Category Archives: Games

Yet another “Trouble in River City” Article – this one by SUSAN GREENFIELD

Posted on June 11, 2008 by Katrin Becker

I’ve actually been pondering this since it first came out. I’m getting pretty tired of the “Games are bad for society” rhetoric. Why can’t people get past hating things and look at something that can actually make a difference, like … Continue reading →

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Videogames – Ya Got Trouble!~

Posted on May 17, 2008 by Katrin Becker

Some years ago I was at a conference where Dmitri Williams was talking about the social history of videogames. He made reference to this song as a way of illustrating how the societal reaction to videogames isn’t really new. Since … Continue reading →

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Video Game Violence….

Posted on March 10, 2008 by Katrin Becker

does NOT necessarily cause violence, according to a new study: Grand Theft Childhood, by Lawrence Kutner & Cheryl B. Olson (more here: http://www.gamecouch.com/2008/02/interview-dr-cheryl-olson-co-author-of-grand-theft-childhood/) In 2007, results from a breakthrough Harvard video game study found that children used video games to … Continue reading →

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What is a Game? [Part 1]

Posted on September 21, 2007 by Katrin Becker

What is a Game? Games are classified in many different ways and even after going round and round repeatedly, we still can’t seem to agree on what a game actually is. Here are a few examples: Some examples of casual … Continue reading →

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Take That, R.E.Clark….

Posted on August 4, 2007 by Katrin Becker

Among the points highlighted in Clark’s recent article trashing serious games are that “…the research shows no instructional advantages of games over the other instructional approaches (such as lectures)…” and that “only poorly designed studies find learning benefits from games“. … Continue reading →

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R.E.Clark is at it again….

Posted on August 2, 2007 by Katrin Becker

Clark, R. E. (2007). Learning from Serious Games? Arguments, Evidence, and Research Suggestions. EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY, May-June 2007, 56-59. Richard E. Clark says, “My goal in this column is to offer a brief view of the current state of the evidence … Continue reading →

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On Game Length

Posted on June 16, 2007 by Katrin Becker

On Game Length [started Dec. 4 2006] http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20061201/qotw_01.shtml Talks about the length of games. This is of value to me because [I say] long games are ill-suited to school environments. School learning comes in bite-sized chunks, single lessons; units that … Continue reading →

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The Massively Multi-Player Online School

Posted on June 10, 2007 by Katrin Becker

A typical encounter at a yet-to-be built massively multiplayer online school: Suddenly, Amy realized that unless they all worked together, they wouldn’t get out alive. She wiggles the fuzzy slippers dangling from her swinging feet and glances out the window … Continue reading →

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