Critical Thinking vs. Fact-based Learning
May 7, 2009
Is there really any question of which is more important? Traditional curriculum emphasizes factual knowledge. Games promote critical thinking. So we need to find a way to make games work in the classroom??? Am I crazy to think that the statement "... schools do have to change in some fairly fundamental ways" is a bit of an understatement?
This is an excerpt from an Education Week article called: High-Tech Simulations Linked to Learning
Check out the logic of the last 3 quotes. The rest of this article is about how games have engaged students and improved student performance. It closes with a description of an exciting new school, Quest to Learn, scheduled to open in NYC this fall. Why does the dek say, "Experts say digital games can help students grasp difficult concepts, but warn against seeing them as 'silver bullet' solutions." Shouldn't there be a stronger indictment of traditional curriculum here somewhere? Is it any wonder I get so frustrated?
Cautionary NotesBecause games do take longer to incorporate into curricula, Richard N. Van Eck, an associate professor in the instructional design and technology program at the University of North Dakota, in Grand Forks, encourages teachers to use games only in areas in which other teaching tools have not been successful.
"Given that it can be labor-intensive, it makes more sense to reserve this kind of approach for content that you know is difficult for students to master," he said.
"Game-based learning isn't going to work for everyone, it's not going to work all the time, and it's not going to work for all your needs," Mr. Van Eck said. "It's just one tool in your toolbox that goes along with all the other tools that you have."
Keeping that in mind can prevent educators from being disillusioned by games, which are often billed as a "silver bullet" technique to solve all the problems in a classroom, said Christopher J. Dede, a professor of learning technologies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, who studies simulations and games in education.
"You have to start with the issue and ask yourself, 'Is there a way that gaming or simulation might help me in wrestling with this issue?' as opposed to saying, 'Whatever the problem is, if I just put gaming in, it's going to get better,' " he said.
Part of the reason why integrating games and simulations into mainstream classrooms is so difficult is the difference between what games teach and what is emphasized in a traditional curriculum, said Mr. Van Eck.
"One of the biggest challenges we have with traditional curriculum is that it emphasizes factual knowledge. Games tend to promote higher-level kinds of thinking, like problem-solving and critical thinking," he said.
"Schools do have to change in some fairly fundamental ways to make the best use of game-based learning," he added. "But that doesn't mean that there aren't some meaningful things that can happen at the classroom level."
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