'Surmise the Possibilities' with James Paul Gee

In the past few years there has been a lot of literature supporting the contribution modern video games make to learning. “A number of people, from various disciplines, have argued either that we should use games for learning (Squire, 2006; Squire & Jenkins, 2004) or that we should learn from games how to build better learning spaces that need not be games” (Gee, 2003). These are the words of James Paul Gee, one of the more prolific writers in this area.

James Paul Gee was born April 15, 1948 in San Jose, California. He is currently the Mary Lou Fulton Presidential Professor of Literacy Studies in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Arizona State University and has been there since 2007. His CV is lengthy, to say the least and highlights his passion for video games and learning, especially in the latter years. Along with his passion to see learning inspired by video games, Gee also comments on what he sees as the failure of the school system to provide students with engaging, meaningful learning in the 21^st century. Something he hints can be transformed if we (as teachers & administrators) looked to gaming as a way of immersing students in the process of learning. These views demonstrated in a few of his publications (accessed here) as well as in youtube videos.

In one particular paper, ‘surmising the possibilities: Portal to a Game-Based Theory,’ Gee uses the game Portal to highlight the amazing properties that ‘good’ games have that enable all of us (not just the students) to engage in problem-solving situations that lead to learning. Not the kind of learning that he says is normally deployed in schools: the skill and drill rhetoric based around ‘academic subject matter,’ but a learning that enables us to use ‘knowledge tools’ to solve problems, build knowledge and surmise possibilities (Gee, 2009). It would be timely now to give you some background information about the game ‘Portal’ and the kind of world it pulls its players into. It is set in a 3D world where the female avatar that you are controlling has a ‘portal gun’ that produces a blue or orange portal. You go through one portal and emerge out of the other. The game follows gravity laws and other principles from physics (Gee, 2009).

According to Gee (2009), this game is particularly interesting because it highlights the distinction between ‘entertainment games’ and ‘serious games’ normally used for educational purposes. This game is fun and entertaining, yet at the same time is teaching players implicitly about principles such as conservation of momentum. The problem, says Gee (2009) is that these tacit understandings don’t always get represented by explicit understandings or can be articulated by players. This is where fan fiction sites, websites, forums and game communities can help players articulate what it is they are discovering (i.e. learning) while playing the game.

One of the things I found most interesting about this paper is Gee’s questioning around why schools are teaching what they are. He is challenging the fundamental content that today’s students are learning in various subjects. Now, I believe Gee (2009) is relating to a more secondary school context when surmising this possibility, however it is a great question for any teacher to ask oneself: Why am I teaching this? Gee argues that schools today are very much about factual content and ensuring adequate ‘coverage’ of that knowledge (Gee, 2009). Although he is from the United States and is talking about a US model of schooling, those same assumptions can easily be applied to Australian schools also. His views on what people should be learning are shared by Kuhn (2007) who says that beyond basic literacy and numeracy, determining what a 21^st century learner needs to know is next to impossible. Gee (2009) contrasts this ‘coverage’ view of schooling with the emerging phenomenon of Pro-Ams, people, who as amateurs become experts at their own passion. Gee (2009) gives the example of a young girl who wanted to photograph real clothes and use them in ‘The Sims’ game to create virtual clothes. This required her to find a version of Photoshop and spend many, many hours perfecting her creations. It didn’t just require technical computer skills, she had to gain tacit and explicit knowledge about ‘texture, hue, layering, mesh, perspective and design’ (Gee, 2009, p.13). Gee challenges us to consider whether this girl is learning something ‘serious.’ It is not related to a particular school subject nor does it have an ‘academic discipline’ attached. Nonetheless, it is deep, relevant knowledge and something that could guide her to great heights in the future (if not now).

Gee’s article has implications for teachers not only in terms of how we teach, but what we teach. Most would argue, especially with the implementation of a national curriculum that we have little choice in what we teach. We can’t just forget accountability, parent and student expectations and leave behind all we have trained and worked for. So what is the compromise? Do we focus instead on how we teach, drawing ‘knowledge tools’ from ‘good games’ to assist students’ real-world problem solving and knowledge building? So, what are some practical solutions? Gee (2009) provides some great food for thought and breaks down for us the conceptual thinking behind how games can help us help our students. However, in this instance, he doesn’t articulate the how. How do we bring games out of the ‘entertainment’ sphere and into the ‘education’ sphere without departmental access, flexible timetabling and resources that cater for this learning?

What is your take on this issue? Is it possible or are James Paul Gee and his like-minded advocates too far ahead of the schooling system?

References

Gee, J. P. (2009). “Surmise the possibilities”: Portal to a Game-Based Theory of Learning for the 21^st Century. Retrieved September 30, 2011 from http://www.jamespaulgee.com/node/32

Kuhn, D. (2007). Is Direct Instruction an Answer to the Right Question? Educational Psychologist, 42(2) p.109–113. Retrieved October 17, 2011 from http://www.usc.edu/dept/education/cogtech/publications/kuhn_ep_07.pdf

Authors cited in ‘Surmise the Possibilities’

Gee, J. P. (2003). What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. New York: Palgrave/Macmillan.

Squire, K. & Jenkins, H. (2004). Harnessing the power of games in education. Insight 3.1: 5-33.

Squire, K. D. (2006). From content to context: Videogames as designed experiences. Educational Researcher 35(8) p.19-29.