Learning by playing

Piotr Migdał (ICFO / Compass), http://migdal.wikidot.com

(a talk via Google Hangout)

tl;dr

Education should use child's curiosity, rather than inhibit it.
Games and playing seem to be natural ways of learning, and have great potential to be used.

Further reading & materials

• https://hackpad.com/Science-based-games-J0X4MSberlM (collaborative list of science-based games - feel free to edit!)
• Now you know - When should you teach children, and when should you let them explore? - The Economist (May 26th 2011)
  "The researchers' conclusion was that, in the context of strange toys of unknown function, prior explanation does, indeed, inhibit exploration and discovery."
• ‘StarCraft’ Gameplay Boosts Mental Flexibility, Says Study - The Wall Street Journal (Aug 25, 2013)
• Summerhill School (Wikipedia entry)
• Motivation: Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Wikipedia entry)
• A. S. Neill, Summerhill: A radical approach to children rearing (especially the first chapter: "I. SUMMERHILL SCHOOL")