Digital Australia report finds 7 out of 10 parents use computer and video games as an educational tool 

Sydney, Australia – 30 April 2012 – Australian parents are increasingly embracing computer and video games as an educational tool, according to the latest research commissioned by the Interactive Games & Entertainment Association (iGEA).

The report conducted by Bond University, Digital Australia 2012, found that four in five parents with children under 18 years old play games and of these parents, 88 per cent play with their children. Furthermore, 9 in 10 of these parents say games are educational and three in four parents actively use games as an educational tool with their children.

The report found that parents are seeing their children receive numerous educational benefits from playing computer and video games including learning about technology, maths, science, planning, language, work, life and society in general.

Ron Curry, CEO of iGEA, says video games are increasingly embraced as teaching tools not only by parents but by school teachers and university lecturers too.

“Educational games bring the fun, engaging and challenging elements of video games together with a learning or informative component.  Whether it’s at home or in the classroom, we’re seeing a lot more people use the appeal of video games to make learning fun,” said Curry.

In 2011, Victorian Education Minister, Martin Dixon released findings from the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development’s Innovating with Technology 2011 report which highlights the positive role computer games play in student learning.

“Once thought of as a distraction to students, this report shows that computer games are now cementing their place in the classroom as important learning tools for all the right reasons,” Mr Dixon said.

“The early feedback from the 40 schools involved in this year-long trial has been overwhelmingly positive, with the initial reports from schools showing that while digital games were fun, they also held vast educational value and generated student interest in ways that more traditional methods hadn’t.”

Two further examples of video games being used in the classroom are included below:

• Fitzroy North Primary School has seen the benefits of using computer and video      games when its Years 5 and 6 students played games such as Sim City 4 and      Civilization as part of their Humanities and Science subjects.  Kynan      Robinson, Leading Teacher – ICT and Creativity at Fitzroy North Primary      School, says, “I am a big believer in using games in education as games      absolutely add to the learning experience.  It goes further than      simply engaging students; it encourages them to experiment, to share, to      develop, to publish and to work together.”
• Last year, Lynette Barr, a Year 5 and 6 teacher at Pentland Primary, received      an Outstanding Primary Teacher Award for her work in investigating the      power of games-based learning in literacy and numeracy.        Lynette Barr said, “Using an online maths games such as Lure of the      Labyrinth has been such a hit with my students.  They are more      willing to take risks and explore other areas of the curriculum as well as      help other students learn.”

Other key findings of the Digital Australia report include:

• 79      per cent of parents are always or most of the time present when buying      video games for their children
• Australian      gamers are playing video games moderately with 57 per cent playing either      daily or every day
• 59      per cent of Australian gamers play up to an hour at one time and only 3      per cent play for five hours or more in one sitting
• The      average Australian gamer is 32 years old

Digital Australia 2012 is the 4th report in a series conducted by Dr Jeff Brand at Bond University, based on a random sample of over 1,200 Australian households. It provides data on computer and video game use and attitudes, as well as the broader consumption of digital media.