Maybe video games aren't so bad after all. A new study shows that teenagers who regularly played games online improved their school test scores. However, social media use was damaging to exam results. The study was from Australia's RMIT University. Researchers analysed the online activities of over 12,000 15-year-olds worldwide. It looked at their maths, reading and science scores. Researcher professor Alberto Posso concluded that: "Skills associated with online gaming correlate positively with general knowledge and skills tests in maths, reading, and science."
Critics suggest the findings may not be relevant today as the games are now outdated. Education expert Nicola Johnson said: "While [this study] should make headlines, you have to say it's not really a reflection of current practice." However, she did say children could learn useful skills while gaming. She said: "Many games involve a lot of strategising, problem solving [and] goal setting to obtain more skills." She added this, "would of course seemingly correspond with achievement and learning." Conversely, students who used social media a lot scored 20 points less on maths tests.
