The Impact of Video games as virtual worlds for positive learning and development.

Here is a brief abstract of the topic I will be researching this semester.

Video games have for many years been researched as activities that promote the learning of an individual as they can allow for personal, meaningful experiences and developmental growth. Virtual worlds are increasingly having a more significant impact upon society as an effective method of aiding in human development and learning through the participation in an activity that many class as fun and entertaining. The real world value of video game play cannot be underestimated as further study into the theory and practice of creating a game allows for increasingly more accurate representations of important aspects intrinsic to positive human development. This does not even take into consideration the abundance of games intentionally designed to promote learning that are now being crafted for specific purposes, allowing individuals to have a truly interactive and experiential method from which to learn skills. While there are certainly stories of people allowing video games to impact their lives to their own detriment, in general and with regards to the vast majority, video game play promotes the development of the individual. It is through participation in video gaming as a voluntary activity, that a person becomes challenged to overcome obstacles and in many cases is not only developing personal skills but is also learning what can be classed as the virtual embodiment of cultural and social practices.