Video Games in the Classroom. Katie Przybylla, Ben Pollock, Claire Little, Crystal Leanna, Theresa Ellenz Findings After analyzing our survey, these were some of the results: All our survey takers are going to be future educators and 85% of them said that they were going to use educational computer/video games in their curriculum. An over-whelming amount of these future educators said that the skill they found most obtainable to students while participating in these educational games was problem-solving (60%). The Second highest vote was multitasking (30%) and then task analysis (20%) closely after. When asked which subject would most benefit majority voted between math and the sciences. Social studies and arts had the least amount of votes and reading not far ahead. Introduction Through our research, we found a lot of information both supporting and opposing the idea of integrating computers and video games into an educational setting. For example, when bringing Wii or Wiifit into the classroom or physical education setting, it can help to get kids more active and involved in a fun style. Since video games and computers are a huge part of the lifestyle of kids these days, they are more apt to buy into what the teaching is trying to get across to the students. Those who are in support of this type of integration in the classroom say that this will help students to learn better through real life situations. Also, the students will have fun, engaging and inquiry based learning with the games they are using. Finally, this will keep students up to date with the rapidly changing technology of our generation. Those who are opposed to computers and video games in the classroom say that there is not an easy and efficient way to gauge or evaluate the students’ knowledge that has been attained from a certain activity. Also, the level of physical activity outside of the classroom may drop due to the kids getting used to always playing video/computer games. With computers and video games being more rapidly incorporated into the classroom setting today, will this have a more positive or negative effect on students? Method In our survey, we conducted 10 questions that would answer this question: 1.Are computer and video games beneficial to education? We sent this survey to future educators that currently attend Winona State University. The survey was created and taken through a website called survey monkey. The questions that we asked were a combination of three yes/no, three true/false, two explanation, and three multiple choice. Our questions are as follow: 1. In the elementary school, did you ever play educational computer/video games in the classroom? Yes or no. 2. If you did use computer/video games in the classroom, did you think they were beneficial to your learning? Why or why not. 3. As a future educator are you interested in using educational computer/video games in your curriculum? Yes or no. 4. Do you think it would be beneficial to incorporate video games, such as Wii, into a physical education program? Why or why not. 5. T or F. Today, students are more likely to be engaged in class work if there are computer educational video games being utilized. 6. What is the purpose of educational computer/video games? a.To teach people about a certain subject. b. To expand a concept. c. To understand a historical event/culture. d. All the above. 7. In your opinion, what skill do you find most obtainable to students while participating in educational computer/video games? a.Multi-tasking b. Problem-solving c. Task analysis d. Other ________ 8. T or F. Utilizing educational computer/video games can also be beneficial to students with learning disabilities. 9. From the following list, which subject do you feel would be most beneficial to incorporate educational computer/video games into. a.Math b. Science c. Social Studies d. Reading and Language Arts e. Music and Arts 10. In your opinion, what age group could benefit the most from educational computer/video games? Explain. Conclusion After analyzing our data from our survey, we found that over three-fourths of the students that were surveyed, have used educational computer/video games in their elementary classrooms. Even though the games were used for different reasons/material, the data shows that the students believed the games were beneficial to their learning. When we asked “What age group could benefit the most from educational computer/video games,” there were several different answers. Some thought it was appropriate in the elementary levels, while others thought middle school was best. Some stated that all ages can benefit from computer/video games, as long as the material being portrayed is grade level appropriate. One of our other questions we surveyed was whether or not it would be beneficial to incorporate video games, such as Wii, into a physical education program. There were several different opinions on this as well. Some believed it would help motivate the kids, and keep them interested in physical activity. Others thought games should only be used in the classroom setting. Computer/video games can be a very controversial topic when it comes to using them in a classroom setting. It could be interesting to find out what subjects are best to use while using computer/video games, and if some subjects benefit more than others. You could research this by testing some students’ through the use of video games, and compare their results. Another interesting concept would be to see what ages benefit the most from the games. There are several aspects of this topic that are still unknown, so it will be interesting to see what will be used in the near future.