Darfur is Dying February 3, 2007
Posted by Valentina in EVO, ICT, Pedagogy, blogging.trackback
On the Digital Gaming EVO session I am also enrolled on we are talking about online gaming and how this can increase learner interest and motivation?
One participant, Joel, metioned that his daughter plays a game that ends in “dead babies” and this reminded me of something I heard on the BBC Digital Planet Technology podcast in Dec 2006 (they seem to have removed it now so am I allowed to share the mp3 here -see podcast below ) It was about Persuasive Gaming and I was wondering if anyone has experience of these for language learning. The ones they described where about Darfur is Dying available free and how the game is based on trying to get water for your family and Peace Maker simulating the role of Palestinian and Israeli Presidents to find new solutions. (BBC article http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5153694.stm )
Interesting?
Although the argument is these games don’t change the world and they can also trivialize a serious problem, can’t they? But the question is are they maybe a little more ethical and help get away from promoting dead babies, what do you think? I thought Joel’s comment on getting learners to write about how they feel is really good system for opening debate – The debate can be serious and maybe the way to visualize even serious problems sometimes for young learners is to make them accessible to teens in “their” language, to tap into their way of thinking and then encourage discussion on world famine, or Israeli-Palestinian issues and even on how the game has simplified the problem.
Let’s take the Darfur one as an example:
Is it better for learners to be involved simply in creating conflictual environments (World of Warcrafts does have these elements, doesn’t it? ) or trying to resolve conflicts in an oversimplified environment? A difficult question to ask but often the key to making people wake up to the reality is to find a channel that they can tune into, surely?
If playing a game also allows room for discussion on how learners feel and exposes to some of the questions say for example:
- How did the conflict start?
- What is the government doing?
- What has happened to the civilians?
- How many have died?
- What happened to the peace deal?
- Is anyone trying to stop the fighting?
- What can be done?
and room to explore the answers then I would argue that an oversimplification is helpful.
Given that not all young people know what is happening in Darfur then I would argue it’s better to help them find out. We can start with a game, if that is appropriate, and then follow on with a more serious debate on the issues of “getting water for your family”. Comparing contexts, raising awareness, discussing issues and opinions can help open doors. Not all learners will immediately respond to a New York Times article or an abridged UN report or section on Famine in our coursebooks so if technology can lead us to understand that Darfur is Genocide we can stop and help us take action to stop it then yes, let’s remember Darfur is Dying – find out more and maybe also read and create blog spaces where we can express views and explore new ones?
Wow, I had no idea that stuff like this was out there! I think games like these are absolutely necessary in bringing world crises like Darfur into the consciousness of learners young and old. Sure, by itself these games don’t change the world, but in the hands of an able facilitator or teacher, a complex situation becomes understandable. Oversimplifying the situation is a sort of scaffolding that can lead to deeper discussion and understanding of the real issues, and understanding is the first step to caring and acting. What an excellent way to engage young and less motivated learners!
I have mixed feelings about this. The words “play a game” and “people dying” because of ethnic cleansing do not seem to go together well. I am sure there are better, more effective or even more ethical ways of raising the consciousness of young and old about conflicts in the world that their own governments deny.
I am not against electronic or online games, but there are many that are pure violence, military tactics to kill enemies to “win”, etc., and I wonder if participants will really see the Darfur game they are playing is actually happening in real life, as these generations are used to playing in unreal and virtual settings.
My own country is at a very critical moment right now and I have seen how the situation has been masked by all the paid propaganda the government very cleverly has thrown to the world at large. I have had to sit at conferences here in Canada where foreigners present our health and education systems as great accomplishments of the present revolutionary totalitarian state. I will feel vexed and mocked at if one day in the future a game came up to play around with my country as its theme.
Hala, a webhead from Sudan, could be a better judge than me about this topic. I might be totally wrong about my perception and might have misinterpreted the main objectives of a game like this.
Valentina, I do appreciate your thought-provoking post.