Learning with Interactive Games

No word is more bandied about in computing than "interactivity"--interactive games, interactive reference works, interactive movies, interactive books. Interactivity is the promise of computing, and is upheld as one of the key differentiators between PCs and TVs. With television, you and your kids sit in front of the screen like sponges, passively soaking in the rays. With computers, you're supposed to be able to get in on the act. Interact, that is.

Unfortunately, interactivity is a slippery concept. At the most basic level, it implies a degree of control that users can exercise over the software. The question, though, is whether the control is meaningful. After all, by definition, the computer is interactive -- you have to use the keyboard, mouse, or other input device to make the machine do anything at all. But at what point does that input shape a better learning or entertainment experience? And when does it become counterproductive (as when a child sits glassy eyed while clicking on the same object 500 times)?

To answer these questions, consider two extremes. At one end, we have the typical electronic book, which is interactive because your children can choose to listen to a narrated version of a story or bop around the text by themselves, clicking on various items to make goofy things happen. How many times can the cow jump out of the toaster before the routine gets old? And is this really an improvement over non-interactive cartoons? In my book, such interactivity is trivial and not a worthy rationale for buying the software. (Wigglesworth stands out on the interactivity book front, because kids can actually rewrite the stories and add their own illustrations.)

At the other extreme, look at Sim City, which is almost entirely "user-driven"; everything the user does affects the outcome of the game. Players design a city, zone property, and make numerous decisions--they determine the flow of the game and shape the computing experience.

In between, you'll find a gaggle of software with claims of interactivity plastered all over the boxes. Don't take it for granted that the programs offer useful interaction. Try them yourself and see whether the interactivity really adds value.

Is this to say that interactivity is the sole criteria for judging a software product? Certainly not. The importance of interactivity depends on the nature of the package. Interactivity is largely irrelevant with electronic encyclopedias and other reference works. But it's critical to learning programs and games that sharpen skills; without well-defined and rich opportunities for interaction, the software is merely a mutation of television. And the last thing we need is a generation of keyboard potatoes!

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