisure activity for many people around the world but for some people it has become a way of life. Video games help us escape everyday life and bring us to a land of imagination. That is why many people play video games because it is a great way to relieve stress. Video games have many benefits than just being fun. Not only are video games shown to have positive effects on the individual if used in the right manner, but it also helps to connect people with common interest; bring a sense of community. It is also a resourceful way to find a career path. The components
“How Games Make Kids Smarter” a Ted-Talk by Gabe Zichermann, is a perfect example of the advantages that video games offer towards students. The Ted-Talk focussed on how educational video games are being used within a classroom setting, the results were very impressive. A below average 3rd grade class was offered a different way of learning, video games. Zichermann speaks clearly about the attention span of a student with traditional learning style versus the video game based learning, it was a dramatic increase. Many of the students believed that school was more fun learning this way and were excited to attend school. Within the 18 weeks that the students were using this video game based learning, the below average 3rd graders were now reading at a 5th grade level. Zichermann believes this way of learning is the future of teaching. “Many schools have already moved towards a more technology based learning, with schools offering computers for students as well as other devices, this is only the start of the future.” Zichermann says. Video games are the future of the classroom and can really make a difference, they increase attention span, make learning enjoyable, and overall can help the development of
After realizing how addicting games could be, two professors from the University of Utah wanted to know the reason why people get into games. In 2008, these professors examined 152 high school students. When asked for reasons for why they played games, they all differentiated. These reasons consisted of excitement, mastery, having nothing else to do, having friends who play and also just to make them feel better. These reasons to play are relative to all level of
There have been several studies conducted on learning and serious games, for example, a recent study by the Office of Naval Research found that video game players performed ten to twenty percent better in perceptual and cognitive ability than non-game players, and that video games helped adults process information faster(Steinberg,2012). Another study by the Federation of American Scientists found that students re...
Video games are no longer the uprising form of media that ill informed parents and scientists used to fear; video games are now an established form of entertainment that is just as universally accepted as film or literature. The difference between videogames and mediums like film and literature is that they do not have the higher value that books have in exercising the mind and communicating information, nor do they have the value that films have to intellectually challenge an audience and to make people think. This is the general argument that can be heard voiced by leading intellectuals in various field as well as parents who are rising young children; both claim that videogames
There are several negative stereotypes associated with video games and those who play them; some of these may often hold true. However, there are plenty of learning opportunities in video games. While the direct purpose of some games is to educate or train, other games that do not directly have this purpose can still become a learning experience for the player. As Ntiedo Etuk, president of the educational video game company Tabula Digital said, “The traditional view of video games has been that they are distractions from the task of learning” (Electronic Education Report 1). Video games are an effective tool for learning and retaining skills both inside and outside the classroom environment. The basic cycle of game play--the introduction to the game, game play, collaboration, improvement of these between each round, and evaluation at the end of the game (Klievink and Janssen 159)--are nearly parallel to the traditional classroom learning cycle of reading a textbook or listening to a lecture, taking a quiz, studying, focusing on items missed on the quiz, and taking a test or exam. Within this cycle, there are many opportunities to develop and perfect both educational, life, and occupational skills.
“We barely have time to pause and reflect these days on how far communicating through technology has progressed. Without even taking a deep breath, we’ve transitioned from email to chat to blogs to social networks and more recently to twitter” (Alan 2007). Communicating with technology has changed in many different ways. We usually “get in touch” with people through technology rather than speaking with them face to face. The most popular way people discuss things, with another individual, is through our phones. Phones have been around way before I was born in 1996, but throughout the years, they have developed a phone called a “smart phone”. The smart phone has all kinds of new things that we can use to socialize with our peers. On these new phones, we can connect with our friends or family on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Technology has also developed Skype, a place you can talk with people on the computer with instant voice and video for hours. The new communication changes have changed drastically from the new advances made in technology through our smart phones, social networking sites, and Skype.
Mathematics can be concrete and use reason as a way of knowing. These are learned concepts with repetitive procedure. Critical thinking is a type of reasoning that uses logic that will never deviate. The early concepts of mathematics taught in schools are thought to be concrete with fixed steps and formulas for solving problems. One only has to think about the steps previously taught and accept them to be true. The concepts can only be accepted to be true by using the skills to process and generate information and belief. The use of the skills as an “exercise” with no meaning or understanding is not critical thinking however. It is always believed that the area of a right triangle is one half the base times the height. Reasoning can be used through the drawing of a grid to prove this formula to be true. Therefore, mathematics uses critical thinking as a way of known skills to guide behavior based on intellectual commit...
The experience of game play can be described as an activity in which the player is virtually embodied in the game world. Anyone who has experienced the world of gaming knows how the engaging experience can manifest itself with “sweaty palms and chills down the spine” (http://www.eludamos.org/index.php/eludamos/article/viewArticle/80/147) when coming face-to-face with alien creatures; or with the adrenaline rush we get when racing a high speed automobile head-to-head with a friend. Gaming is an excellent source of entertainment. It provides an opportunity for social growth, provides a meaningful form of exploring expression, and provides heightened sensitivity.