Ever so often I get asked what’s so great about games and learning using games. An answer I use just as often is that it’s all about ‘play’. In this video Dr. Jaak Panskepp talks about his research into play and its benefits. While in this context it doesn’t directly tie to eLearning, I felt this tiny video would be interesting to post to our blog. Take a look:
I found at least a couple of really interesting bits: “…play makes them (rats) better controlled adults; less impulsive, more socially intelligent…” makes me wonder about the decreasing amount of time kids spend at play in schools. If it’s so important, why aren’t we doing more of it? Encouraging kids to play more?
“…we are convinced that it’s an ancestral sound that we share with other mammals, and laughter is the appropriate term…” just like play there is less laughter in schools too. Schools are serious institutions that are meant to impart an education, conventional thinking has no place for laughter in such a place. Research into a ‘science of joy’, pretty cool that.
