The last decade or two has seen the rise of simulated realities and games. The education industry is no exception to this trend. Gaining more and more respect as a powerful new means of education, sims (simulations) have become a standard way of training workers in various industries, education being not the least important. In this field, researchers and teachers have tried to use games to better engage students and increase learning. However, in the end, not all games are created equal. Some are much more effective at entertaining and educating.
It is no secret to parents or teachers that games have captivated this generation of young people, and it is this very fact that makes educational games a potentially powerful tool. If you’ve ever seen a child play the popular math game Math Blaster, a platform PC game where you have to complete math tasks, you probably know what I mean. Students can spend hours running through the levels trying to get ahead, and all the time doing math!
So what qualities make an educational game good? What does Math Blaster do so well? What sets it apart from some of the less effective math games out there? Before answering the question, let’s look at some common experiences that players have. All of us who have played video games know that some parts of a game can be much more fun than others. (Personally, I get tired of running through the world of Zelda in some of Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda series!) Well, in an educational game it is important that education is directly integrated into the ‘fun’ rather than the parts bored of the game. play. It is the fun parts that will be the most memorable for the player. For example, consider a fictional game called “Zombie Math Shooter.” In this poorly designed game, imagine running around shooting zombies, something most kids would probably enjoy for hours on end. Also imagine that, between zombies, a math question appears and you have to answer it to score points. Well, as you can probably see, this pretend game does not integrate education into game entertainment! The educational part is simply a hassle and is divorced from the fun part of the game, not a quality educational experience. Ultimately, the effectiveness of a game comes down to its ability to engage students with the intended educational goals. (1) In other words, is the “fun” of the game based on learning? The answer to the question also answers “Is this a quality educational game?”
There are a few different sources for quality math games. Some are neither entertaining nor educational; some are just educational, but let’s look at one or two examples of the successful ones. Although Math Blaster is good, this game is not available online so you have to buy it and play it on your PC. Something that I recommend for students who want to improve their arithmetic. Of the various sites on the Internet, TheMathGames.com is the only one that appears to have the same combination of high-quality education and entertainment as Math Blaster. The games on this site are primarily intended for middle and high school students trying to understand the order of operations, the meaning of a fraction, or the decimal place value; In the end, what sets this site apart from others on the Internet is the way that educational and entertainment goals are indistinguishable.
