Can computer gaming make you smarter?: LiveSimplicity discussion forum

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With kids, and even adult, spending as much time playing their Playstation 3, Xbox 360, or Nintendo Wii, is gaming unhealthy? Is it just a waste of time, causing people to become lazy and unmotivated or can it actually be a healthy mental development activity?

View A

Gaming is a waste of time and antisocial. People, especially kids, spend way too much time playing games that provide no benefit. People should be outside playing and enjoying the outdoors and the company of others.

View B

Gaming has been known to be an incredible learning tool, teaching valuable problem solving skills. It has also proved to be a social tool also as many gamers have increased their circle of friends simply by being part of the gaming community.

7 comment(s) so far

pawn thinks: This is a tough call because I believe both are valid. Gaming does increase a child's ability to problem solve although this is highly dependent on the game. On the other hand, playing computer games can also be a mindless waste of time. Again, I think it is all dependent on the game they are playing. Either way kids should be outside playing and not in front of a television or computer for hours on end.

BigCheez thinks: Computer gaming seems to motivate children to learn more than traditional learning. I think that's safe to say. Teachers should spend more time researching how children gaming can be incorporated into learning. I have no doubt that it will not only ecourage learning, but make it more fun.

mfinney thinks: You have to use your mind to solve problems, you are alert and totally immersed (if the game is any good). This is active participation and so much better for you than sitting on the sofa watching the TV.

The one thing that worries me about it is the way the gaming experience (the images etc.) invades your dreams. I'm not sure why, but it makes me uneasy. Perhaps it changes the way you think too, on an unconscious level?

philipsfan thinks: Children need to learn to use their imagination which is something that is not done while playing computer games. When I was a child, I used to play with a pile of dirt and a shovel and was content to do it all day. I don't have anything against gaming as an activity, but a childs life should involve much more than hours in front of a television playing computer games.

chrisek thinks: Let's hope it makes us smarter. I've been playing my XBox 360 for a few days straight. I might be one step away from becoming the next Einstien.

awakened thinks: I believe this is heavily dependent on the game, and on the age of the player. I have a younger sister and she likes playing those little harmless nifty computer games, like one that gives her a set of objects in writing, and she must locate them inside an image. To her, this is very educating since English is not her primary language and some of the words she needs to look up in a dictionary in a very limited time. This prompts her to learn new words in English, tests her ability to locate shapes inside of an image (don't get me wrong, this game is tough, even for me and I know the English language very well). Games like these (and even a few fps, or any kind of game) DO contain educational factors of one degree or another. On the other hand, MMORPGs' I strongly dislike, since the only brain activity they require is the mental command to click your mouse.

moderator thinks: For those of us not involved in the gaming world...

MMORPG = massive multiplayer online role-playing game

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