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Why are boys disengaging from school?
Have boys changed, or has the education system changed?
In Ali Carr-Chapman’s TEDx talk, she lays out the reasons boys are tuning out in school and offers a plan for re-engaging them in a way that actually works.
Completely agreed, Lori. Her diagnosis has a great deal to recommend it, especially in its comments regarding the failure to understand boy culture. However, games REALLY are not the answer here. They are a quick fix for many of boys’ psychological needs, but they fail to meet those psychological needs in a manner that transmutes them into socially empowering strengths, and direct boys’ quest for the meeting of such needs away from the contexts where they will be much powerfully meet and fruitfully rewarded. A need for stimulation, competition, struggle, and independent attainment can be met by the video game,… Read more »
Great comment! I was way too tired to put this kind of time into it!
I want to take your comment and present it to our all school meeting on opening day. It’s all true.
Why are people so against gaming? Just the creativity alone that can be involved in games is a major benefit. I think educational games would be a great asset to education alongside more traditional methods, especially as a fairly cheap computer can have enough power to have interactive games showing places or activities that could be far outside of a budget of a school. A high quality engineering simulation game to show large scale forces acting on objects could be used alongside the old paddle pop stick bridges whilst also giving creative freedom to those students as a project could… Read more »
Phenomenal Ted Talk. MOSTLY. I was with her 100% until about minute 12. Until then, Bravo! We MUST change the culture of schools and re-engage boys in learning. She mentioned many ways of doing so that I agreed with. What I DISAGREE with is improving/increasing educational gaming. Nope. This is not the answer. Neurologically, it is harmful. But until she said that, I was cheering, and there is much to be praised in this video. I have often said that today’s co-ed schools are girls’ schools that boys go to. This must change in every respect.
Educational gaming to the level of large budget games such as World of Warcraft, etc would be incredibly beneficial. Where are the studies showing it is harmful? The military use games now for educational purposes. Educational multiplayer games could be a great idea for out of the box, engaging team based activities (make sure you also have outside activities too) and potentially do activities they wouldn’t be able to otherwise. Maybe have the class build n run a city, games that require budgeting, strategy games that encourage them to think. It doesn’t have to be a shootemup or violent game… Read more »