Why Games Aren't Bad For You!

Every year, in term 3 we have speeches where we write our topic we have to discuss, for today my topic was about 'Why games aren't bad for you at all!'

We presented our speeches in class last week, and yesterday students from the senior syndicate were selected to compete in the semi-finals. Unfortunately I wasn't one of them, although I was very impressed by the other students! Here's my speech. 

Why games aren't bad for you

I know that most of you have most definitely played video games before! Have you ever heard from other people of how video games or other types of games promote violence, and how it can increase aggression in thoughts, behavior, and feelings? If you are me, then you would agree with the questions above. Today, in my speech, I will explain why I strongly believe that games aren't bad for you. Firstly, video games can actually help you! Some games can actually improve hand-eye coordination, problem-solving skills, and the ability to process information. Another example of the kinds of games that can help you are arcade games, it improves reflexes and muscle memory, playing arcade games reduces stress and depression. How is this possible? Studies have found that people who play games that suffer from mental health issues actually have shown improvement in their condition after venting their frustrations through gaming! Some games actually improve people's moods and promote relaxation! Secondly, some games can actually benefit educational learning! An example is Scratch, it is a platform that can help with programming your own interactive stories, coding games, and more. You can also share your creations online for others to see! Some types of online games that are also helpful with learning are Prodigy. Prodigy is a game which teaches you mathematics, and helps you solve or answer different maths questions. This combines maths from grades 1-8 into a fantasy style game! This game is a gamification type, which adds game mechanics to something which is non-game!

Lastly, games don't affect a child's performance in school or a child's intelligence! The pure fact that people say how games rot your brain is outrageous! A study by McDermott et al proved that people who play video games are excellent at maintaining many memories and higher accuracy in visual spatial working memory, this is a kind of a visual representation. This allows people to visualize something and keep it in their "mind's eye". Another study says children who play games tend to do better at science, maths, and reading tests. 

For these reasons, parents need to reconsider thinking that games aren't bad at all. Thank you for listening to my speech.