How Video Games Can Level Up the Way You Learn | Kris Alexander | TED
The Impact of Video Games on Learning
Personal Experience with Learning Styles
- The speaker shares a personal anecdote from their senior year in university (2004), where they struggled to engage during a lecture due to the teacher reading slides verbatim.
- They discovered that playing video games, specifically "Zelda: The Minish Cap," helped them focus better by catering to their auditory learning style.
- When confronted by the teacher about gaming in class, the speaker defended their method of learning and demonstrated their retention of information.
- The interaction led to an unexpected acceptance from the teacher, allowing the speaker to continue playing while still participating in class.
Video Games as Educational Tools
- The speaker transitioned into academia as a professor of video game design, advocating for the educational potential of video games.
- They explain that humans learn through three primary channels: audio, text, and video; effective teaching should utilize these channels without causing cognitive overload.
- Cognitive overload occurs when multiple channels are not distinct enough, hindering memory transfer from working memory to long-term memory.
Benefits of Video Game Design in Education
- Video games combine audio, text, video, and interactivity effectively, enhancing focus and motivation among students.
- The speaker uses "Virginia," a narrative-driven game about an FBI agent investigating sexism and racism within her precinct, as a tool for teaching complex social issues alongside game design principles.
Online Instruction and Engagement
- Effective online instruction can be found outside traditional classrooms; examples include YouTube streams and platforms like Twitch that attract millions of motivated learners.
- The COVID pandemic forced many educators online; however, it also highlighted successful methods for engaging students through interactive content.
Practical Applications in Teaching
- In an Esports Broadcasting class, students learn professional presentation skills using software like Open Broadcaster Software (OBS).
What Can Education Learn from Video Games?
The Disconnect Between Education and Employment
- The speaker highlights a significant issue in post-secondary education: over half of graduates do not secure jobs in their field of study, likening it to training as a chef but ending up in data analytics.
Alternative Pathways to Employment
- Programs like Grow with Google offer free online courses in data analytics, promising starting salaries around $74,000 per year. Epic Games provides pathways for developers using Unreal Engine, which has seen a 601% increase in demand.
Cost of Education vs. Value of Skills
- The rising cost of university education is alarming, having increased by 1,200% since 1980. In contrast, many skills can be acquired at little to no cost through alternative programs.
Integration of Video Game Technology Across Disciplines
- Various professions are utilizing video game technologies; for example, dentists use augmented reality and psychologists employ virtual reality for therapeutic purposes. This indicates the pervasive influence of the gaming industry beyond just entertainment.
Enhancing Classroom Instruction with Gaming Elements
- The speaker advocates for incorporating engaging elements from video games into classroom instruction rather than replacing traditional methods. This approach could better resonate with students who are familiar with gaming.
Engaging Students Through Passion and Clear Objectives
- With approximately three billion gamers worldwide, video games provide a blueprint for engaging education that intertwines storytelling and learning content. Schools should clarify educational objectives akin to those found in video games to connect students' passions with future career paths.