Image Source: http://www.talesofinterest.net/1987-legend-of-zelda-cheats-for-nes-emulator-and-nes/
As a parent I am interested in a category of games known as Serious Games. Wikipedia says that Serious Games are not a genre per se but a category of games whose 'main purpose is to train or educate users'. My previous post covered Minecraft with kids and some of the safety concerns. In my referenced links it can be noted that many educators are turning to Minecraft to teach lessons. I don't know that Minecraft could truly be considered a serious game, since its creation was not intended for such. I believe the practice of turning fun games into a learning experience is something worth noting.
Image source: http://minecraftedu.com/page/
A simple Google search for 'kids educational games' will give you thousands of websites with online games for kids to learn everything from ABCs, colors, numbers, shapes, math, science and more. Most of these games are not designed with a lot of effort put into graphics and engagement of the game but more or less are a visual drill of the skill the game is trying to impart. I think we must take some care when using video games as a tool for our children to learn. I do believe many lessons can be learned in a more entertaining way than the traditional method of teaching particularly for children who may not fit the classic cookie cutter public school model. I don't think education is a one size fits all. That being said, too much of anything can be a bad thing and I also think there is a level of desensitization that can occur with violence and sexuality if we allow our children to play whatever they want with regards to video games.
Image Source: http://www.learninggamesforkids.com/
I have been playing electronic games with my kids since they were toddlers. At 8 and 10, both of my kids can properly start up and shutdown their laptops, use a mouse, open, edit and save files in various Office programs such as Word and Powerpoint, have knowledge of servers, routers, programming and various IT concepts that some adults I come across know nothing of. My ten year old knows his IP address, how to run simple commands in a Windows command prompt, has tried out Linux, Ubuntu, MAC OS and set up his own server going through our router (unbeknownst to me) for his friends to play Minecraft on together. He says he wants to be a programmer. The younger one for now says he really wants to be a video game tester.I try to be a hands on parent when it comes to the hardware and software lessons my kids are learning as well as covering Internet safety and etiquette with them.
One particular company that my son's teacher introduced us to this year is a major breakthrough for serious games or online learning in my opinion and that is Khan Academy. Created in 2006 their mission statement is 'to provide a free world-class education for anyone, anywhere'. The interface is fairly simple and uncluttered and the focus is Math skills when you first log in. You take quizzes to earn mastery points and special badges, the more skills and the more difficult skills you master, the more rare the badges become. If you don't know a skill you can watch a short video to refresh your memory or you can skip the question. In addition to Math, there are educational activities in Science, Economics, Humanities and Computer Programming. I have not explored every category with my account but the Computer Programming is designed excellently for children and/or beginners. Lessons are bite sized five minute videos with a screen simulator for you to type your own code and run it to see what happens. All in all, I can't say enough good things about Khan Academy and what it offers to anyone, anywhere in terms of fun and educational goals and learning opportunities.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serious_game
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_genres
https://student.societyforscience.org/article/what-video-games-can-teach-us
www.khanacademy.org
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