Video Games Entering the Classroom

Differentiating instruction has been stressed in my school for the last several years. Many teachers realized why it was important; to address the different needs and learning styles of our students, but truthfully, moving away from whole group instruction continues to pose a challenge for many.
Games can be used as one method to address students varying learning styles. Students will be afforded the opportunity to learn material and demonstrate that learning in new and innovative ways.

The article tells us that educators everywhere are beginning to look for ways that games can be infused into the classroom curriculum. Research has shown that games do encourage learning because they are motivating for many students. They are fun, engaging, and help students develop critical thinking skills. '

We must be careful however to do our homework prior to incorporating games into our lesson plans. Squire tells us that playing games will not appeal to everyone and there is no one game that will give everyone the same learning experience. Some students have a learning style that allows them to thrive in the traditional educational setting whereas others will fair better with more hands-on activities. His experiment showed that 25 % of the students loved playing games and another quarter opted to participate in the traditional reading groups.

Since not all students can or want to learn in the same way, we must continue to provide a multitude of ways for students to demonstrate their knowledge. I think that “gaming” should definitely be added to our repertoire of teaching strategies as an alternative for the average, struggling, or gifted student.