The Effect of Videogames on Student Achievement
All what you need to know about video games
The world of video games is not only huge, but also diverse. There are slot machines that drop coins, computer games, portable gaming devices, digital set-top boxes (STB) such as the Sony PlayStation or Xbox, with joysticks that is connected to the monitor.
A video game, as a rule, means a type of game that is played by the interaction of the player and the electronic system in which the visual display device is the main mechanism providing feedback to the player. Usually playing games more interesting for students than writing essays. If you are a student go to this web site and find big base essays on any topic.
In order to navigate the whole variety of games, people began to separate games into different categories. Criteria for the division into categories were very different. For example, the number of players, the type of game camera, the plot, etc. But the way to differentiate the game genres became very popular. Here are the main ones:
Quest – is one of the most popular genres of computer games that requires the player to find a solution to different mental tasks for moving on the level;
Arcade – is a category of computer games with simple gameplay, limited to performing a set of actions aimed at achieving certain result. The tasks of games of this genre, as a rule, boil down to a set of the maximum number of points and / or the minimum time for passing the game;
Platformer – a genre in which the main feature of the game process is the jumping on platforms, climbing the stairs, collecting items, usually necessary to complete the level;
RPG (role-playing game)- computer game, based on the elements of the gameplay of traditional desktop role-playing games;
Real-time strategy – a game that provides the ability to simulate and manage a process from real life. Using the computer as much as possible fully simulates the physical behavior and management of any complex object;
Massively multiplayer online role – playing game, MMORPG – multiplayer games with a nonlinear storyline, where the player, controlling the character, has the opportunity to improve his abilities. This requires defeating enemies, performing tasks, selling and buying artifacts, etc. Personage’s characteristics can be influenced by timely eating, sleeping, etc.;
Fighting – almost the greatest genre of video games, in which masters of different martial arts destroy each other with the help of hands, feet or a weapon.
The most popular video games that students prefer
With a large margin in the ranking of computer games among the students, the Action genre is leading, among which the most popular are games with elements of horror and shooter-shooters. Most of the games among this list are attributed to this genre.
Assassin’s Creed is one of the most popular series of games in the genre of action-adventure. Starting from 2007 there are already 7 parts of the game. The actions of the game, depending on the series, occur in different epochs of history, from the Middle Ages to the present.
Call of Duty is one of the most popular First Person online shooters in the history of games, which is released on various platforms. The right to publish the game belongs to the French campaign Ubisoft. According to official data, the number of hours spent in this game by all players is 25 billion hours. And statistics show that these numbers will continue to grow in the future.
WORLD OF WARCRAFT is a multiplayer online role-playing game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment. On January 23, 2007, Blizzard released a press release stating that the number of subscribers to the game was more than eight million people worldwide, for 3 years the number of subscribers increased by another 7 million people. World of Warcraft is currently the most popular MMORPG in the world and holds a place in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most popular MMORPG by the number of subscribers. World of Warcraft has a prize number of hours spent behind it, namely 60 billion (it’s about 7 million years).
Grand Theft Auto (GTA) – is series of games, to date consist of 12 parts created by the Scottish company-developer Rockstar North. The first game of the series was released in 1997. According to the plot, the gamer should become the leading gangster in the city. GTA online took about four billion hours of human life.
Battlefield – a series of computer games in the genre of a first-person shooter, dedicated to the First World War. The first part was released in 2002 by the Swedish company EA Digital Illusions CE, which later became famous throughout the world. These online games that you will love for sure.
How do video games affect students?
For many years, computer games are one of the most popular types of entertainment. Their influence extends to a large number of people, but the primary players are students.
For example, the enthusiasm of children by computer games is of concern to many parents who are sure that such entertainments negatively affect the performance of their children. And kind of it. As negative consequences of computer games are the escape from reality, reduction of social contacts, difficulties in interpersonal contacts, low self-esteem, shyness, etc. And it’s not surprising, because students who spend a lot of time on the Internet are unable to develop their personality.
And the pupils of the lower grades, when the child’s psyche is not yet strong, can develop aggressive behavior, intolerance of a certain nation, race or religion, exaltation of wars and violence.
Also, along pastime behind a computer negatively affects the spine, hands, eyes, and leads to a disturbance of the nervous system and sleep.
But computer games can be used not only to harm the academic activity but also for the benefit. So, scientists are encouraging, games not only harm, but they also develop. According to research by scientists from the Royal University of Melbourne (RMIT), teens who regularly play online games have proven to be much more capable of their peers in a number of disciplines. Those students who played online games daily had 15 points higher than average results in mathematics and 17 points in natural science.
For example, many strategies help to build logical thinking, improve analytical skills, decision-making skills, attention and memory, and other cognitive skills.
That, in turn, directly affects the performance of adolescents, which can not be said about students who spend their free time on social networks. As it turned out, wasting time on social networks leads to the opposite effect.
Thus, scientists at the University of California in Irvine found that games can improve memory performance by 12%.
First-person shooters can positively influence the duration of brain concentration and its ability to process information.
According to the developers, Minecraft will help students learn geometry, develop critical thinking and the ability to work in a team.
But do not oscillate between extremes, because harm and benefit are determined only by the time spent at the computer.