Double-Entry Journal #3

Double-Entry Journal #3

"Although many researchers have claimed that no cogent connection can be found between the use of video games and violent behavior among youth, others insist that there may be a link between video game use and deviant social behavior." (Barab, 2005, p. 86) ... I found this comment to be particularly interesting. A few semesters ago, I did a Media Review on the effects of video games on children to see whether violent video games had a link to children being violent. I found an article done by the World of Psychology, that appears to be a little biased but it provides a good insight into the possible link between video games and violence.

Barab, S. (2005). Making Learning Fun: Quest Atlantis, a Game without Guns. Educational Technology Research & Development , 86-107.

"It is likely that aggressive or hostile youths may be drawn to violent video games. There is limited but suggestive evidence that persons with trait anger or aggression may be affected differently by violent games. In one study, players tended to be less angry after playing a violent game, but this was not true for subjects who scored high on trait anger and aggression. Thus, another possible marker of unhealthy video game use may be increased anger after a round of play." (Grohol) ... The article goes on to state, in a nutshell, that - "teens who are already angry or aggressive likely should be limited in their playing of violent video games; teens should not play M-rated games; girls especially should not play M-rated games; video game is an important social development interaction for boys, and parents should keep this is mind when taking such time away from them in punishment; and, all things in moderation, playing a video game for 6 to 8 hours straight is unhealthy behavior at any age." (Grohol) ... I don't at all agree with a few of the things he stated in his article, but still felt that it was relevant to the article for this week's journal.

Grohol, J. M. The Link Between Video Games and Violence. Retrieved 2 09, 2012, from Word of Psychology: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2008/05/17/the-link-between-video-games-and-violence/

"With respect to balancing the educational and entertainment value of QA, when children are introduced to QA as a game, they may be disappointed and frustrated by the amount of academic work required. However, when children are told that they are going to do educational activities on the computer, then they themselves characterize QA as a game and become more willing to do the work." (Barab, 2005, p. 99) ... After reading this quote in the journal article, I'm going to use it for a source for my action research project. This quote, especially the last half where it says that children are more willing to do the work if they are told they're going to be doing educational activities on the computer. This goes almost hand-in-hand with my action research project. The whole point of my action research project is to see whether children are more inclined to do educational math activities, IF technology or the computer is involved.

"The fact that children regard QA as a form of play even though they are doing school work, and that they rate it almost as highly on this dimension as playing video games, is particularly interesting, given that t a significant amount of QA activity involves doing academic work." (Barab, 2005, p. 99) ... Children love to learn through play, as stated in this article done by the Chicago Tribune. Children regardless of age would rather play than sit at a desk and do bookwork, and in most preschools, play is the main form of learning. But, what children don't know, and also some teachers, is that even though children are playing, they're still learning. ... "Every gadget in the classroom is placed there with an eye toward furthering the emotional, social, and cognitive development of the child." (Kantzavelos)  

Kantzavelos, M. (2002, March 1). Preschool Use Play As Teaching Tool. Retrieved February 4, 2012, from Chicago Tribue: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2002-03-03/news/0202280368_1_nursery-sand-table-lab-schools

The game QA may have a lot of academic work involved in it, and may also require a lot of extra thought, but it appears that children are more inclined to participate in educational activities if there is some kind of game or computer activity involved. I think if schools incorporated more educational technology and educational-component games into their classrooms, students would be more likely to learn the material. I know a lot of people, myself included, that would rather use a laptop for educational purposes, rather than a book, paper, and a pencil.

Bibliography

Barab, S. (2005). Making Learning Fun: Quest Atlantis, a Game without Guns. Educational Technology Research & Development , 86-107.

Grohol, J. M. The Link Between Video Games and Violence. Retrieved 2 09, 2012, from Word of Psychology: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2008/05/17/the-link-between-video-games-and-violence/

Kantzavelos, M. (2002, March 1). Preschool Use Play As Teaching Tool. Retrieved February 4, 2012, from Chicago Tribue: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2002-03-03/news/0202280368_1_nursery-sand-table-lab-schools