video games do they teach anything?

kurt squire is a man that you need to know if you are a teacher in the 21st century. he is a man determined to convince all those opposed to video games that there is a benefit to video games if the right ones are played. first let us remember how it is children learn. if one looks back into the early years of development one finds that there was a lot of game playing. i for instance played "house" a lot and i was always the mom- which is where i probably learned my empathy and ability to easily connect with others. boys played war and police games etc. games are how children learn to be in the real world. since they learn best by mimicking and observing that is what play is. children observe adults interact with each other how they act when presented with problems and how they solve them, children then go on to mimic these behaviors in their play time. play is a time where children feel safe to try on different masks or roles and not be afraid to make mistakes because it is after all just a game. well in video games and alternate realities the same holds true. the student who is afraid to ask questions or raise their hands is confident and a leader because they are not themselves in this other world they are who or what they want to be. video games like civilization and sims and even world of war craft give students play time in which they practice leadership skills, organizing skills, even networking skills. for instance my brother who was super shy in high school got into world of war craft and became a leader of a group of kids from all over the world to take over part of the virtual world of war craft world. he is now graduating with a bachelors in political science! his people skills improved dramatically and his diplomacy skills when dealing with opposing forces, so to speak, are what your would expect from a seasoned diplomat. now back to kurt squire, his white papers are easy to read and discuss the pros and cons of using video games in the classroom. he is part of MIT's study of video games in the classroom, type into google or bing the phrase games to teach and you will have all the information needed to convince your principal that video game playing in your classroom is necessary. also there is a website www.gamesforchange.org that is super awesome you must go to it. have fun with your games and although you might be having so much fun you are learning something!