Video Games as Reconstructionist Sites of Learning in Art Education

Art education has been in the midst of a transformation shaped by several factors, including changes in contemporary art theories, political and economic factors, and technological developments. Film, music videos, advertisements, video games and other forms of popular culture are shaping how students learn today.Discussions about video gaming typically have turned to concerns about a recurring narrative, focusing on violence with sexist and racist content, found in games such as Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004). Today, educators and researchers recognize the potential of video games to engage players in multi-sensory, complex learning processes. Games that promote social action have become popular over the past 5 years and have represented a new genre of games that researchers from a range of disciplines are beginning to investigate. This discussion of video games examines simulation, situated learning, and social realism gaming schemas as well as social reconstructionist art education. Specifically, the article explores the videogames Peacemaker (2006) and Darfur is Dying (2006) and their potential for learning in a social reconstructionist art education context.