Video Games and the Challenge of Engaging the ‘Net' Generation
Video games are a popular form of entertainment for students in North America and around the world. They provide widely diverse experiences on a variety of platforms. Participants can engage in solo play, or in games that attract thousands of other players. The levels of player participation, skill mastery, and thought processes required by many video games attract and engage students because they are able to control and eventually master challenging virtual environments. The holding power of video games and their ability to engage players is the subject of much educational research as educators recognize that game technologies are highly sophisticated. Students are interacting with subject content in ways that differ greatly from established methods of classroom instruction. This chapter reviews the current discussion among educators, researchers, and professional game developers about using video games in the classroom.