Are video games good for you?

Junior Scholastic, Nov 9, 2009

NEWS FACT: A recent report by the Sesame Workshop found that playing digital games can improve an individual's health as well as skills--everything from hand-eye coordination to vocabulary.

According to the report, about 97 percent of teens play computer or video games. The good news is that doing so in moderation can increase a young person's motivation to learn, develop skills, and solve problems.

"Players are learning skills and content during these hours devoted to conquering a variety of games," the Sesame Workshop study reports. Of course, you may not set out to learn algebra or practice decision-making when you play a game, but you might end up doing so. A game like Dance Dance Revolution can even keep you physically fit.

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But not everyone agrees that video games are a positive influence. A 2006 study published in Pediatrics showed that young people who play video games or watch TV on weekdays suffer academically. "The more they [played], the worse they did [in school]," said Iman Sharif, a coauthor of the study.

What Do You Think?

Are video games good for you?

YES

Siobhan Brier, 14, a ninth-grader from Scranton, Pennsylvania, loves to play Sims II. "You build a house and create people and take care of them through their lives," she explains. "You can have them make good decisions or bad ones, and the bad decisions have consequences."

Liam Batson, 13, even sees health advantages to video games. "In yoga [on Wii], you learn strength training," sags the eighth-grader from Quincy, Massachusetts. "On the Wii Fit game, there are cardio games that help you maintain a healthy body."

NO

"Kids get obsessed and addicted to games," says Winter Broilow, 12, a seventh-grader from Draper, Utah. "This can damage their health, attitude, and schoolwork."

Although Caroline Meyer, 14, plays Wii with her friends, she sees a downside to video games. "Some teenagers may play video games instead of going outside and socializing," says the ninth-grader from Cheviot, Ohio. "Some games are also very violent and can have a negative effect on young people."

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