We can not assume, as teachers, that the content the game provides is accurately portraying the actual event in history. Although it is a fun way to learn history, the things the game teaches children are not accurate and we are misleading students. For example, Bigelow says that although you have the choice to be a female or male in the game, both genders in the simulation act as males, giving students an inaccurate account of women's role during the journey. I think that in some aspects this game can be beneficial but overall it should not be used in the classroom. Because the game is biased on so many levels, students are getting a “partial education.” Not learning every aspect of the
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Oregon Trail Article
The Oregon Trail game is one that many students are familiar with. I myself remember using the CD-ROM game to teach me about the pioneers life and experiences on the Oregon Trail . And today teachers continue to use this game for educational purposes. The game combines many skills used in the daily classroom; reading, math, geography, history and science. The numerous choices you have throughout the course of the game alter your journey as you try to reach Oregon's territory. However Bill Bigelow, the author of the article says after experiencing the game for himself, “as much as the game teaches, it mis-teaches more.”
We can not assume, as teachers, that the content the game provides is accurately portraying the actual event in history. Although it is a fun way to learn history, the things the game teaches children are not accurate and we are misleading students. For example, Bigelow says that although you have the choice to be a female or male in the game, both genders in the simulation act as males, giving students an inaccurate account of women's role during the journey. I think that in some aspects this game can be beneficial but overall it should not be used in the classroom. Because the game is biased on so many levels, students are getting a “partial education.” Not learning every aspect of theOregon Trail experience is cheating students of their education. I think if teachers really feel the need to use this particular CD-ROM to teach this historical event, then they should think about discussing the inaccuracies of the game as a class, so that students know that this is not a 100% accurate simulation of the pioneers experience on the Oregon Trail.
We can not assume, as teachers, that the content the game provides is accurately portraying the actual event in history. Although it is a fun way to learn history, the things the game teaches children are not accurate and we are misleading students. For example, Bigelow says that although you have the choice to be a female or male in the game, both genders in the simulation act as males, giving students an inaccurate account of women's role during the journey. I think that in some aspects this game can be beneficial but overall it should not be used in the classroom. Because the game is biased on so many levels, students are getting a “partial education.” Not learning every aspect of the
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
After reading this article and a few of the blogs classmates have written about the article, yours included. I realized that I had a different type of expirience with this game than others. I never had a teacher specifically use this game to teach students about the oregon trail. Not one of my teachers used the game as an educational tool. Instead, in my 3rd grade class we had the opportunity to play this game during recess. We could stay inside and play the oregon trail on one of the computers. I only played it once and then realized that I'd much rather be outside! :)
ReplyDelete