Gee is a bit easier to take this time around. He makes some great assessments as to how video games help people learn, (here it is, the big…) but I still think he’s missing something. I think learning tools and entertainment tools are separate, somehow, by their vary nature. They are different in a similar way that going to work is different than going to play in the back yard. I think they can be combined in some way, but I don’t think Gee gives a satisfying solution as to how. As a matter of fact he doesn’t seem to give any kind of solution at all. Perhaps he realizes there is some connecting piece missing as well.
A little more palpable in small doses…
– April 20, 2006Posted in: School Work
You, Mike and Miles are right in your assesment of Gee. This article was a much easier pill to swallow. It was much clearer than the book.
I don’t think it is necessary that tools for education and tools for entertainment live in seperate worlds. I think we can use some “entertainment tools” to capture the minds, teach principles and re-enforce concepts. But you are right, Gee doesn’t seem to give us a way to connect the two. It’s kind of like a myst puzzle, except in this case we have to provide our own cheat sheet.