Book Review: Video Games as a Medium for Learning, by Keith Devlin

I recently had the opportunity to read the book “Mathematics Education for a New Era: Video Games as a Medium for Learning” by Keith Devlin, and I have to say that it was an interesting read, and gave me pretty good perspective as to how video games could be used in a mathematics classroom.

First, it is important to point out that the author mentions that the games that currently exist for building math skills are simply skill builders, and not really what he would consider a game that can be used in an effective way in the classroom.

The author describes several principles that make for an ideal learning environment, of which the following were ones I felt were most useful. 

• That the learning environment be similar to a real world situation where people would use mathematics (the market, shops, etc).
• That the learning environment provides unlimited numbers of learners with the same environment.
• There should be uniform assessment means of assessing student performance.
• The environment should present the students with pre-planned learning experiences.
• The learning environment should provide for the student to explore and practice at their own pace.
• The learning environment should provide opportunity for immediate feedback.
• That there should be a ‘cost’ involved with getting something wrong, in order to motivate correction, but not make the student give up.
• The learning environment should provide an engaging experience.

These are principles that, for the most part, as teachers, we have been striving for in the classroom. In fact, the Growing Success document mentions how important the needs to self-assess, to work at an appropriate pace, and to receive feedback where necessary are. In our classrooms, we are constantly doing assessment for learning, having conversations, observing student work, providing students opportunities to assess, dialogue, and learn together.

These principles are extremely interesting to me – they are, generally, the exact same principles that make up every video game that I’ve ever played and enjoyed.

Consider an open world video game, if you will. The video game provides an immersive environment, where one can complete quests in whatever order, and at whatever speed, they would like. Most of these games provide intrinsic rewards from the beginning – we have the opportunity to ‘level up’ in some way. As well, in the video game experience, users get lots of opportunities to practice in context, which means that they are on task. Further, there is always a cost associated with playing a game – players will die, or fail their mission, or need to restart, but gamers continue to play, regardless.

Now, while no educational math games exist that meets this model, he suggests that the game environment must be “structured in such a way so that the players’ exploration moves them, overall, in the direction of learning that we, as educators, want to accomplish,” and he provides several ways for the games in question to meet these needs.

1) That the player should be able to learn by doing. The player should never be in a position where they should have to learn something prior to being able to play the game. A math game could be structured in a way so that the student can “master some key features of the interface… and use it to do things in the environment.”

2) That the game be self paced. At the beginning of most games, players are restricted in the areas in which they can reach. A beginner is ‘boxed in,’ in that they typically can’t access areas of the game that would be out of their realm, would be too difficult for them, and would discourage them. This feature is critical for mathematic learning. A slow or hesitant learner should be able to take as much time as necessary before moving on. If students are not prepared for that section of the game, something bad (a cost) happens. For example, they die within the game, but this forces them to re-evaluate and make sure they have the skills necessary to proceed in the game.

3) That there is opportunity to explore. The game should allow students to take time to explore and become familiar with new ideas and skills.

4) That the skills learned are put to immediate use. Skills learned should be “done in such a way that at that stage of the game the player can see the immediate need for that new information or skill”

5) That there are regular tests. Typically, in a video game, this comes in the form of a boss. You have to prove, within the game environment, that you have mastered skills and facts. The nice thing about these tests is that players are provided with lots of time to practice and prepare for the test. As well, since the ‘cost’ comes in the video game, failure is not public, and it is viewed as “I have not yet succeeded” rather than as a failure.

The author does mention that the tasks in the game need to be fairly real world, and provided a few situations where the math makes sense, contextually, within the game environment. He suggests the idea of obstacles (such as a locked door), where middle school mathematics could be incorporated into the idea of picking combination locks (probability, etc). There are often games in which puzzles like this exist, so it would just be a matter of making them a bit more complicated to develop mathematical thinking. Another example the author provides is the idea of an “investigation quest.” Typically, this is where a player needs to investigate an area, or search for an object, and typically happens in a stressful environment (i.e. complete this task before the monster comes back). In these instances, a player could be forced to use recall skills (times tables) under pressure. Finally, the author suggests treasure chests. In games, a player often encounters treasure chests, and the further in the game, the better the loot. He suggests that the chests “require the player to factor numbers to open them… and as they factor, they get better and better rewards.” Rather than having a teacher stand up and teach about prime factors, they have discovered the idea of factors in a real-world setting.

Often, in our classroom, we ask students to work collaboratively. Small group learning activities have become the norm. A multiplayer game would offer similar benefits. Students would be motivated by the loot that other students have earned from completing more difficult math problems; students could be encouraged to work in small groups to solve problems – providing for a deeper understanding; and students have opportunities to be ‘teachers’ for other players within the game.

While no games exist that fully meet the model above, I have had the opportunity to incorporate a video game into my classroom. The game designers of Portal 2 created several lesson plans and a Puzzle Maker that teachers could use to make their own lessons. My students had opportunities to learn about math in an interesting and engaging manner, and enjoyed the experience. Personally, I feel that it is just a matter of time before more game designers hop on the educational bandwagon, and students have experiences where they get an opportunity to play – without even realizing that learning about math is an added benefit.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my read, and I’m hopeful that the games Keith Devlin describes are on the near horizon. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my read, and I’m hopeful that the games Keith Devlin describes are on the near horizon.