Games Better Than Books?

cellullama writes "Some of the leading video-game researchers are saying that games are better for teaching than textbooks. Three University of Wisconsin professors just said schools and corporate trainers should learn something from Halo 2 and Half-life. My workplace is already doing this (but don't tell my boss.)"

4 out of 5 scientists say.....

[AtariAmarok]

"Some of the leading video-game researchers are saying that games are better for teaching than textbooks"

Is there a corresponding team of book researchers saying that books are better for teaching than videogames? I'd tend to side with them.

Re:Possible, but...

[Atrax]

I think that depends on the sort of novels you're talking about. There are novels, and there's pulp...

did you ever read the Doom adaptation novels, for instance?

The Diamond Age

[bookemdano63]

I have been waiting for Young Lady's Illustrated Primer type game for years. Seems like games could be slightly skewed to teach better patience or thoughtfulness or agressiveness at different times.

Re:I agree.

[AviLazar]

Pick up one of the Jane's simulators. I always read the books that it come' with (thick spiral bound books that gave facts on military equipment, and avianics training). While I do not think I will utilize my knowledge of the AH-64D Longbow in my day to day life, I do have some knowledge in the subject thanks to this very realistic (not necessarily graphics wise) game.

MUDs

[spoonyfork]

I doubt I would have the job I have today if I hadn't worked on (and played) MUDs back in college. Those of us that managed to not flunk out went on to modestly successful computer science related careers. My parents and teachers used to chide me for spending so much time working on the game. This has taught me to never think I know better than what someone else is doing with their time or how they go about learning. Having more gold pieces than my would-be detractors corroborates this. :P

oh the irony.... did you read the article?

[ksquire]

"Because games keep things "pleasantly frustrating," Gee said, players have incentives to keep on improving their performance. That can lead to learning outside the game as well. After his son started playing Age of Mythology, he started reading more about real-world mythology, Gee said."

Note that the last part involved reading. The idea isn't one medium replaces the other; they coexist together. That's how media has always worked.

On the other hand, decades of research have shown that *textbooks* are actually for learning, if used on their own. They're not constructed in a way that's easy to understand unless you have sufficient first hand experience of the phenomena.

Re:Possible, but...

[m50d]

they can never provide the kind of mind expansion that reading a lot of novels can.

Why do people always say this? FWIW I do read a lot, but I can't see any reason why a book is somehow "better" than a movie or a game. Yet large numbers of people seem to take it as a given. There are good and bad books and games, and possibly more bad games than bad books, but why is it always assumed that a good game can never be as good as a good book?

What Vdieo Games did to me.

[dalewj]

Im 40 years old and grew up in the video games are evil world for the last 30 years or so. Videos games are not evil, yes they can be over the edge, but thats why we have those things called parents. Remember them? Parents teach their children what is right and wrong and choose for them.
I personally let my children play video games a few hours a day, they can tell you more about the history of the game (and maybe some real history becuase of it) and the articles/stuff they are using. They can also learn to budget, save money to buy more things, the thoery that working for something pays off in the end (and sometimes it doesn't). Pong wasn't the devils work, Asteriods didn't make me rob people for quarters, Galaxia Didn't turn me into a druggy. In fact they all turned me into a (i think) well rounded business man who works very hard to achieve his needs. sadly they never taught me to speel correctly.