Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Video Games Could Make For Better Readers



New research suggests that playing action video games can actually improve the reading level in people with Dyslexia. Researchers at the University of Padua, Italy have conducted a small study on twenty Dyslexic children. They allowed each of the children to play the Wii video game "Ravin' Rabbids" (a very fast paced action game), and monitored their reading abilities throughout a two month period. In over 60% of the children tested, reading levels went up dramatically. Andrea Facoetti, a professor at Padua University says that the video games give the children a "badly needed tool in dealing with Dyslexia" because the games help them stay focused on specific letters and objects. 

 Nicola Brunswick of Middlesex University in London tried a similar experiment on ten children, but with a slower paced video game. She found that none of the children's reading levels improved over the same time period, and states that the findings by Padua University are inconclusive. While this is a serious possibility, it may be a huge step forward in possibly helping people with Dyslexia. 

 Link to article:
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/348659/description/Video_games_take_aim_at_dyslexia

 NOS themes:

  • Science is subject to debate and tentative- Another researcher disagrees with original findings
  • Role of credibility- Only 30 kids were tested 
  • Role of skepticism- The other researcher is skeptical about original findings
Marcus Russell Hour 2
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3 comments:

  1. AnonymousMarch 5, 2013 at 7:52 PM

    I think this is really interesting because of all the controversy constantly surrounding Video Games. If this really is proven to be a repeatable, testable thing, then things could be a really useful tool for kids with dyslexia. I have a few dyslexic friends and I know its really hard for them to focus on reading and stuff but I've played video games with a few of them and I know it's a lot easier for them to focus on reading the words on screen then so hopefully this really is something good.

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  2. AnonymousMarch 5, 2013 at 8:00 PM

    This is a really fascinating article! Although I do have to admit I'm not sure if testing only 30 kids total can be an accurate measurement for all dyslexic children. We also have to keep in mind that only the "Ravin Rabbids" game only showed improvement. So I think they can't safely say that ALL video games can help based on ONE experiment showing improvement on 20 kids because it isn't all that convincing. Bruce McCandliss of Vanderbilt University in Nashville says that "the new study doesn’t necessarily prove their worth in allaying severe reading problems".

    http://genatest.wordpress.com/2013/03/01/video-games-take-aim-at-dyslexia/

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  3. AnonymousMarch 6, 2013 at 7:52 AM

    There was a follow-up article on this interesting topic on the New York Times regarding kids with dyslexia begin scored after playing games.
    (well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/05/video-games-may-help-children-with-dyslexia) the results showed that "those trained on action games scored significantly higher than those who played the nonaction games". It is interesting how different genres of gamed affect children with dyslexia.

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