There is growing support for education technology (edtech), and surprisingly, it’s not just coming from digital native students. Teachers, too, are realizing the benefits of educational technologies both in and out of the classroom. Teachers are beginning to echo the need for educational technologies and are asking for more.

It’s rare to look at a higher education coverage these days and not find references to the importance of data analytics. Across the student lifecycle from marketing and enrollment, to the learning experience, to alumni relations, data seems to be behind it all.

Books have long been an accepted part of every classroom. I have visited schools all around the world and see the same picture everywhere. Books are a common staple in the educational experience for students and teachers alike.

Generally speaking, active learning fosters far greater curriculum engagement than say listening to a ‘sage on the stage’ or memorizing stats from a textbook. Fortunately, modern technologies, specifically video games, are making this kind of immersive, hands on learning a greater reality. Game-based learning is enabling students to walk in the shoes of both real life and imaginary characters, empowering them to interact with content in an entirely new way.

Today’s video games are sophisticated and suspenseful. They provide lifelike graphics and scenarios that empower users to assume imaginative identities and immerse themselves into fantasy worlds. They captivate players’ attention and inspire them to keep playing time and time again. And let’s face it, they are fun. This begs the question, can this obsession serve a purpose beyond entertainment?

Video game usage is increasing dramatically–for play, for learning and for competition. If you are one of the 64 percent of American households that has at least one person who plays video games regularly (minimum three hours per week), then you can attest to the impact of video games.

For those of us who are at Triseum and the LIVE Lab at Texas A&M, we can attest to the countless hours of research, collaboration and testing that go into our game development processes. And while all of the results and interactions during development lead us to believe we are producing impactful games, the ultimate testament to the effectiveness of our games comes from those on the front lines–the instructors and students who are interacting with our games as part of the teaching and learning experience. We recently had a chance to sit down with some of our users and their feedback was inspiring.

Word problems, also known as story problems, have long been used as a teaching tool in math. From the most basic addition and subtraction riddles to more complex algebra and calculus equations, story problems create relatable visual scenarios. Students must show that they can decipher the information they are given, understand the question(s) at hand, and pick the correct mathematical calculation(s) that will help them solve the puzzle.

Our year-long game-based learning validation study has inspired teachers worldwide who are interested in pursuing gaming in the classroom. According to the study, participating teachers agreed that ARTé: Mecenas and Variant: Limits had a positive impact on student engagement, motivation to learn and knowledge acquisition.

Europe is a hotbed for Game-Based Learning (GBL). Not only is the continent home to some of the leading innovators in educational video games, but European Union leaders have offered critical support, for the use of innovative teaching techniques in classrooms across the continent, including video games.

The second webinar in our game-based learning validation study series recently aired, giving teachers a platform to share their insights from implementing our art history game, ARTé: Mecenas™, into their classrooms. The study followed classes in Norway, Poland, Portugal, Italy and Greece and was designed to empower participating teachers to consider new trends in learning models and investigate innovative technologies, all without losing site of learning outcomes.

Summer reading lists aren’t just an ideal way to keep students’ minds active over the extended break, they also give us as educators a great opportunity to dive into some must reads. In my last blog post, I shared some fantastic books for getting started in game-based learning, including trends, considerations and research.

It is said that most students lose about two months of grade level equivalency in reading and mathematical computation skills over the summer months, according to Think Stretch. Harvard Graduate School of Education says it’s even higher when it comes to math, reporting on average students lose approximately 2.6 months of learning in math over the summer — and teachers have to give up weeks of class time, or more, to make up for that loss.

The long-anticipated wait for the results of a year-long game-based learning validation study is finally over, and the findings reveal that calculus game Variant: Limits™ had a positive impact on student engagement, motivation and knowledge acquisition. Teachers from Norway, Poland, Portugal, Italy and Greece recently shared their feedback and observations during a webinar, hosted by European Schoolnet.

The case for integrating game-based learning into school curriculum is not new. Over the last 30 years, there has been an immense amount of research demonstrating the benefits of educational games. Here are a few studies that have uncovered a variety of advantages associated with using games to improve student performance and achievement.

It’s that time of year again, that time when school is winding down and we post summer reading lists so our students stay engaged while working, relaxing, traveling and doing all of the things that summer brings. But summer reading lists are just for students. Summer is the perfect time for us as educators to catch up on those must-reads too.

“Ideas Worth Spreading” – it is the theme of legendary TED talks heard around the world, and it is what inspired my recent game-based learning talk at the TEDx TAMU event, a local version that brought together innovators to discuss, share, explore and connect.

STEM Discovery Week has wrapped, and what an inspirational celebration of science, technology, engineering and math it was! The buzz and excitement were fantastic. Specifically, the event gave us an opportunity to build on the game-based learning dialog and the contributions it is making to STEM education.

It’s all around us: game-based learning is gaining increased attention in the educational world. Given the eye-opening results that come with educational games, it’s easy to see why so many innovators now see game-based learning as a staple in the future of education. It’s a concept and a way of learning that helps students perform at an optimum level without sweating it.

One of the recurring observations I’ve made during my years of classroom teaching is the significance of active learning. Finding creative and engaging ways for students to be hands-on learners can be a challenge. It starts early on in the learning process. Let’s take tying shoes for example. Imagine if a child had to develop this skill and acquire this knowledge by passive observation. It would be nearly impossible. Yet, many traditional forms of instruction rely on this seemingly flat approach.

Like books, radio, television and movies, games are an ideal medium to captivate an audience. Yet, unlike these other mediums, games afford full interactivity. That can have big implications for education: Just ask Texas A&M University, which recently wrapped up its first ever game-based course this fall.

Many people have a hard time even considering the idea of video games as an effective educational tool. After all, video games are for entertainment; even those of us who enjoy playing don’t often think of them as a learning opportunity.

“When or where am I going to actually use this?” My guess is that every teacher has heard a student utter these words somewhere along the way. As teachers, it is our responsibility to capture students’ imagination to help them connect what they do in the classroom with the world around them. Yet, how can we, as teachers, help them not only acquire the educational content we are teaching, but also the ability to use content to solve real world problems?

In recent years the European Union has aggressively invested in research on innovative approaches to education, including game-based learning and gamification. Europe’s openness to new learning strategies is encouraging. Their many successful game-based learning efforts serve as a model for games playing a critical role in improving education.

I recently returned from the annual NAEA convention where I had the opportunity to lead a workshop for teachers and give a keynote talk. Reflecting on the event, there seemed to be a general consensus that games do, in fact, play an important role in the teaching process.

The positive role games play in the learning process has attracted significant attention from prominent thinkers. A large number of TED talks, for instance, have focused on various intellectual and emotional benefits that games offer people of all ages. A few have explicitly focused on game-based learning.

I recently was asked why I use games in the classroom. Simply put, games motivate my students, which in turn motivates me. I’ve used a variety of games over the years, from simplistic and rudimentary to highly interactive and digitally advanced. While most are excellent tools for practice, I believe that immersive and sophisticated video games go beyond the ritual of practice, captivating students’ attention and empowering them to learn new and complex concepts.

Remember the days of Oregon Trail? How about Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? While learning games have been around for decades, technological advancements are creating an entirely more modern gaming experience – one where quality mirrors the digital literacy expectations of today’s student, one that entices the student to play and play again, and one that aligns a game’s outcomes with the goals of the course.

Think back to some of your very first educational experiences. It’s highly likely that games played a role. They not only helped you acquire basic knowledge, they simply made the learning process more fun.

Most people separate games and learning. However, to me and many others, the separation is not only artificial, it is the exact opposite. Games are filled with learning opportunities. Games are the ultimate teacher—patient, consistent and unbiased.

Bringing change to education is a mighty challenge. No matter how effective an educational strategy proves to be, there are numerous obstacles that stand in the way of its widespread adoption in classrooms. In addition to convincing policymakers and educational leaders that video games can serve as powerful educational tools, many educators are unsure of how to integrate games into their curriculum, whether they’re teaching in primary schools, secondary schools or universities.

The idea that video games can serve an educational purpose is hardly new. In fact, some of the industry pioneers were driven to develop games because of the potential they saw in them for classroom instruction.

Gamification and game-based learning are both important educational concepts that can help students be better learners. At first glance, the two terms appear to be synonyms. It’s about making education engaging, right? Like a game?