Ethics in Gaming
Games are engaging and exciting, and if designed properly, games can be ideal learning environment for students. Over-playing games, however, can cause many social and ethical issues. The known ethical issues of excessive game playing are addiction, violence, and social isolation.
Addiction is the most discussed issue in the gaming field. To take the viral Pokémon Go game for example, since its release in the U.S. on July 6, 2016, Pokémon Go has already amassed more than 650 million downloads on Apple’s App Store and Google Play, and the addiction of the game has led to numerous incidents, including car accidents, trespassing, and robberies. In this module we will be examining the potential ethical and social issues that games can bring to our students.
Outcomes
After completing this module, students will be able to:
- identify at least three potential major social and ethical issues of excessive game playing
- identify at least three strategies to tackle the known issues of excessive game playing in their own setting
Selected Readings
Required
- When Video Games Become an Addiction, Bresnahan and Worley, for CNN
Bresnahan, S., & Worley, W. (2016, January 06). Retrieved August 10, 2017, from http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/06/health/video-games-addiction-gentile-feat/index.html - Kuss, D. J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2012). Online gaming addiction in children and adolescents: A review of empirical research. Retrieved August 27, 2018, from https://akademiai.com/doi/pdf/10.1556/JBA.1.2012.1.1 and https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/5f62/d956e8e3e92bfccd33fa9d755b76c12daaff.pdf
Recommended:
- None
“To Do” List
Discussion
Ethical Dilemmas in School
What ethical dilemmas do you face as a classroom teacher when introducing gaming in your classroom? Are there different levels of ethical decisions you must make before introducing a game in your classroom? How do you feel your students are affected by video games, and what is your opinion of allowing video games in the classroom? Do you think it is the responsibility of the parent or the teacher to make sure that students make ethical gaming decisions? Are both parties responsible? Use the readings to support your opinions.
Make your initial posts before 11:59 p.m. U.S. EST/EDT on Day 5 of this module. After making your initial postings, review at least two of your classmates’ postings and reply to their threads. Complete your replies before 11:59 p.m. U.S. EST/EDT on the next Monday.
Discussion postings should always be thoughtful and courteous and include some references or direct evidence from the module’s content, readings, or assignments to support your statements. In order to ensure that postings are appropriate in length and substance, please limit your initial postings to 100 – 200 words and each of your responses to 25 – 50 words.
Learning Log
Games and Ethical Issues
Post an article or a video that discusses video game, virtual reality, or simulation ethics. What is your opinion of this article/video? What about this article intrigued you? Give your reaction to the article/video and address the ethical dilemmas presented in the article/video. Do you agree or disagree with the author/speaker? Why? What do you think the next steps are in making sure that the ethical issue(s) discussed are made safe for kids?
This learning log entry should be 250-300 words, should answer all parts of the prompt, and should incorporate evidence from this module’s content. Compose your log entry in M.S. Word and paste it onto a Weebly page. Post your Weebly page (URL) onto the corresponding link inside Moodle before 11:59 p.m. U.S. EST/EDT on the next Monday.
Submission Example: Learning Log – Module 2: Games and Ethical Issues