UW Professor Uses Commercial Video Game to Stimulate Classroom Learning

Feb. 21, 2006 -- What happens when the video game generation loses interest in classroom learning? A study by a University of Wyoming assistant professor challenges teachers to bring a little fun into their classrooms, while also meeting state teaching standards.

The challenges and rewards of bringing commercial video game simulations into the classroom to support learning was the focus of research conducted recently at Laramie Junior High School (LJHS) by Liz Simpson in the UW College of Education’s Department of Special Education.

“We know that video games and simulations present very complex and challenging learning environments. Unfortunately, educators have been slow to pick up on a very fundamental shift in the way the students who have grown up playing video games -- the ‘gamer’ generation -- learn.”

Teachers are often frustrated by their inability to connect with this generation, Simpson says.

“Like it or not, video games play a daily part in the lives of almost every child, either through actual game play or through having friends and family who are gamers,” she says. “To be successful in this environment, teachers need tools that will help them connect with students’ new learning styles.”

Simpson’s pilot study used the simulation video game, Enlight’s “Restaurant Empire” targeted at eighth and ninth graders in a beginning computer class.

“This and many other commercially-available video games can be used as learning tools in the classroom,” she says. “Teaching with video games can open new avenues of communication between teachers and students.”

Simpson worked three weeks with business teacher Janet Johnson to incorporate the video simulation program into the classroom lesson plan. The students’ pre- and post-performance was assessed against Wyoming's vocational standards.

The research demonstrated that simulation video games provide an environment in which students practice skills, such as running a business and being entrepreneurs. The students, working in collaborative groups of three, had to plan every aspect of running a restaurant, choosing among such things as the decor, menu items, prices, ordering supplies -- everything a real owner had to accomplish to be successful, Simpson says. In the classroom students collaborated, solved problems and came up with the best way to accomplish their goals.

“It was a learning experience for the students rather than just a game to them,” Simpson says.

The lesson plan also measured the students’ learning against the state vocational standards. The simulation provided relevant activities that helped students to analyze career paths within the food services industry; demonstrate business and personal financial management skills; effectively manage time, money, materials and human resources; and demonstrate interpersonal skills.

The study also helps teachers learn more innovative ways to use technology. Simpson says teachers can become frustrated because the teaching methods and tools that have worked in the past are not effective with this generation’s learners. Teachers must develop new teaching methods, Simpson adds.

“The problem is that the teachers new to the profession have learned to teach using the same methods used by teachers for more than 30 years,” Simpson says. “They identify the same need for student control and behavior management identified by their older peers. They also see the apathy and disengagement of the students but unfortunately, do not have the tools they need to reach the students.

“Teachers who are familiar with the covert learning found in video games can create win-win opportunities in the classroom,” she adds.

Citing the National Center for Educational Statistics, she says 90 percent of all elementary and secondary students polled use their home computers for video games, while only 83 percent use them for school assignments.

“Why not merge the two? I am not saying that the use of video games should completely replace the traditional methods of teaching,” she says. “There are certain foundations that should stay intact. But this study shows the use of video games as a teaching tool deserves serious consideration as way to present information and bridge learning concepts.”

Simpson recently presented her research to all Albany County school district principals and the Albany County school board and also at the Association for Educational Communication and Technology’s International Conference in Orlando, Fla. She will discuss her work later this spring at the Association for Curriculum and Development's national conference in Chicago.

For more information, call Simpson at (307) 766-2342 or e-mail lsimpson@uwyo.edu.

Posted on Tuesday, February 21, 2006