OPINIONS OF FUTURE AND GRADUATE TEACHERS ON THE APPLICATION OF VIDEO GAMES IN EDUCATION IN THE CONDITIONS OF SOCIAL CHANGES

The paper deals with the problem of the application of video games in teaching and learning in the conditions of sudden social changes at the beginning of the third decade of the 21st century. It is assumed that video games today occupy a significant place in the experience of children, in parallel with the growing presence of ICT in education and distance learning. The first part of the paper provides an overview of relevant research studies that deal with the effects of video games in pedagogical practice and the effects on children’s well-being. The second part of the paper interprets the results of empirical research with the aim of determining the opinion of future and graduate teachers on the application of video games in current educational practice. A purpose-built Likert-type assessment scale with 26 items was used. The obtained data indicate that there is a division among the respondents as to whether and to what extent video games should be used in teaching. About a third of the respondents think that video games should not be introduced in the teaching content at all, while two thirds think that it should be done in some form. Teachers who have been video game players themselves have a slightly affirmative attitude towards video games and their positive effects in education. On the other hand, their, mostly older, colleagues who have not played video games consider them harmful to children and have a negative attitude towards the idea that they are applied in teaching and learning. Both groups of respondents largely agree that video games can have negative effects on children’s well-being, especially when it comes to the occurrence of psychological dependence, physical health disorders and the risk of child manipulation. Comparing the obtained results with recent research studies indicates that it is necessary to further explore the possibilities of video games in education, especially when it comes to video games that are designed with the intention of having an educational character.Publishe