Computer Games 'Can Help Children Learn'

In this article from the United Kingdom's "The Guardian," Lucy Ward describes a group of advocates who believe that computer games should be incorporated into school curricula with as much focus as books and films. According to Andrew Burn, the Associate Director of the Children, Youth and Media Centre, "Games are a cultural form that is just beginning to evolve and the evidence is they can be every bit as rich and complex and nuanced as a book or a film."

Academics at the Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media (part of London University's Institute of Education) believe that games are an element of social development. According to project Manager, Caroline Pelletier, "playing and talking about games is an important part of young people's lives."

Academics and others who support the use of computer games for learning believe that "game literacy" is a way of investigating how games are means of expression and representation, just like writing or drawing." Further, games "deserve critical analysis" in schools. They suggest that public antagonism towards computer games is a "fear of new media."