Post # 8, Gee, Chapters 5-6

This is how I felt about math in high school.

I have mentioned before that I am horrible at math, and that I had an especially hard time with it from middle school onward whenever I started learning algebra and more complex mathematics. The thing is, I don't remember always having such an aversion to math. In fact, as far as I can recall, I actually enjoyed it when I was in elementary school. I'm not sure exactly why I became less proficient in math as I advanced through the grade levels; it is a oddity for me, especially since I became more proficient in every other subject as I advanced through grade levels. One thing I do know is that once I started doing poorly in advanced math, I started questioning why I needed to know it in the first place. When would I ever need to know how to calculate a hypotenuse? When would I ever have a practical use for an x and y axis on a plane? Gee makes two points in the beginning of chapter 5 that applied to me when I asked those questions: "Humans tend to have a very hard time processing information for which they cannot supply such simulations. They also tend readily to forget information they have received outside of contexts of actual use, especially if they cannot imagine such contexts." (113). I had a hard time processing advanced math partially because I couldn't imagine a context in which I would need it. I also forgot (perhaps eagerly so) all but basic math skills once I managed to pass those classes, almost always with C's, but occasionally with an A or B.

Professor Von Croy

There is a conflict in our educational systems between telling and immersion. To illustrate this conflict, Gee uses the game Tomb Raider as an example. In the classic Playstation adventure/exploration game, the main character, Lara Croft, is on an archaeological expedition with her mentor, Professor Von Croy. Von Croy, represents the traditional method of learning; he instructs Lara to stay by his side at all times and not to venture anywhere he does not lead. He presumes to teach Lara how to become an archaeologist by telling and showing her. The game designers, however, in an ingenious display of good game design, make it so that Lara pretty much has to disobey Von Croy in order to learn the game mechanics and her role as an archaeologist. It is only by breaking away from the constraining traditional method that the player learns the necessary skills to successfully navigate Lara Croft through her game world. The important thing to take away from this example is not that one method is necessarily better than the other, but that it is important to have both, and that a system that relies too heavily (or exclusively) on telling/showing is not likely to produce the most optimal results in a learning environment. In order for things to truly sink in with humans, we must have personal experience with them.

"Good" Cole

In chapter 6, Gee moves his focus towards games that present us with moral options. I know many people cringe at the idea of a videogame teaching us ethics, especially when so many videogames rely so heavily on unethical behavior, but there are a number of games that make good use of moral dilemmas. The last game I played where my moral decisions factored into the game play was Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. If you follow a path of righteousness then you may visit the temples of the various beneficent gods and pray for blessings that will boost your avatar's attributes. If you do something to scorn a god, like killing woodland animals for sport, then you must make amends to the god before he will bless you. If you follow a path of evil then the gods will refuse to bless you at all, which is very detrimental since the only way to remove a curse in Oblivion is  by praying in a temple. Another game that takes the emphasis on a players' moral choices even further is inFamous, for the Playstation 3. In this game you play Cole, an urban messenger who survives an apocalyptic cataclysm that grants him electrical powers. In the ensuing chaos, it is up to Cole to either become the hero that saves the citizens of the demolished city from gangs and warlords, or to become a source of terror, himself. The game works on a karma system, where certain abilities are only available to Cole depending on his moral alignment, much like the contrasting abilities of Jedi and Sith in Starwars. If Cole follows the path of righteousness, his powers take on a calming blue glow, his appearance is clean and healthy looking, and the citizens of the city will cheer him on when they see him in the streets. Conversely, if he follows the path of evil, his powers take on a menacing red glow, his clothes and skin become dark and dirty, and the citizens of the city will alternate between booing him and running away from him in fear.

"Evil" Cole

I don't presume to suggest that videogames should be the first method of teaching anyone the lessons of morality, and neither does Gee. However, I do believe that they can provide a unique and first-hand experience with making such choices and seeing how they have repercussions that affect other aspects of our lives.

Questions:

1) Do games with dynamic ethical decisions cheapen their real life applications?

2) If a student persistently fails at a traditional learning method should that student be encouraged to "rebel" against it?

3) Are there any videogames that you felt catered to your cultural identity too much?