Games and Numeracy
It is becoming more important to make education more integrated - integrating core skills such as literacy and numeracy into other subjects, rather than teaching them seperately. Here are a few ways I've introduced numeracy into my games design classes.
Simple statistics
Gather data from your class on which games consoles and other games platforms they own. The class should use a spreadsheet to record the data.
| Platform | Number |
|---|---|
| Xbox 360 | 10 |
| PS3 | 6 |
| Wii | 12 |
| NDS | 9 |
| PSP | 2 |
| Phone | 18 |
| Older console | 12 |
| PC | 18 |
| Other device | 6 |
Gather data from several other classes and work out the averages for each gaming platform.
Now add a further column and ask each person which platform they use the most for gaming - each student can only specify one platform. Use the sum function to ensure your totals only add up to the number of students in the class.
| Platform | Number | Most used |
|---|---|---|
| Xbox 360 | 10 | 8 |
| PS3 | 6 | 5 |
| Wii | 12 | 2 |
| NDS | 9 | 1 |
| PSP | 2 | |
| Phone | 18 | |
| Older console | 12 | |
| PC | 18 | 2 |
| Other device | 6 |