Interactive Education

July 25th, 2008 at 09:02am Larry Messing

While people have had differing comments on the world of video games, one thing that cannot be denied is that it stimulates learning - whether good or bad.

When I played video games in my younger days, we simply had to press the red button to shoot an astroid or jump over an alligator. Nowadays, there are at least 3 or 4 buttons to select from. In addition, if you combine them in certain orders (along with the directional arrows), you can do other maneuvers that look fearspme and relatively uncomfortable for the body.

In my own kids, I find they sometimes have trouble remembering some of the things they are taught in their classes, but they can remember a string of 15 commands that will make their video game character do some most amazing things.

Many are finding the benefits of incorporating educational materials with fun, interactive games. One such example with Junior Achievement is called JA Titan, which allows high school students to run a company and make the appropriate decisions in a video game environment. During the program they listen to a volunteer discuss certain business aspects such as price and products. Then they put these learned skills to work. There are a lot of “a-ha’s”, especially as they compete against their classmates.

Interactive activities aren’t just fun between a young person and a computer. Throw yourself in there as well. You can bring the experience to them that will allow them to USE the education they are learning. This will stick with them and help benefit them as the get older.

Entry Filed under: workforce readinesss, Junior Achievement, Economic education, Financial literacy