On 2010-03-14, at 20:19, Igor Stasenko <[email protected]> wrote:
On 15 March 2010 02:59, Michael J. Forster <[email protected]>
wrote:
On 2010-03-14, at 16:09, Stéphane Ducasse <stephane.duca...@inria.
fr> wrote:
A friend of mine sent this interesting links
http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/commentary/games/2008/09/gamesfrontiers_0908
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jan2009/id20090114_362962.htm
Worth to read.
Stef
The students might have employed the scientific method, but the
article
itself is not a good example of even populist science writing.
The author states that enrollment in the sciences has fallen
because of
boring presentation of facts and that video games offer a
rejuvenated quest
for facts. How do we know that enrollment has declined for that
claimed
reason? How do we know that it's not the subject matter of video
games that
interests the students, and that students won't shoe the same
disinterest
when we apply video games to, say, biology or particle physics?
I would never discard a new viable approach to teaching and
learning, but
this sounds a lot like the ethanol solution to climate change.
Hmm, i didn't read a second link, but from a first one i think it
says that
it doesn't makes students to be more interested in theory or
fundamental science.
What it does, is teaching them the way of thinking, exactly how
scientific method works.
So, then, once they realising that, it is much easier for them to
learn more diffucult things
and apply the same approach to a different areas.
Well, as I said, the articles themselves are hardly scientific in
their assertions and analysis.
My point is that, as I have observed in students I have studied with
and those I have taught, understanding the scientific method is not
the hurdle. Finding the motivation and patience to carry out the slow
painstaking work of applying that scientific method -- doing the work
of science -- is what turns people away. Science is very hard work,
and, materialistically, the pay sucks.
So, if I were to reason as recklessly as the authors, I would argue
that as much of the problem lies with a generation of instant-
gratification seeking people as it does with boring old science
classes. Further, I might rant that it was video games that created
that problem. Heck, the best that we can hope for is that these kids
will end up applying the scientific method to online poker.
Of course, that wouldn't be very scientific of me ;-)
Anyway, yes, it was worth a read. Thanks for that, Stephane.
Mike
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