There is evidence that gamers have lower GPAs on average than non-gamers. GPAs are good indicators of future educational achievement and opportunity.¹ Education is crucial to a child’s well-being and future endeavors.
One study found that even owning a gaming system may hinder academic performance.²
As technology, including video games, become integrated in schools it is crucial to recognize the potential detrimental effects they will have on children's thirst for knowledge and capabilities, thus permanently altering their futures.
The effects of video game play on academic performance¹
Jancee Wright - University of the Cumberlands
“Participants who indicated that they did play video games had significantly lower GPAs than participants who indicated that they did not play video games.”
“One study done by Anand (2007) found a negative correlation between the amount of time spent playing video games and the GPA and SAT scores of students. This means that GPA and SAT scores decreased as time spent playing increased.”
“Shao-I, Jie-Zhi, and Der-Hsiang (2004) also studied addiction (once again no definitive definition was given) and noted a decrease in school performance when the student was addicted to gaming. They found that gaming addiction physically impacts academic achievement because the student is too involved in the game to do homework or prepare academically.”
“Anderson and Dill (2007) studied video games and aggression and suggested that not only does gaming have an impact on performance directly, but it also triggers a higher level of aggression, which is often linked to problems in school and decreased academic performance.”
“Excessive playing of video games (five hours or more per session) resulted in school grades that were below a 3.00 average, and that time spent playing was a predictor of academic performance. They also suggested that video games indirectly lead to decreased performance through promoting violence. Finally, they noted that playing video games took time away from school activities, homework, social interaction, etc.”
More than one hour of video games or internet use on school days leads to poor grades Chris Melore - Study Finds
“Researchers at Rutgers University say children in middle school who play video games or use social media and the internet for more than an hour on school days have significantly lower grades and test scores than their peers.”
“There is a growing concern that excessive technology use, particularly for entertainment, may adversely affect children’s educational development by facilitating undesirable study habits and detracting from time spent on learning activities.”
“The survey results reveal children using digital technology for entertainment over four hours a day were four times more likely to skip class.”
Video Games May Hinder Learning for Boys² Rachael Rettner - Live Science
“A new study suggests owning a game system could hinder academic development, at least for young boys.”
“The results show that boys given a PlayStation II are slower to progress in their reading and writing skills and have more learning problems reported by their teachers than those not given a system.”
“Those with PlayStations also spent less time engaged in educational activities after school and showed less advancement in their reading and writing skills over time than the control group.”
“Playing video games might displace not only traditional academic activities, such as homework and reading, but ones that, while not strictly academic, could help them in school, such as discussing what they learned that day with their parents, or having parents read to them.”