Teach Students to Question!

I have been thinking a lot about how video games can influence a student's consciousness. It is my belief that all things around us influence who we are. This happens on many levels of our lives. Think of any way you can be influenced: radio, television, movies, social media, internet, video games, books, newspapers, news stations, podcasts, education, and the list goes on and on. Let us focus on education and video games for now. These are both some of the most influential contexts, especially for learners. 

When I think of the word influence, I think of people and history. I wanted to share an example of a recent trend in video games with something found in many history classes where students investigate all different types of propaganda from various media. Reading events and making meaning from them is like comprehending a text, which is to say, we make connections and meaning from whatever we take in from the world through our senses. This can be done in video games too.

“The dissolution of the Soviet Union has forced Herman and Chomsky to revise their ideas, but the principles of their propaganda model remain relevant. Since 1991, Islamic terrorism has replaced communism as our dominant anti-ideology, reflected in video games even more conspicuously than in the news. In the wake of the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, anti-terrorism games have flourished. Red storm has defined the genre with their Tom Clancy franchises, Splinter Cell, Rainbow Six, and Ghost Recon” (p.72).

 

“Although these games have superficially distinct narratives and pit us against a colorful range of real and imagined rogue states and terrorist organizations, their essential drama is the same: Some barbarian, bent on toppling a friendly government or wrecking anarchic genocide, compels quick, covert action from a U.S. –led multinational force. Inserting behind enemy lines, a small, highly trained team uses their discipline, cooperation, and the most advanced military technology to defeat a larger though undisciplined enemy force. Covert operations rule out any public recognition of the team’s heroism, but they are not in it for glory – it’s all in day’s work.” (p.73).

Getting practical here with this is easy. Teachers can use trends in video games as stated above to teach a specific concept or point. This is much like teaching theme or motifs to students. It is a matter of reading connections between different things. In the example of above, making connections to propaganda and the themes behind many best-selling video games will teach students to question their environment for deeper meaning and understanding. This is reading the situation at its finest. Now, that is reading using video games in the classroom. Remember, you don’t always have to play a video game to use it in the classroom.

On that note, I am going to play some Call of Duty 4 on my PS4. My gamer tag is Thebull450 if you ever want to play. This conversation has me thinking about Call of Duty 4, which can be played in “paintball mode” so there is no blood or gore while still getting the benefits from playing the game.