Van Eck[1]
does a good job in outlining the
potential and limitations of digital game based learning (DGBL) in the
educational sphere. In both the original article in 2006 and the follow up in
2015, he does a good job of laying out the ground in terms of design, skills
and hurdles impeding the penetration of DGBLs at a critically mass level. However,
the one area where he falls short or gives perfunctory treatment to, is the
matter of cost and income-levels for students and their families in accessing and effectively
utilizing DGBLs as learning tools.
While Van Eck discusses the cost in adopting digital games
for schools and educators in both articles, he does not really address that
issue as an impediment for students and families. This issue is one of the
stronger impediments I believe has prevented DGBLs from reaching a critical
mass within education. It is an issue tied directly to the learning of 21st Century Skills including problem solving,
critical thinking , effective communication through DGBLs.
A closer look at
non-cognitive research[2]
will
reveal that, students most in need of 21st Century skills
development which are mostly, non-cognitive fall on the lower end of the income
spectrum and increasingly on the wrong end of the digital divide[3].
For DGBLs to be effective and reach a critical mass, as Van
Eckhas identified, there needs to be an awareness of this divide and how to
design games to bridge this gap. In addition, there needs to be more games that
are designed to show an effectiveness and efficiency in teaching cognitive subject
areas and also meet the non-cognitive needs of
a critical mass of the population. Unless DGBLs meet this threshold in some form,
it will be a while before they can reach the mass critical penetration as
envisioned by its proponents.
[1]
V Van
Eck, R. (2006). Digital Game-Based Learning: It’s not just the Digital Natives
Who are Restless. Journal, Vol 41(Issue 2), 16–30. Retrieved from
http://edUnequal Classrooms: Online Higher Education and Non-Cognitive Skillsergbl.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/47991237/digital
game based learning 2006.pdf
Van Eck, R. (2015).
Digital Game-Based Learning: Still Restless, After All These Years. Retrieved
November 18, 2015, from
http://er.educause.edu/articles/2015/10/digital-game-based-learning-still-restless-after-all-these-years
[2]
arrington,
C. A., Roderick, M., Allensworth, E., Nagaoka, J., Keyes, T. S., Johnson, D.
W., & Beechum, N. O. (2012). Teaching Adolescents to Become Learners: The
Role of Noncognitive Factors in Shaping School Performance--A Critical Literature
Review. Consortium on Chicago School Research. Retrieved from
http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED542543
Fletcher, J. M., &
Wolfe, B. (2016). The importance of family income in the formation and
evolution of non-cognitive skills in childhood. Economics of Education
Review, 54, 143–154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econedurev.2016.07.004
Nagaoka, J., Farrington,
C. a, Roderick, M., Allensworth, E., Keyes, T. S., Johnson, D. W., &
Beechum, N. O. (2013). Readiness for College: The Role of Noncognitive Factors
and Context. Voices in Urban Education, (38), 45–52.
[3]
Attewell,
P. (2001). The First and Second Digital Divides. Sociology of Education,
74(3), 252–259. https://doi.org/http://www.jstor.org/stable/2673277
Dolan, J. E. (2015).
Splicing the Divide: A Review of Research on the Evolving Digital Divide among
K-12 Students. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 48(1),
16–37. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/?q=%22%22&ff1=subAccess+to+Computers&ff2=dtyIn_2016&id=EJ1091134
Helsper, E. J. (2012). A
Corresponding Fields Model for the Links Between Social and Digital Exclusion. Communication
Theory, 22, 403–426. Retrieved from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=9c660582-cc87-4b0d-a411-9b8c5a5a7823%40sessionmgr4002&vid=2&hid=4111
van Deursen, A. J. a.
M., & van Dijk, J. a. G. M. (2015). Internet skill levels increase, but
gaps widen: a longitudinal cross-sectional analysis (2010–2013) among the Dutch
population. Information, Communication & Society, 18(7),
1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2014.994544
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