Critical Analysis of The Article Gamifying The Classroom is a Bad Idea by Michael Thomsen

Introduction

On March 29, 2014, Michael Thomsen published an article entitled "Gamifying the classroom is a bad idea," which discusses how educational video games can be more harmful than helpful. The article examines the issue of video games' simplification of students' cognitive performance because students' answers are limited to true or false values in a computer. Furthermore, Thomsen discusses how educational video games are ideal tools for standardized testing and how video games capture children's attention during class. The author, although inaccurate about how educational video games can be companions for standardized testing, is correct in pointing out the obsession of children toward them, which affects their academic performance. Standardized testing, Thomsen feels, will be the future of educational video games because of the different performance metrics rooted in choices the player makes in the game. Games today are advancing. With more player choices such as free-roam in open-world games, players are given more possibilities to explore throughout the game. This paves the way for more qualitative result analysis at the end of video games instead of quantitative comparison based on a baseline of players. Of course, it is nearly impossible for a computer to analyze results qualitatively, like how meaningful relationships or alliances the player made with the NPC's (Non-player characters) were, but teachers can edit personalized parameters that fit a particular student more.

Video Games and Student Engagement

Video games specialized for certain students can apply to students at different levels of thinking. For example, abstract thinkers and analytical thinkers can be categorized easily through testing, and this information can be used to adapt video games according to a student's level of thinking to enhance their cognitive abilities. Qualitative results include resource efficiency in particularized situations, abstract problem-solving, and puzzles that test students' deduction and connection-making abilities. Glennon (2018) in his article entitled "Detroit: Become Human' is a Gorgeous, Thought-Provoking Sci-Fi Treat With Oodles of Possibilities," discusses the adventure game Detroit: Become Human, which includes a "decision tree" that branches out with each decision the player makes. The decision tree illustrates the possibilities of games and the proper ordering of data. In this game, there are different possibilities that branch out in a tree-like fashion that applies to action, dialogue, and the player's play-style, creating space for teachers or developers to create a game platform that fits a student or a student category. This means that performance is almost unlikely to be compared to a baseline score because the point system accounts for too many factors decided by the player.

Impact on Academic Performance

Despite the lack of accuracy in the first main idea, Thomsen mentions how the anticipation of playing educational video games takes children's attention away in class. Although children aren't known to be the most focused workers, games can distract a child from studying during classes because of their excitement to play. In an article by CBC News (2010) entitled "Video games threaten kids' attention span," a study was conducted observing that children who exceed two hours of screen time daily were one and a half to two times more likely to be described by teachers as distracted or prone to attention problems. The study suggested that students weren't listening in class because of video games, which was also discussed in Thomsen's article. Thomsen talks about a teacher who witnessed children giving their attention to the anticipation of playing video games in the classroom, proving one of the article's main ideas that video games can be harmful to children's academics.

Conclusion

Educational video games today can measure results from a wide range of selections that test students' abstract thinking abilities, which is difficult to integrate into standardized testing methods where results are compared to a baseline. However, children are often distracted because they are excited to play video games in the classroom, taking away their attention from other classes. Although video games provide an alternative to standardized testing, students are often found to be distracted in class because they are eager to play them. To truly harness the potential of educational video games, careful integration and balance with traditional teaching methods are essential to ensure they enhance rather than hinder academic performance.

References

• CBC News. (2010). Video games threaten kids' attention span. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/video-games-threaten-kids-attention-span-1.899300
• Glennon, J. (2018). 'Detroit: Become Human' is a Gorgeous, Thought-Provoking Sci-Fi Treat With Oodles of Possibilities. Retrieved from https://www.example.com/detroit-become-human
• Thomsen, M. (2014). Gamifying the classroom is a bad idea. Retrieved from https://www.example.com/gamifying-classroom-bad-idea