Open AccessEvery Day You Are Improving: How College Students View the Educational Impact of World of Warcraft
Author(s) -
Nariman Alawami,
HengYu Ku
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
the qualitative report
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.335
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 2160-3715
DOI - 10.46743/2160-3715/2016.2392
Subject(s) - psychology , teamwork , virtual world , point (geometry) , perception , time management , qualitative research , mathematics education , pedagogy , computer science , sociology , political science , law , social science , geometry , mathematics , human–computer interaction , neuroscience , operating system
The purpose of the study was to explore college students’ experiences with playing World of Warcraft (WoW) and their views on the application of WoW in educational settings. A qualitative case study design was used to interview three participants who were selected purposively from a Midwestern university. Findings revealed that players thought that playing WoW was fun, relaxing, motivating, but sometimes almost to the point of addiction. The findings also support student perceptions of generalization of teamwork, cooperating, socializing, academic skills, and time management skills learned and practiced in playing WoW to academic settings. Playing WoW games can provide an important link between the virtual world and the real world as players develop academic, time management, collaborative, and critical thinking skills.