Sony Wants Videogames to Appear in UK Classrooms

[Logan Westbrook]

Sony Wants Videogames to Appear in UK Classrooms

Videogames could help students learn about technology says Sony UK boss Ray Maguire, not to mention make a little extra scratch for console makers.

Maguire is pushing to make videogames part of the national curriculum for British schools, and wants it happen sooner rather than later. Speaking at the Learning Without Frontiers conference in London, Maguire said government, educators and the businesses would all have to collaborate in order for the idea to properly take root.

Maguire thought that games could make a meaningful contribution to technological progress in schools, something he felt would be threatened due to new austerity measures. He said that Sony was "deflated" following cuts in education budgets, but was still looking into opportunities for teachers and students alike. He warned that rising prices could make it difficult to proceed however, and urged the government to move as quickly as possible.

Sony hopes to introduce PSPs and the PlayStation Move into classrooms, and is also working on teacher packs for LittleBigPlanet [http://www.amazon.com/LittleBigPlanet-Game-Year-Playstation-3/dp/B002ELCUUG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1294787971&sr=8-1]. Maguire noted that as well as raising the profile of videogames, becoming a fixture the education sector could become a significant source of revenue for videogame hardware manufacturers. Maguire added that Sony also hoped to promote courses in videogame creation in British universities, and hoped that videogame developer might become an aspiration for more young people.

Unfortunately for Sony, no one from the UK department of education attended the conference, although Ed Vaizey, long-term supporter of the industry and Minister for Culture, did. Maguire seemed unfazed by this however, and noted that it wasn't entirely clear what government department would actually be responsible for the measures Sony was proposing.

It's not hard to see how videogames, and especially games like LittleBigPlanet, could become invaluable teaching aides. Teachers aren't going to be swapping textbooks for the complete works of Cliffy B any time soon, but by making lessons more interactive, the students would find it easier to retain what they'd been taught, making the lesson more effective overall.

Maguire clearly isn't worried about admitting that Sony's motives aren't entirely altruistic, but they don't really need to be to have a positive impact on students. It may already be too late for Sony though, as in this time of belt-tightening, it's hard to see PS3s as anything other than a luxury.

Source: GamesIndusty [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2011-01-11-sony-the-time-is-now-to-bring-games-to-education]


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[Ih8pkmn]

I think that some classes would be improved by incorporating video games. If my school bought a few Wiis, I know gym would be a lot more fun than it is.

A little off topic: I actually tried to convince my art teacher of video games as an art medium with an essay. I got a trip to the school shrink for my trouble, as well as an F on the essay.

 

[Megacherv]

Hell yeah, I got an A* for my Biology research study for doing the presentation with LittleBigPlanet, using a level called LittleBigBiology. It's not that good a level, but it's on the PSN if you want to see.

And please, no H4H. I hate everyone who says that.

 

[TitanAtlas]

Sony cares more about theyre sales, then theyre costumers....

 

[LightspeedJack]

Sony cares more about theyre sales, then theyre costumers....

You have just described every business ever. Minus the spelling mistakes.

 

[Hunter65416]

it won't happen. not with the tory cutbacks. And tbh its a bit of a silly idea anyway, theres only a few areas that could be improved by it. And even then not as much as you would expect.

agreed a bit of a dumb idea it could be argued that games set In a historical setting (trenches in ww2for example) could be benifcial but in reality your going to be more focused on what youre shooting rather than the setting and soldiers fear, things better portrayed in film and then there's the inevitable wave of angry parents sceaming about how they sent their kids to school to learn not to play violent video games so nah it wont happen, not in this generation anyway.

 

[Blue_vision]

A little off topic: I actually tried to convince my art teacher of video games as an art medium with an essay. I got a trip to the school shrink for my trouble, as well as an F on the essay.

Wow, dick move on their part.
Or maybe an offensive essay? I won't judge.

I like the message, but not the execution. Video games are just not well suited to classrooms at all. Introducing video games to a classroom as a teaching tool would be similar to introducing entire seasons of TV shows, but is far less convenient than TV shows because TV requires a single machine for an entire room, and TV show can be cut down to single episodes to showcase certain elements (such as cinematography, acting, or writing.) The same with movies, and books are far cheaper than either of the formerly mentioned, and are incredibly useful in language studies as their bare bones representations of language and writing.
And trying to introduce Moves (or Wiis or Kinects,) into classrooms is kind of insulting. I'm assuming it's supposed to appeal as either an exercise supplement or a way to help the supposed bodily-kinesthetic learners. If you want kids to get exercise, give them more exercise in gym class. You want kids to be active in class, just design classes with movement involved (i.e. science experiments, acting, etc.)

Maybe video games could have a bit more of a voice in classrooms though. While it may be commonplace for teachers to make references to movies, books, TV shows, or popular music, video games are much rarer (I'm blessed to have had a couple teachers that are in the gaming loop.) But the issue with that is probably with the social norms of gaming anyways, and I wouldn't say it should be the school's job to change that.
But as an actual curriculum-based thing, games should probably get at least a mention in the more media-involved courses, like native language, could be a good idea. Even just the odd class of studying a game or elements within them, I think it'd do great justice to gaming and also expand students' knowledge. But that could just be a game overview and maybe a youtube gameplay video or two.

 

[TitanAtlas]

Sony cares more about theyre sales, then theyre costumers....

You have just described every business ever. Minus the spelling mistakes.

Y U NO LIKE MY SPELLING?

 

[LightspeedJack]

Sony cares more about theyre sales, then theyre costumers....

You have just described every business ever. Minus the spelling mistakes.

Y U NO LIKE MY SPELLING?

one secund fort it be satizfactori

 

[Supp]

A little off topic: I actually tried to convince my art teacher of video games as an art medium with an essay. I got a trip to the school shrink for my trouble, as well as an F on the essay.

I find that much more interesting than the article itself

 

[Jumplion]

...
And trying to introduce Moves (or Wiis or Kinects,) into classrooms is kind of insulting. I'm assuming it's supposed to appeal as either an exercise supplement or a way to help the supposed bodily-kinesthetic learners. If you want kids to get exercise, give them more exercise in gym class. You want kids to be active in class, just design classes with movement involved (i.e. science experiments, acting, etc.)...

Yes, because running around for a few laps and doing pushups is much more involving than putting those same exercises in the context of an olympic event or something through a video game.

Okay, okay, I get what you're saying overall, but I think some video games can be more than adequate to help kids become more involved in their classes. Using video games for every single class probably won't help, but certain classes can easily benefit with the introduction of certain games.

A little off topic: I actually tried to convince my art teacher of video games as an art medium with an essay. I got a trip to the school shrink for my trouble, as well as an F on the essay.

Seriously? Either your teachers are a bunch of morons (not for disagreeing with you, but sending you to a shrink), or your essay was godawful

 

[Exort]

Sony cares more about theyre sales, then theyre costumers....

what company doesnt, Even vale cares more for sales then customers, they treat customers the way they do cause it boosts sales. TF2 is still selling despite how old it is cause of all the stuff they add. Its capatalism, a company that doesnt value sales wont exist very long, how they approach getting those sales decides most of it.

You forgot the Mann Co. store in TF2.

 

[Logan Westbrook]

This is just a bullshit marketing scheme. Videogames have no place in the classroom when it comes to learning. I'm sick of how a majority of gamers are ignorant and will back up the idea because they believe gaming is positive in every aspect.

Is that directed at me?

 

[z3rostr1fe]

This is just a bullshit marketing scheme. Videogames have no place in the classroom when it comes to learning. I'm sick of how a majority of gamers are ignorant and will back up the idea because they believe gaming is positive in every aspect.

Is that directed at me?

Sire, this may be just directed at Sony... O_O

 

[Dastardly]

Sony Wants Videogames to Appear in UK Classrooms

I'm sorry, but speaking as an educator, this is just a lame cash-grab.

Making lessons interactive is very helpful, but the kind of video games that appeal to students are distractions. Entertainment. Diversion. I'm sorry to inform these technology experts, but doing things to make the classroom "fun" isn't the same as making learning fun. In fact, it's going to make it harder to ensure that learning takes place at all.

Educational software can be a helpful learning tool, but educational games are really only useful in drilling students on the knowledge they've already been taught. It's just there to provide a bit of extra practice, emphasis on "a bit." It doesn't instruct. It doesn't individually assess. These games are basically the same as worksheets--good for review, horrible for instruction.

But the outlay of money required to fit classrooms with all of this stuff far outweighs any supposed benefits. The time taken away from real instruction can't be replaced. And, I'm sorry to say, the fact that now we can play videogames in class? Motivation to do non-game things drops sharply.

Here's how it'll play out if this goes through: Schools are forced to spend time and money on putting Little Big Planet in the classroom. They require teachers to attend a number of workshops, which puts more money in Sony's pocket, to familiarize themselves with the concept and receive "lesson plan" examples. Teachers try it. Then the students, who like videogames, will say, "Wow! This is fun!"

And then students talk about how much more they like being at school, so people think, "Wow! Video games help kids want to be at school!" But that's like saying, "Hey! Kid's like eating vegetables when we cover then with candy!" Games, by and large, distract from learning and diminish motivation to do actual work. Kids might "enjoy" the classroom more, but the classroom ceases to do its job.

But, of course, companies like Sony will also provide "assessment packages" with their software. These packages will be designed to give the false impression that the game is measuring skills in valid and useful ways, so as to create the impression that the games are effective in instruction. Why do I think this? Because the companies that create standardized tests do the exact same thing. And many classrooms become a race to "teach the test"--to shift from teaching content to teaching test strategies and tricks--when the fact is that the test isn't providing a valid measure of learning.

It's another gimmick that won't just fail, it'll pull us away from the real goal. Sony wants a government contract, a captive audience, and a blank check. That's all that's going on here.

 

[Dastardly]

I think that some classes would be improved by incorporating video games. If my school bought a few Wiis, I know gym would be a lot more fun than it is.

A little off topic: I actually tried to convince my art teacher of video games as an art medium with an essay. I got a trip to the school shrink for my trouble, as well as an F on the essay.

You'd have to have a Wii for each child in order for it to be useful. Time spent standing around "waiting for your turn" isn't good use of instructional time. Then you have to worry about space, or the fact that a load of Wiis in the same room will not be getting along well, or the fact that every single thing you do on the Wii is more easily done with low-tech equipment (like real hula-hoops, or actual yoga).

Basically, the school would be shelling out hundreds of dollars per student just for the privilege of having the Wii keep track of BMI--which is an invalid measure of overall health anyhow, particularly since the Wii's metric tends to favor body types more common in Asia.