Computer game addicts fail in the classroom

[Lorra]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=333352&in_page_id=1770

Computer game addicts fail in the classroom
by ROBIN YAPP, Daily Mail

Children who spend hours playing computer games and watching television are failing to develop the skills to succeed at school.

The warning comes from leading scientist Professor Robert Winston, who said youngsters are not acquiring the long-term powers of study and application they need in class.

This is because the games they play and programmes they watch require only short-term bursts of concentration.

"Many children who love computer games find it hard to concentrate on the sort of tasks that require slow application and are necessary for school success," he said.

Lord Winston, Britain's preeminent fertility doctor, has studied the impact of computer games on children's ability to tackle various tasks.

Those who spend long periods playing quick-fire, adrenaline-pumping games often lack a long-term attention span, he found.

The problem is exacerbated by children who have computers and TVs in their bedroom and sit in front of the screens into the early hours instead of getting enough sleep.

Studies show a lack of sleep can lead to increased irritability and emotional or behavioural problems including, at the low end of the scale, lack of concentration.

"Children are sleeping between two and five hours less than their parents did at the same age," said Lord Winston. "This affects their performance at school and their behaviour at home and some of that is down to computer games." He added: "Digital media may well have some dangers as well as some advantages for children.

"Modern children are spending three to four hours a day in front of a computer or television screen of some kind, often unsupervised."

His concerns are aired in next Tuesday's edition of the BBC1 series Child Of Our Time. Lord Winston also echoes concern that growing numbers of children are playing violent computer games intended for adults, which may make them more aggressive.

Tests showed children who had been exposed to violent games lost interest in those intended for children their age.

The programme surveyed a group of primary school pupils and found one in five had played Grand Theft Auto - a notorious 18-certificate game where players steal cars, kill people and pick up prostitutes.

Lord Winston said: "There are real concerns that children who play violent games may be influenced by them." Dr Jon Sykes, a lecturer in video games at Glasgow Caledonian University, said many parents simply did not take warnings on computer games seriously enough.

"They quite understand the age classification on films and CDs but with games they think it is just something trivial," he said.

Discuss

 

[Validus]

Story of my life

 

[Hansmoleman]

just another excuse to take a dig at the games industry, i play games alot fast one's as well and i can concentrate for a whole 10minutes before getting bored, but seriously i doubt many young children as they say stay up till the very early hours playing most would fall asleep

 

[Job]

The arguments against this rather obvious trend are pathetic.

'no link has been established' say physcologists, many who can barely function in real life themselves.

When I was at school, no kids were practising triple spin Ninja kicks all day.

Actually the real problem is real life, ain't it tedious eh?
I want a shortcut, every freakin thing we do..full stop, is soley to rearrange neuron pathways in our brain.
We spend a lifetime trying to build happy ones and remove sad ones.
Give me a hard drive for a brain and HAPPYASFUCK version3 with lots of patches and don't you dare nerf the taste of chicken.

 

[Brynn]

Dark Age made me fail half of 2nd year at uni. Damn all night sidi raids before exams

 

[Cyfr]

Dark Age made me fail half of 2nd year at uni. Damn all night sidi raids before exams

In school I never had any problems because of the fact that I was addicted to daoc..
I came out with 3A's2B's3C's (and two others .. ) which is better than I expected at gcse.
Homework is a problem but I think it's just because of who I am, i never liked homework even before daoc and would find any excuse to put it off

 

[tris-]

its not the games fault. if some idiot wants to feck their life by playing too much then its their own fault for not controling them selves.

food makes kid fail in PE cos they eat too much and get fat.

foods fault or the stupid fatty fucker kids fault?, yep, the kids fault.

 

[Roadie]

daoc isnt rly what they are talking about here though, if you think about it daoc develops exactly the traits kids are said to be lacking

Many children who love computer games find it hard to concentrate on the sort of tasks that require slow application and are necessary for school success

Daoc is all about slow application, the problem is tends to be the slow appliction of daoc in place of your studies ><.

I think its partly true people seem to have ever decresing attention spans due to vastly better entertainment means than before, but this is a change in society in general if kids are finding it hard to develop studying skills in the modern world it just shows that our schooling systems need to start trying to keep up with society to an extent.

I dont think kids are as impressionable than before. They still have parents nd know the difference between good and bad. The guy who wrote this probably grew up in the 60's or 70's and was exposed to the explosion in recriational drug use and the effect it had on society (the "free love craze") . Thats probably a bit more dangerious than computer games.

This guy is just supporting some lawyer whos trying to get someone a lower sentance by blaming the gaming industry. Its hardly new news that people with buggerall slef control who mess about with computer games or hanging out with their friends or party to much dont do well in school.

The fact that im typing this instead of revising is doing my head in a bit so i think ill finish there

 

[Lorra]

Lots of good points keep em coming, (At this rate ill be able to do my sociology homework mwhahaha - only joking, its on education attainment but not due to computer games, its about the amount of cultural capital the parents have, but never mind on to the subject)

To some degree I think daoc did contribute to my down fall at gcse got 7 B's 3 C's and a D :O but was predicted all A's when I was revising all I could think about was getting my next "fix" of the game, if you get what I mean?

But I suppose that was partly due to the way my parents reacted by practically banning me from the pc, so I would revise, but rather than having the desired effect it had the opposite.

 

[Binky the Bomb]

Kids don't fail becasue the programs and games keep them succeding, kids just find them more interesting and engaging than school work. Lets face it, school isn't a barrel of laughs or a welcoming place, there just a prison for children until they can get into college and university and pick up some REAL life experience and skills.

Or to put it another way, if you ask a kid if they want to A: Watch a documentory, B: Do there homework or C: Play a computer game/Watch some mindless drivel on television; What are they going ot do, Given the choice?

Besides, given the state of things today, they can either learn and get a job to pay there way or do nothing and claim dole money and play games and watch tv all day anyway. And who's fault is that? Technically, the government for making it just that easy to get away with, for allowing these 'profesional unemployed' to do just that. Call me a wanker for thinking that if you wish, but you know it's right, and it's just the tip of a very large iceberg of problems, all interconnected like some badly designed conspirecy theory (Ok, ok, I know, stfu about conspirecy theories already. It's just a metaphore, and a rather apt one methinks).

Back on track though, It's a personal choice, it's all down to personal choice these days. Fifteen, twenty years ago, you didn't have rights like kids do now, the choice was school or a smacked arse, then to school anyway. Can't even do that now (Pity), oh, parents can be fined for kids not showing up, and then the sparks fly, but there is even a way around that. You can go to school, attend classes, and do sports like everyone else..... nothing saying you have to succeed, just attend.

And there lies the loophole. Enjoy my words or wisdom (madness). Sleep tight.

 

[Dillinja]

*yawn*

You'd think that these "Professors" would have found something better and more important to study by now, like what affects gangstah r4p music is having on 10 year olds.. or something. A whole generation of impressionable kids thinking that it's cool to shoot people and smoke brain-destroying drugs is probably a little more worrying than a minority of kids failing in school because they were "addicted" to a computer game - which probably means that they played it for 1 hour a week and then decided to blame it for their shitty exam results... hmm, it couldn't just be that the child had no brains now, could it? No! It's the game's fault! Burn the game!

It also annoys me how they keep referring back to GTA. 18-rated games are NOT sold to anyone who doesn't look 18 and doesn't have ID, that's a FACT, no matter how many news reports and paper articles try to say otherwise. Besides, If the kid thinks that it's cool to pick up prostitutes in a stolen car just because CJ from GTA does it then he probably deserves to die from AIDS anyway.

anyway, I digress. Like several other people have probably pointed out in this thread;

School = Boring.

Games = Fun!

It's not fucking rocket science. The only option is to ban the games industry, and since that will never be possible, these people are being paid (probably a lot of money) to do pointless tasks.

 

[Dillinja]

There's also the fact that today's youth believe that it somehow makes you more popular and likeable if you are an illiterate moron who can't locate his own country on a globe, while the kid who is going to be leading his own business when he's older has few, if any, friends. This is another one of the key downfalls in today's society, again we have the likes of Mr. 50 Cent, "Snoop Dogg" et cetera to thank for this. Of course rap music isn't the sole guilty party in this, but I'm sure it plays a pretty big part in this way of thinking. It makes the intelligent kids feel less inclined to push to their full abilities, and in turn results in poorer exam results, Pulling society further into this huge black hole.

Anyway, I've completely forgotten what point I was trying to make here so I'm going to leave it at that.

 

[Ingafgrinn Macabre]

There's also the fact that today's youth believe that it somehow makes you more popular and likeable if you are an illiterate moron who can't locate his own country on a globe, while the kid who is going to be leading his own business when he's older has few, if any, friends. This is another one of the key downfalls in today's society, again we have the likes of Mr. 50 Cent, "Snoop Dogg" et cetera to thank for this. Of course rap music isn't the sole guilty party in this, but I'm sure it plays a pretty big part in this way of thinking. It makes the intelligent kids feel less inclined to push to their full abilities, and in turn results in poorer exam results, Pulling society further into this huge black hole.

Anyway, I've completely forgotten what point I was trying to make here so I'm going to leave it at that.

Rap music today
Metal rock, or hardcore house music 7.5 years ago
Rock 15 yrs ago
The Beatles in the 60's

There's always an excuse... our great-grandparents talked about our grandparents this way (I know... my great-grandmother is 103 now and still alive and kicking, well, with her rollator anyway ), our grandparents talked about our parents this way and our grandchildren will talk about our great-grandchildren this way... it's a continues cycle and it'll never change.
I'd wish those professors would spend their time better, and research the impact of modern day speedy and hasty time based life on our health or something.

Although I do believe that TV and computers are bad for a child, but mainly because the lack of exercise (I used to go out and play hide-n-seek and tag, and wargames with improvised <camouflage>suits, and yes, I DID try the moves of the teenage mutant ninja turtles ) and the impact on your eyes cos I notice myself that my eyes start to hurt when I've been at my pc for too long, so it can't be good for a kid who's eyes still are developing and growing.

anyway, that's my 2 cents

 

[Gil]

Children who spend hours playing computer games and watching television are failing to develop the skills to succeed at school.

Another study showed that computer/console games improved childrens hand eye co-ordination. In other words depending on the way you interpret that facts you can enforxe your beliefs on people.

This is because the games they play and programmes they watch require only short-term bursts of concentration.

"Many children who love computer games find it hard to concentrate on the sort of tasks that require slow application and are necessary for school success," he said.

Lord Winston, Britain's preeminent fertility doctor, has studied the impact of computer games on children's ability to tackle various tasks.

Those who spend long periods playing quick-fire, adrenaline-pumping games often lack a long-term attention span, he found.

The reason for short attention span is not due to the games/tv, it's down to society, most families nowadays both partners have to work so it ends up that the children suffer. The majority of people want 'the quick fix' and what better than sound bite tv/games to give them a bit of peace after a days work.

PS Lorra it may be your name in the quotes but I'm not directing this at you, just very lazy/drunk at this time to concentrate.

Btw this is the longest post I've ever done
ooer
Mebbe I'll do 1 when I'm sober*



*if ya betting man never bet on the sober option, no matter how good the odds are. "It not gonna 'appen"

 

[Ctuchik]

think i read somwhere that those kids that play computer flight sims on a daily basis (ok addicts) are the once that do best in a real plane they even beat "proffesionals"

but it could just be my imagination again

 

[Hawkwind]

Kids don't fail becasue the programs and games keep them succeding, kids just find them more interesting and engaging than school work. Lets face it, school isn't a barrel of laughs or a welcoming place, there just a prison for children until they can get into college and university and pick up some REAL life experience and skills.

Or to put it another way, if you ask a kid if they want to A: Watch a documentory, B: Do there homework or C: Play a computer game/Watch some mindless drivel on television; What are they going ot do, Given the choice?

Besides, given the state of things today, they can either learn and get a job to pay there way or do nothing and claim dole money and play games and watch tv all day anyway. And who's fault is that? Technically, the government for making it just that easy to get away with, for allowing these 'profesional unemployed' to do just that. Call me a wanker for thinking that if you wish, but you know it's right, and it's just the tip of a very large iceberg of problems, all interconnected like some badly designed conspirecy theory (Ok, ok, I know, stfu about conspirecy theories already. It's just a metaphore, and a rather apt one methinks).

Back on track though, It's a personal choice, it's all down to personal choice these days. Fifteen, twenty years ago, you didn't have rights like kids do now, the choice was school or a smacked arse, then to school anyway. Can't even do that now (Pity), oh, parents can be fined for kids not showing up, and then the sparks fly, but there is even a way around that. You can go to school, attend classes, and do sports like everyone else..... nothing saying you have to succeed, just attend.

And there lies the loophole. Enjoy my words or wisdom (madness). Sleep tight.

Agree 100%

 

[Hawkwind]

think i read somwhere that those kids that play computer flight sims on a daily basis (ok addicts) are the once that do best in a real plane they even beat "proffesionals"

but it could just be my imagination again

Thats true. When the USAF/NASA ran some tests (simulations) on the next generation unmanned fighter programme the kids did better than their 'best of the best' Top Gun credited pilots. The reason/excuse given was that the kids had not flown real jets and as such ignored basic principles of flight dynamincs (the flight envelope of the aircraft). They just did whatever they wanted to do. The pilots on the other hand had been preprogrammed with what you can and cant do in an aircraft. Such as 8g-10g plus turns which would make 99% pilots blackout. So the kids had an advantage.

 

[Job]

I think 'ignoring the flight envelope of real aircraft' would come under...er cheating.

'I totally WTFPWNED your ass!!'
'But you pulled an 11G turn and would have blacked out and crashed'
'Don't bore me with the details lamer'

 

[Chilly]

lol no shit, thats the sole reason im at fucking reading university instead of bristol, *****.

 

[old.Tohtori]

This "study" is complete bollocks. Just look:


"Modern children are spending three to four hours a day in front of a computer or television screen of some kind, often unsupervised."

Three to four?! Bah! It's not as nearly as that little.

Get your facts straight

 

[Ormorof]

This "study" is complete bollocks. Just look:


"Modern children are spending three to four hours a day in front of a computer or television screen of some kind, often unsupervised."

Three to four?! Bah! It's not as nearly as that little.

Get your facts straight

lol so true

and anyway, would the parents watching the kids watching TV (so it being supervised) help at all?

i probably screwed up my GCSE's from playing DAoC but thats hardly DAoC's fault, thats my lack of self-restraint

(ie, i could have stopped playing and done revision and so gotten better than scrapin 5 A-C grades, but i chose to play DAoC instead )

 

[Chronictank]

*yawn*
You'd think that these "Professors" would have found something better and more important to study by now, like what affects gangstah r4p music is having on 10 year olds.. or something. A whole generation of impressionable kids thinking that it's cool to shoot people and smoke brain-destroying drugs is probably a little more worrying than a minority of kids failing in school because they were "addicted" to a computer game

Why is rap music more important? Its doing exactly the same thing as blaming computer games for sum1 getting killed (like that prison one a while ago where the crazy kid killed his friend or sumin).
At the end of the day if you put enough work in you can blame anything for anything, for example i could write a thesis for too much pop music causing people to go insane by taking a sample set from a insane assylum blasting S-Club 7 for a week or 2 24/7 and saying it makes them mad . Likewise i could take death metal and say it promotes suicide just because a girl vut her slits while listening to it.
Pot Kettle Black

 

[old.Tohtori]

Pot Kettle Black

Not all pots and kettles are black. Racist. Hmpf.

 

[Chronictank]

blue then!

 

[Silverblast]

Well I do have to admit daoc dragged my grades down SLIGHTLY, but not to a failing extent.

This was only because I lived +4 GMT and had to stay up late for toa raids and general rvr which caused me to sleep less and lose some concentration in the early minutes of my exams. {I WAS able to control myself and study btw!}

The only problem with games I see is the need for time dedication, eg you miss a raid, and you are screwed till the next, or you have to wait for a group to form (takes ages in hib atleast) till the fun actually begins.

Then again there will be some moron who will completely ignore his responsibilities and just play games all of the semester and fail o_o..

 

[Oli7er]

i for instance did better thanks to daoc, lots of insipiration from the game

 

[old.Tohtori]

blue then!

On what grounds do you call african americans blue?! You calling them cold hearted or something?! Racist!!!

 

[Awarkle]

personally if parents are letting their kids play mmorpgs unsupervised for 4 hours a night then its really the fault of the parents for not taking an interest in the child.

Although i know a lot of younger people in guilds and stuff that play daoc and thye get my respect because they act older than they are and when you realise they are 13 you think hmmm i thought they were at least 40

and if someone comes online saying Im stuck on my home work i think they are more likely to get help from the people in their guild or on forums the general comunity will probbly help them more with any problems they got than their brain dead parents who watch hours and hours of soap operas and jerry/trisha garbage.

Ill say this if any hibby pryd under 18's are stuck on homework contact me in game and ill try and help you out

maybe someone should do a homework section on the forums where we can keep our raid leaders grades high by doing it for them and throw this failiure curve out

O yeah btw Cheating and lying gets you anywhere because thats how most of the people at my university passed, just look honest when they bring you in and you will still get away with it.

 

[Chronictank]

On what grounds do you call african americans blue?! You calling them cold hearted or something?! Racist!!!

what if was refering to the aliens in the "im blue"
rather silly calling blue people, brown

 

[old.Tohtori]

what if was refering to the aliens in the "im blue"
rather silly calling blue people, brown

So just cause you saw hose aliens as blue, you think that all of them were blue hmm? Racist!!! There might be brown guys there too, behind the camera or the table or....


Maybe the point went across allready