Exploring the Video Game as a Learning Tool by Francis Emmerson
Computer and video games are as relevant a cultural medium as
books, film and television for many of today's young people. As
such, they have the potential to be used as a highly effective
means of delivering a wide range of educational and training
material. For those who have not been successful in a
traditional educational setting, games can provide both an
attractor to return to learning and a new environment in which
the learner can feel comfortable and empowered. Often, time and
cost are a barrier to experimenting with video game-learning, an
area where it can be difficult to explore the potential benefits
without actually creating a purpose-built game to test
hypotheses. The customisation of existing commercial games
through the use of freely available development tools (a process
known as modding) can provide an excellent means of creating
applications that can assist the study of video games as a means
of delivering learning material, wi