What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy

What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy

by JamesPaulGee (Author)

Synopsis

James Paul Gee begins his new book with I want to talk about video games - yes, even violent video games and say some positive things about them . With this beginning, one of America's most well respected professors of education looks seriously at the good that can come from playing video games. Gee is interested in the cognitive development that can occur when someone is trying to escape a maze, find a hidden treasure and, even, blasting away an enemy with a high powered rifle. Talking about his own video gaming experience learning and using games as diverse as Lara Croft and Arcanum, Gee looks at major specific cognitive activities: how individuals develop a sense of identity, how one grasps meaning, how one evaluates and follows a command, how one picks a role model and how one perceives the world. This book takes up a new electronic method of education and shows the positive upside it has for learning. The audience for this book will be parents and teachers interested in finding out just what the hell is going on in their son or daughter's head while they're playing video games.

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 240
Edition: 1
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Published: 10 May 2003

ISBN 10: 1403961697
ISBN 13: 9781403961693

Media Reviews
Gee.says the most challenging games prod players to push the boundaries of their skills and to adapt..
Gee...says the most challenging games prod players to push the boundaries of their skills and to adapt.... -- Shannon Mullen Asbury Park Press
Gee astutely points out that for video game makers, unlike schools, failing to engage children is not an option. -- Terrence Hackett Chicago Tribune
These games succeed because, according to Gee, they gradually present information that is actually needed to perform deeds. -- Norman A. Lockman USA Today
[Gee is] a serious scholar who is taking a lead in an emerging field. --Scott Carlson, Chronicle of Higher Education Am I a bad parent for letting [my child] play video games at 4? Not at all, according to Gee. --Jim Louderback, USA Weekend Magazine Rather than be reined in, today's successful game designers should be recognized as modern masters of learning theory... --Mike Snider, Cincinnati Enquirer,, . an astoundingly insightful manifesto on teaching and learning... --Michael Hoechsmann, McGill Journal of Education Gee astutely points out that for video game makers, unlike schools, failing to engage children is not an option. --Terrence Hackett, Chicago Tribune Gee...says the most challenging games prod players to push the boundaries of their skills and to adapt... --Shannon Mullen, Asbury Park Press These games succeed because, according to Gee, they gradually present information that is actually needed to perform deeds. --Norman A. Lockman, USA Today,, . Gee suggests that...schools...are 'in the cognitive-science dark ages.' --Jeffery Kurz, Meriden-Wallingford Record-Journal
Author Bio
JAMES PAUL GEE is one of the most well-known professors of education in the United States. He teaches at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and is the author of several books.