Electronic School Days

We have been talking a while now about how the 21st century consumers are “bionic,” born hot-wired into the Internet, and TiVo-ready. So it’s no surprise that advertisers have been spending umteen numbers of dollars trying to capitalize upon the high-tech world to engage younger consumers.

But here’s a twist, teachers are using computer games to move the 3-R’s away from traditional books and blackboards to better engage their “bionic” students.

Instead of traditional physical exercises, for example, phys ed teachers have moved over to Dance Dance Revolution to get students to shake, rattle, roll, and sweat to music.

Or history teachers using Civilization for in-class, empire building in fictional settings throughout the world. Sounds a lot more interesting than the dry textbooks of yesteryear, doesn’t it?

It’s always been true that good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theater. Now the theatre may just appear on a hand-held game.