Perceived Impact of Video Games on Boys' Critical Thinking Skills. An Essay Review. Johanne Brochu. University of British Columbia ETEC 511

Running head: VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 1 Perceived Impact of Video Games on Boys' Critical Thinking Skills An Essay Review Johanne Brochu University of British Columbia ETEC 511 Submitted to Dr. Alam Matiul December 13, 2010

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 2 Perceived Impact of Video Games on Boys' Critical Thinking Skills An Essay Review In today s new media world, educators must pay attention to the choice of the media that will help in learning and in developing learning skills. Moreover, these choices must focus on how it will develop boys critical thinking skills. Such discussions have emerged while assessing boys difficulties when developing literacy skills compared to girls development. The place of video games in youths lives is a cultural dimension that we need to take into consideration. The proportion which video games have taken into the new generation of boys lives raises the question of the potential impact video games could have on their critical thinking and if it could be used efficiently as an educational tool. Literacy skills, in my opinion, are a preliminary to critical thinking skills: it is important to develop these in order to become a more efficient and successful learner. Many questions arise when considering the correlation between literacy skills and video games. How can these skills be achieved through video games? What can be expected from playing video games using literacy skills? Do action video games have an impact on gender differences and attention skills? How can skills developed playing video games be transferred to critical thinking skills? What are the effects of video games on boys critical thinking skills? In an attempt to demonstrate the positive effects video games have on boys critical thinking skills, this essay review will take a look at the effects of playing video games on literacy skills, attention skills and critical thinking skills as well as discussing the quality of learning and how playing video games can shapes the 21 st century s culture.

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 3 Literacy Skills and Video Games in Education Stables and Rogers (2001) research focused on evaluating the impact of a curriculum initiative that was supposed to increase literacy skills by using developed design and technology. The research implicated three design and technological projects that incorporated literacy skills. Each project involved students in grade 2 and grade 6 from six elementary schools in an Education Action Zone (EAZ) from North East of England in designing and making a video game which incorporated speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. Children took combined literacy and design and technology measurement activities. The teacher s control group had to provide some background information using a questionnaire. A few valuables were taken into consideration: experimental learning was made through the handling collections and the way the activities were conducted. Data collected in the schools included children completing the activities as well as having each student answer an activity evaluation questionnaire. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to get feedback from teachers. The research compared the results of these schools with five other schools. Findings demonstrated that students were more reflective and concentrated more on their actions. One of the emergent aspects of the experiment was the positive impact on boys literacy skills and reflective skills, and most significant, while design and technology were involved. The fact students wrote in context showed a greater difference for boys in reflexive skills which demonstrated that a different approach taken through the curriculum initiative could only be a positive one for boys achievements. Video games are educating children more than most people would think. Gee (2003), in his book What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy argued that games are learning machines from which "schools, workplaces, families, and academic researchers" (p. 1) have the opportunity to become skilled at learning using good computers and video games.

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 4 In his article, Gee reported that good video games serve as models for the development of new expertise and discussed how players can become motivated through playing games. Motivation, as per Gee (2003), can be expressed as a form of willingness a learner has to demonstrate in order to engage in recent area of learning; the fact that players engage with the game in such a distance makes them believe that their minds have stretched into a new dimension which increased motivation to its highest point. The author mentioned that the more a player is manipulating characters by making choices and decisions, the more invested he becomes into the game. Gee (2003) pointed out that new identities taken by players can influence tremendous motivation for further learning in classrooms and workplaces. Playing video games can also teach teams collaboration from which players used set of skills while sharing ideas and knowledge in the game itself or by visiting numerous Internet sites related to their interest into the target games. Distributing knowledge within users is an example of collaboration that prepares individuals for modern workplaces and, as Gee (2003) indicated, it prepares them better for this century than traditional schools will do. Similar to Gee (2003), Shaffer, Squire, Halverson and Gee (2005), in their essay Video games and the future of learning, inferred that there is a huge disconnection between the kinds of experiences made available in schools and those available in online worlds. Players can experiment and use new and powerful identities in the online environment. Shaffer et al. (2005) wrote that "games bring together ways of knowing, ways of doing, ways of being, and ways of caring: the situated understandings, effective social practices, powerful identities, and shared values that make someone an expert" (p. 107). The authors maintained that situated learning in some epistemic games brings a transfer of idea happening because the learning is brought in a context "of a new way of thinking" (Shaffer et al., 2005, p. 109). Players can experience the world as city planners, journalists,

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 5 biomechanical engineers, and more, which gave them opportunities for deeply situated learning. Moreover, the simulated worlds presented to players, when well constructed, embodied particular social practices. It allowed players to be part of a community of practice in which they could develop thinking modes that emerged from those practices. Shaffer et al. (2005) suggested that, even though " games encourage exploration, personalized meaning-making, individual expression, and playful experimentation with social boundaries-all of which cut against-the-grain of the social mores valued in school" (p. 110), the real challenge is the integration of games into the educational system knowing that teachers are not necessarily video game players themselves. They concluded their essay with a note on how video games have the potential to change the landscape of education and how meaningful activities in virtual worlds will engage people to be prepared for activities in the real world. Looking at engagement, Squire (2005) made a court review of four different video games and concluded that they are more related to board games and sports than they are with any other kind of media. He acknowledged that video games, related to earlier media, are tied to cultural practices accordingly to social class, status, and values and suggested that the ideologies of games cultures are typical to games literacy. Squire (2005) mentioned that, at first, he used Gee s notion of discourse to emphasize on how important dialogue about games and gamer culture is in game literacy programs. Then, he discussed a media literacy unit he co-developed about the game Pirates that include some historical strategy games and quickly realized how important the cultural issues around game development were. Following that, Squire (2005) added some thoughts on how media programs have progressed over the years and how students developed virtual identities unsuspected by their teachers. The author insisted that, because teachers hold stereotypes towards games and gamers, they suppose that both belong to a low cultural status which we know it is not true, showing the

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 6 poor awareness of most teachers towards video games. Squire (2005) believed that while thinking about media, for instance how games are made, it gives insight about how they can change our way of thinking, living and interacting. He concluded that games could be an excellent way of examining new approaches in education since most students showed an interest in discovering the kinds of games their peers are playing, the differences between genders preferences in game, and how attitudes are different between them and their parents. Effects of Playing Action Video Games on Gender Differences in Spatial Cognition Video games are diverse and the effect on players mind and development of skills varies from one type of game to another. For instance, 'action video games' allows different skills to develop and are provocatively discussed in today s research reports as well as presented in conferences. Feng, Spence and Pratt (2007), from University of Toronto, investigated the differences that could exist between genders in terms of spatial attention and their effects on spatial cognition. The team conducted two research studies: the first one investigated differences in spatial attention and the second one looked at the fact that some group differences between spatial cognition s level depending on their needs could be adapted. In the first experiment, Feng et al. (2007) "...examined group differences in spatial attention for groups defined by gender, video-game-playing experience, and chosen field of study" (p. 851). Participants, undergraduates students at the University of Toronto, majoring in sciences and arts reported playing action video games more than 4 hours per week while others, non players, reported that they did not play any video games for at least the past 3 years. Stimuli were presented to students and intensity were increased to maintain some level of difficulty and, then, to best perceived how it can help or affect concentration on target games. Results showed that science students performed much better than art students in this task and that men, on

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 7 average, had better correct answers than women; the main reason was that there was more men playing action video games than women. In the second experiment, they compared spatial attention and cognition in both women and men before and after they played 10 hours of action video-game training. Coming from undergraduates, recruited participants, 6 men and fourteen women were aged between 18 and 32 years old. The experimental group played with Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault, a 3-D first person shooter game, and the control group played with Ballance, a 3-D puzzle game. Subjects completed a pre-test and a post-test followed by another test five months after the experiment. Results established that spatial attention increased while playing an action video game and men reached a higher level compared to women. Feng et al. (2007) determined that a training of only 10 hours with an action video game showed gains for the experimental subjects in spatial attention and mental rotation with a better improvement on women while control subjects playing a non-action game did not show any improvement in the same area. Shifting of attention related to items in memory as demonstrated in their study is crucial in order to perform in mental rotation tasks. In general, findings showed that women better improved than men in this task even though in both cases, they realized larger gains. Moreover, Feng et al. (2007) discovered that non-action games exercise spatial attentional capacities less than action games do and so their effect on subjects performance will be less beneficial. As per the authors, spatial abilities are associated with success in mathematics and science courses. The experiments proved that these abilities can be improved by training with adequate action video games from which particularly women could benefit from and then, perhaps, become interested to pursue a career in science or in engineering.

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 8 In the past, popular press maligned the violent content of video games and their addictive qualities, but recently scholars started to explore the positive sides of this type of games in terms of learning. In a case study of a composition course Smith (2008) developed, inspired by the book Everything Bad is Good for You by Steven Johnson, the author explored the connection between video games and learning. Smith (2008), a formal teacher at a suburban main campus and an urban satellite campus challenged two groups of students placed into developmental writing courses, many of them having English as a second language, by reading and writing about the previously named nonfiction book. Students had to read the book, wrote in their journal, participated in discussions, read more articles on the topic of the book as well as wrote essays covering related ideas. While students were reflecting about video games 'probing' and 'telescoping', they were analysing the question the same way they would have if they were going to play a video game. Findings demonstrated that students exposed to complex discussion could think and write critically about complex concepts as well as they could do significant analyses. Because the researcher placed them in the situation of learning they would have been if they were playing video games, they were able to comprehend and respond to the task by transposing a very similar way of thinking as a player would have in a video game. Smith (2008) concluded that if teachers knew about the complex learning activity provided by playing video games, they could use this knowledge and incorporate them into the classroom to improve learning and critical thinking. Boy s Critical Thinking and Analysis: Impact of Video Games Although there are evidences of connections between the development of literacy skills and video games, the improvement of critical thinking and analysis through playing these types of games has led to a disconnection between learning literacy skills and the real value of that type of learning in terms of benefices to learners (Sanford & Madill, 2007).

VIDEO GAMES AND CRITICAL THINKING 9 By engaging players into the creation of games, Sanford and Madill (2007) conducted a research project at the Game Academy, a private business enterprise, in which 9 adolescent males from 11 to 16 years old, attending public and private schools with varied academic success, were observed and interviewed on their experiences of playing, creating and instructed video games. They examined how the players thinking shift while taking a more active role into the game like when becoming producers and in which the adolescents had to instruct for a period of five times students aged 8 to 12 years old, with whom each of them were paired with two students. As for becoming instructors, the adolescents were taught during one week how to use Stagecast, a computer software that present a two-dimensional video game and helpful tutorials. Participants were then observed during a period of two months during the summer; each session was followed by group interviews and individual interviews with the instructors. Digital images of the games were taken and interviews were audio-taped. Green s (1997) three-dimensional model of literacy was used to analyze the data (transcripts and visual images). Sanford and Madill s (2007) findings showed evidence of participants understanding of how the computer worked by using written and visual information. It was demonstrated that students were able to apply procedures to better understanding the game they were creating. Operational literacy competences with the tools, procedures and techniques and sociocultural literacy understandings of interactions between people both were involved and documented during observations. Sandford and Madill s (2007) observations have emerged from their analysis: "(1) learning of technological literacies; (2) reinforcement of previous literacy learning; (3) social interactions to support literacy learning; and (4) creative thinking through literacy engagements is reinforced" (p. 290).

0 Analysis of Similarities and Variances Boys underachievement in literacy has always been a concern in education. In that regard, Stables and Rogers (2001), using Cohen s (1998) observations, as mentioned in their article, discussed the fact that " boys underachievement is perceived as extrinsic while girls is intrinsic" (p. 125); 'intrinsic' referred to the nature of the intellect while 'extrinsic' referred to external aspects like methods, teachers, and so on. Stables and Rogers (2001) emphasized that curriculum development should address the particularities related to how boys and girls are learning to reduce the gaps between genders in literacy skills. Most research studies and articles in this essay review agreed that design and technology project can help teachers achieved better results in terms of literacy skills to reduce these differences in the way genders are learning (Stables & Roger, 2001; Gee, 2003; Shaffer et al., 2005; Squire, 2005; Feng et al., 2007; Sanford & Madill, 2007). I believe that literacy skills, as a step towards critical thinking, are developed while using video games. As an example, I watch my son, a young man with physical and learning disabilities, reading over and over narratives in order to understand what needs to be done to get to the next point into the game a great accomplishment while realizing how he was able to reach his goals at his own pace. To help understanding the process of critical thinking in video games, in Research Quest: Critical Thinking Theory & Video Games (2008), the author identified in Hughes (2000) book called Critical Thinking: An Introduction to Basic Skills, four important keys that benefits critical thinking: (1) "awareness of incomplete arguments"; (2) "challenge conclusions and beliefs"; (3) "develop a sense of intellectual worth"; and, (4) "develop persuasive skills based evidence rather than feeling" (p.1) which keys are relevant to this essay review.

1 Hughes (2000) acknowledged that the awareness of incomplete arguments is an important key gain for critical thinking. For the gamer, it means the realization that good decisions taken along the road can convey to the next level of the game. Hence, the completion of the argument becomes a motivator factor (Gee, 2003) for the gamer who absolutely wants to win the game by reaching its ultimate point. The virtual identity a gamer is holding, I believe, gives him a certain form of power and I noticed through my reading that some researchers like Gee (2003) and Squire (2005) concurred with this idea. I know that while my son, who is physically restrained in a wheelchair, is playing any of what he calls 'adventure game' is losing himself in a virtual world. He is virtually becoming a different person, sometimes associating himself with a super hero like Spiderman, Iron man, Superman, and other action type of hero, who can walk, run, jump, and do whatever physical action is asked in the game. I have observed that it is empowering him with some experiences he will never have a chance to accomplish otherwise. In a similar vein, Turkle (2004) asserted that " in the one-on-one relationship with a machine, the promise of perfection is at the heart of the computer s holding power for some" (p.20). Therefore, a technological piece of equipment, like a computer or a game station, can embody an individual without this person even noticing it is happening, an idea shared by some like Gee (2003) and Feng et al. (2007). While playing most of the well designed games found on the market, players get challenged with the game s conclusion in plot twists and in twists of logic, depending of the assumptions, decisions, and paths way they chose (Hughes, 2000). The idea that there is more than one way to go in some of the games makes players aware of the possibility that there is not only one good answer. The more a player is manipulating characters, the more invested he

2 becomes into the game (Gee, 2003; Shaffer et al., 2005) being investigated meaning the player s use of critical thinking at all time through the game. Moreover, video games shows diversity and effects on players mind and development of skills vary from one type of game to another (Feng et al., 2007). In addition, as Feng et al. (2007) suggested, action games, a different type of game, might be used for different training purposes with the intention of reducing possible gender differences in areas like spatial attention and cognition in both women and men (Feng et al., 2007) which suggested that video games can be used to improve skills that can be transferred in a new context of real life (Gee, 2003; Shaffer et al., 2005; Squire, 2005; Sanford & Madill, 2007; Smith, 2008). Shaffer et al. (2005) in their essay mentioned the variety of experiences games can carry on to gamers in different situated learning contexts and how it prepares them for activities in the real world (Squire, 2005; Feng et al., 2007; Sanford & Madill, 2007). Video games provide new and deep learning (Gee, 2003) as well as developing a sense of intellectual worth expressed by the resolution of complex problems (Hughes, 2000). I share this thought since I witnessed numerous time how proud my son was while successfully solving the challenges in the games he was playing. Furthermore, as mentioned by Gee (2003) and Shaffer et al. (2005), the disconnection between the kinds of experiences available in schools and in the online environment is obvious and it is imperative that teachers start to look at them as valuable tools for learning. Video games provide complex learning activity (Smith, 2008) from which teachers can learn and transpose new knowledge into a new learning context. Adapting to a new media like video games could be somehow uneasy for teachers as many of them are not familiar with its culture. Likewise, the social and cultural aspects of video

3 games, Shaffer et al. (2005) asserted that they are creating " new social and cultural worlds worlds that help us learn by integrating thinking, social interaction, and technology, all in service of doing things we care about" (p.105). Teams collaboration found in video games, tied to cultural practices, contributes to distributing knowledge within users prepares them to modern workplaces (Gee, 2003; Squire, 2005). Hughes (2000) pointed out that game players develop persuasive skills both internally and externally while they discover evidences in the game that persuade them of having made the right choice and also while exchanging strategies information and decisions. Those gamers can also provide some valuable arguments about some unpopular games which demonstrated development of critical thinking (Hughes, 2000; Sanford & Madill, 2007). Some authors argued that, if teachers were to know better the complex learning activity of playing video games, they could incorporate this knowledge into their classroom to improve learning and critical thinking (Gee, 2003; Shaffer et al., 2005; Smith, 2008). Critique and New Directions Gee (2003) affirmed, as previously said, that video games are learning machines but it would have been interesting to see more concrete examples on how to use the video game technology creatively as a constructive force into school to help both girls and boys performed learning and critical thinking. Moreover, some of the authors, like Stables and Rogers (2001) and Shaffer et al. (2005) praising learning in context, demonstrated that students will develop diverse skills through the act of playing video games and suggested that it prepares them better for the real life than traditional schools. Likewise, Smith (2008) emphasized the importance of transposition of the new developed skills into the classroom and workplace. But, interestingly, these authors, as well as

4 other ones, did not provide any concrete information expressing with meticulousness what is the impact on boys critical thinking and how teachers could transpose the new developed skills into the real world. As a result, I believe that greater involvement of teachers in experimental research experimented professionals in the field of education working on a daily basis with students could help documenting this omitted ideal practical component. Furthermore, I wonder if some of the controversial elements of playing video games discussed by popular press like the time consuming and anti-social aspects they are procuring to the new generation could have a negative impact on critical thinking as they might cause a shift of attention in some cases. Once more, future research possibly a qualitative study should be considered in determining all variables applicable on critical thinking skills while using video games and should focus on how the findings can be applied in the reality of a classroom. On a final note, other approaches should be considered in regards of the use of video games to improve critical thinking because as much as playing video games is proven to be developing diverse skills one of them being critical thinking its usage should be taken with care. Patricia Greenfield (University of California Los Angeles, 2009), professor of psychology and director of the Children s Digital Media Center, who analyzed more than fifty studies on learning and technology, expressed that peoples skills in critical thinking and analyses have decreased over the years while visual skills have improved. As Greenfield (University of California Los Angeles, 2009) mentioned, this new generation of students lack of reading as a cause of this decline raised the question, "How much should schools use new media, versus older techniques such as reading and classroom discussion?" (para. 3). After all, playing video games numerous hours will probably not change the level of improvement on critical skills and a good balance

5 between playing video games and other activities like reading and writing might be necessary in order to get the most value of everything. Indeed, independently of Greenfield s thoughts and all the questions it raises in my mind, I believe further research should be done about the impact of video games on boys critical thinking since boys multi-tasking on this new technology is a common fact more common than for girls. If critical cognitive skills are improving in older adults, 60 to 70 years old, playing strategic video game about nation building and territorial expansion (University of Illinois, 2008), it is reasonable to believe that it will improve boys critical thinking as they spend many hours at playing video games. Conclusion The majority of people as well as educators are holding stereotypes towards games and gamers, braking down these barriers would create an appreciation for the value of the integration of video games which could be incorporated into the world of education. There is no doubt in my mind that the impact of video games on boys critical thinking is to be considered as well as many of the new media youths are using in today s developing world of technology which is established in this essay review. In conclusion, I believe we need to built on what we have and in this new digital age, as mentioned by Jenkins (2000), "...video games shape our culture" and "...it s time we took them seriously" (p. 117).

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7 Gee, J. P. (2004). Learning by design: Games as learning machines. Interactive Educational Multimedia, 8, 15-23. Retrieved from http://plaza.ufl.edu/tedbow/game_learning/games_as_learning_machines.pdf Hughes, W. (2000). Critical thinking: An introduction to basic skills (3rd ed.). Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview Press. Jackson, J. (2009). Game-based teaching: What educators can learn from videogames. Teaching Education, 20(3), 291-304. Retrieved from ERIC database (EJ857401). Jenkins, H. (2000). Art form for the digital age: Video games shape our culture. It s time we took them seriously. Technology Review, March/April, 117-120. Moreno, R., & Mayer, R. E. (2000). A coherence effect in multimedia learning: The case for minimizing irrelevant sounds in the design of multimedia instructional messages. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92(1), 117-125. Retrieved from http://computerscience.nl/docs/vakken/b3elg/opdrachten/moreno.pdf Prensky, M. (2004). The seven games of highly effective people: How playing computer games helps you succeed in school, work and life. Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky-the_seven_games-final.pdf Research Quest: Critical thinking theory and video games. (2008). Retrieved from http://researchquest.blogspot.com/2007/07/critical-thinking-theory-video-games.html Rowan, L., Knobel, M., Bigum, C., & Lankshear, C. (2002). Boys, literacies and schooling: The dangerous territories of gender-based literacy reform. Buckingham, UK: Open University Press. Retrieved from http://mcgraw-hill.co.uk/openup/chapters/0335207561.pdf Sanford, K., & Madill, L. (2007). Critical literacy learning through video games: Adolescent boys perspective. E-Learning, 4(3), 285-296. Retrieved from

8 http://www.wwwords.co.uk/pdf/validate.asp?j=elea&vol=4&issue=3&year=2007&article =7_Sanford_ELEA_4_3_web Sanford, K., & Madill, L. (2007). Understanding the power of new literacies through video game play and design. Canadian Journal of Education, 30(02), 432-455. Retrieved from http://www.ernwaca.org/panaf/pdf/rce_texte.pdf Shaffer, D. W., Squire, K. R., Halverson, R., & Gee, J. P. (2005). Video games and the future of learning. University of Wisconsin-Madison and Academic Advanced Distributed Learning Co-Laboratory, 105-111. Retrieved from http://ddis.wceruw.org/docs/08%20shaffersquirehalversongee%20pdk.pdf Squire, K.D. (2005). Toward a theory of games literacy. Telemedium, 52 (1-2), 9-15. Retrieved from http://website.education.wisc.edu/kdsquire/tenure-files/24-telemedium.pdf Stables, K., & Rogers, M. (2001). Reflective and literate boys: can design and technology make a difference? Paper presented at the IDATER 2001 Conference, Loughborough University, UK. Retrieved from https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/dspacejspui/bitstream/2134/1345/3/stables01.pdf Turkle, S. (2004). Whither psychoanalysis in computer culture. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 21(1). 16-30. University of California Los Angeles. (2009, January). Is technology producing a decline in critical thinking and analysis?. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090128092341.htm University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. (2008, December). Strategic video game improves critical cognitive skills in older adults. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081211081442.htm

9 Wilson Smith, S. (2008). Conceptualizing cognitive skills developed during video game play: A case study in teaching composition. E-Learning, 5(2), 180-188. Retrieved from http://www.wwwords.co.uk/pdf/validate.asp?j=elea&vol=5&issue=2&year=2008&article =5_Smith_ELEA_5_2_web