Gone are the days when parents and teachers tell kids that video games are detrimental to a person’s well-being.  Video games are transforming the way children learn, equipping them with flexible and adaptive skills that are not as easily achievable with traditional learning.  Interaction is an indispensable dynamics in learning, and video games make learning not only interactive but fun and easy as well.  Studies show that there is a 50 percent improvement in correct answers among students who play educational video games.  Aside from being fun and engaging, video games also encourage students to be competitive –be it against other students or against themselves (always wanting to beat your own high score, anyone?).

Exposing a child into the interactive culture of video games will teach him/her skills in problem solving and negotiation, judgment, analysis and strategic thinking.  There’s also noted benefits in communication skills and networking, narrative skills and transmedia, non-linear thinking patterns, and improved attention vision.  There’s a wide array of games to improve your child’s skills.  Even schools in the US, UK and some other parts in Europe are distributing educational video games. From Dr. Peter Radd of Southern Methodist University:

“I would say that the world is highly complex and that all the single dimensional issues have been asked and answered. What we really need to learn is how can we work across the disciplines…through the constructionist theory and the use of applied learning, if you will, in which not only do I become an expert in the discipline because I’m working on a video game that I’m interested in– in seeing– seeing– its completion, but also I’m learning how to interact with other experts, either masters, and work with them almost in a conservatory model, if you will, in order to be able to accomplish the task. That model for us, in my opinion, needs to be the model for education in the 21st century. And it is in direct conflict with the models of education that we have today.”

Video games are gaining traction in the education sector that Apple even launched a new 21.5 inch iMac that’s made specifically for educational institutions, trying to get a chunk of Microsoft’s market. Microsoft also released a new Kinect not too long ago that will enable disabled kids to play video games.

However, everything should be kept at a minimum. Video games sure are fun, but educators believe that overindulging in gaming could lead antisocial behavior, violence, aggression, and motivate them to put more weight on winning than gaining knowledge. Not too long ago, 77 people died in Oslo, Norway after a shooting took place. The rampage was said to have been motivated by playing violent video games. The convict admitted that he learned shooting tactics from the popular first-person-shooter game Call of Duty.

Here’s an interesting infographic outlining the impact of video games on education.