Earlier this year a story appeared on BBC News about some research undertaken in a school in Devon in which children were asked how much time they had spent playing games on computers.

Over three-quarters of the children questioned said that they used a games console every night, with some pupils claiming they did not go to sleep until 4am.

A follow-up report in the Guardian highlighted the fact that since 2008 sales of video games in the UK have outstripped sales of films and music, while in 2009 Modern Warfare 2 was the biggest-selling item on Amazon, beating even the latest Harry Potter movie.

But does any of this matter?

Obviously children need sleep, and children deprived of sleep in order to play video games are not going to be able to focus in the classroom and may sometimes claim illness to avoid going to school.  So yes, there is a problem.  But the problems go much deeper than this.

The problem with online games is that once a child is enthralled by a game he/she can stay that way for weeks or even months.  It is the ultimate never-ending story, but there is no happily ever after – the game just goes on.

Of course, for some parents there may be a feeling of being given a period of pleasant respite thanks to gaming, since the child is playing quietly alone when playing on the games machine.  But the activity itself can be addictive and when taken to an extreme is a destroyer of all other activities that the child might engage in, from reading through to being with friends, from going on bike rides to developing a skill (be it playing football, dancing, canoeing or playing the piano).

In a number of studies (for example Gentile, Lynch, Linder & Walsh, 2004) it has been shown that the average period of playing games for boys is 13 hours a week – which suggests a sizeable number of children are playing for much longer. 

What’s more, the age of use seems to be declining, while the level of violence in the games is growing – and this is transferring into the users of the games in their everyday lives. (Gentile & Anderson, 2003)  

It is the dangers inherent in gaming that are the starting point for the JUMP TO IT theatrical production for schools from West End in Schools.  In this story Claire has become obsessed with using the games console in her room and is unable to focus on anything or anyone else – including her friend who is visiting with a bag of books needed for their homework.

Suddenly Claire is magically sucked through her screen and becomes trapped within the game itself – along with the bag of books.  As the story progresses characters from the books work with Claire to overcome the obstacles within the game.  As she tries to find her way home from the inside of the game the message comes across loud and clear: Claire can make anything happen using her imagination – unless she permits the game to interrupt this process.

The point is that books and imagination are the allies that children need to fight against the game – and to become happy, confident individuals and successful learners.

There’s more information concerning the JUMP TO IT production here, and more information about West End in Schools and its other work in schools here.

• Tags:
• our programme
• society
• current affairs

Add your comment