The debate about how dangerous video games can be for children and students has been going on for a decade or more. At first they were simple games, then the games became real universes in which you play with people from all over the world, sometimes day and night. It is not very easy, it takes a lot of time, requires a lot of concentration, and sometimes financial investments. But are video games and normal learning really incompatible? What is the real harm of video games? Why have video games become such a problem? Maybe parents and social psychologists raise the alarm in vain, maybe video games, on the contrary, help adaptation and interaction? Today we will try to deal with these issues directly.
How Video Games Harm Students
Here we will try to do without the standard horror stories that are used to scare parents when it comes to computer games. No, your child will not become a psychopath or a maniac just because he plays games that have zombies, no, your child will not quit school forever just because he took part in some kind of tournament. But, as with any mass hobby, there are risks in the situation with video games that should not be forgotten.
- The waste of time is simply colossal. Games are designed so that the person who plays them spends maximum time at the computer. The reality of video games is bright, exciting. If we talk about large online games, they are designed for you to consider them your second reality. That is why students lose so much time when they start playing a lot. There is nothing particularly wrong with video games themselves, the only problem is playing for a limited amount of time, and not everyone has the willpower to do that.
- Normalization of violence. We disagree with studies that say that video games are responsible for the increase in violence. On the contrary, many scientists say that they help difficult teenagers relieve stress. The problem is different – violence itself is normalizing, and it is more difficult for teenagers to answer the question “what is good, what is bad”, no matter how trite it may sound.
- Financial losses and risks. A lot of games require quite a bit of investment if you really want to get ahead and keep up. You need to buy weapons, upgrade your character. All this requires not only time, but also money. Many parents’ credit cards have been maxed by their children playing video games.
How Students Can Benefit from Video Games
There are about as many studies that show that video games are harmful to children and students as there are studies that say that video games do not have any significant effect on how children and students learn and develop. Of course, like overindulgence in food or sugary drinks, overindulgence in games leads to problems, but that doesn’t mean the games themselves are bad. In some cases, video games can be considered, if not useful, then completely neutral for learning and development. Let’s figure it out.
- Opportunity to learn and practice the language. If we are talking about online games, they are played by students from different countries who speak different languages. If you are an ESL student, these games with Americans and British will be really useful for you. You will not even notice how soon you will start speaking and writing much better and faster. Yes, we have already mentioned that there is a problem of abbreviations and slang, but it is up to each student how to learn and communicate. Even if you are an ENL student, you can always use video games to improve your Spanish, Russian, Chinese, French or any other language.
- Development of strategic and tactical thinking. Most modern games still mean not only the need to shoot quickly, but also think about what your next step will be. Of course, this is far from chess, but it is quite possible to improve tactical thinking by playing computer video games.
- The development of the reaction rate. There were a lot of discussions on this topic – is it really possible to develop reaction speed by playing video games, because when you play, you usually don’t move your whole body, you just pull the joystick or mouse, press the keys. We tend to believe studies that show that the most important reactions are trained at the level of the brain, and the general readiness to respond may well be developed through computer games. Therefore, if you have reaction problems, computer games can try to solve them.
- New friends, new social circle. Yes, our mothers would like us to play in the yard, and our friends were all from the chess section. But, unfortunately, this world no longer exists. You don’t have to feel lonely even if you don’t actually leave the house. Your online acquaintances can become a real support team with which you will communicate for many years.
How to Balance Games and Studying
In fact, we do not know the answer to this question. It is not at all easy to get involved in games and at the same time somehow manage to study well. If the games are delayed, and you don’t want problems with academic assignments, we advise you to pause to restart, but at the same time contact a professional service that helps students with homework, for example MyAssignmentLab.com. Of course, this may not be your strategy for a long time, but it is a good tactical decision that will help you not to miss the deadline and recover.
Do a digital detox to switch from gaming to studying, don’t plan any tournaments or big raids for your exam preparation period, and decide in advance how much money you’re willing to spend to get ahead in the game, don’t go over that budget. no matter what. Games are really interesting, moreover, video games have become a profitable profession for many. That being said, we believe that no matter how good you are at the game, you need to finish college and get a degree.