Video games blamed for boys' poor grades

30-08-2005

by Ciara O'Brien

Boys are achieving lower grades and falling behind girls in the UK when it comes to school work, and video games are getting the blame.

While girls use computers in their free time for homework and study, boys are opting to spend their spare time playing games, according to research carried out for the UK's Department for Education in Skills.

The study, which was carried out by academics at the universities of Leeds and Sheffield with BMRB market researchers, found that students who used computers at home to do their school work achieved better results in GSCEs and national tests than those without access to a PC.

However, those who played computer games regularly scored lower in tests. The report found that boys are more likely to play computer games than girls –- 61 percent of boys admitted to playing computer games every day or at least once a week compared with 44 percent of girls. In addition, 70 percent of boys said they used games consoles daily or at least once a week, more than double the 32 percent of gamer girls.

"Girls were more likely than boys to use home computers for school work, reflecting their more conscientious attitude to study rather than a preference for ICT," said the report.

"Some children pretended they were using the home computer for educational purposes when they were using it for fun."

Schools have been urged to encourage boys to use computers for their school work in a bid to combat the widening gender gap.

The latest GSCE figures reflected a similar picture, with male students falling behind their female counterparts in the key subjects.

There were also concerns raised about the possibility of cheating, especially with ease of access to the internet offering opportunities to cut and paste information directly from websites.

However, online gaming isn't as widespread among Irish children as it is in Europe. Only 64 percent of children play video games online, compared to almost 90 percent in Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, a report from EU-backed body SAFT (Safety, Awareness, Facts and Tools) said. The organisation monitors and advises on how children use the internet. The report described games as a "new and positive element", but warned that parents should be aware of developing addictions that could affect a child's social development.

Aside from falling grades, playing computer games could also result in an epidemic of myopia, or short sightedness. According to New Scientist magazine, spending too much time playing computer games and watching TV screens could cause the condition to become epidemic among children and young adults.