Understanding the use of video games in non-formal education in Barcelona

Abstract

Video games, as with any other cultural resource, are basic tools in social and cultural learning, tools for socialising that provide players with instrumental and social competences and skills. We have just completed a pilot project entitled ELLAD, (Esplai de Lleure i Aprenentatge Digital - Digital Learning and non-formal education classroom), looking at the use of video games in non-formal educational contexts as a tool to improve the quality and effectiveness of their education practices and processes. In this paper, we summarise the factors that led to the creation of the video games classroom in the context of non-formal education, the dynamics established, the initial conclusions reached and the further research related to this pilot project: the forthcoming study Rethinking Digital Entertainment: a project on young people's digital socialization in spare time, funded by the Spanish Ministry of Industry, that will be developed between 2009 and 2011.