Informal Learning

I was never into D&D myself, although a lot of the things I did enjoy, like the Fighting Fantasy books, were obviously inspired by it,  Gary Gygax’s death this week has prompted a lot of discussion, here is an excellent comment from a Kotaku post:

Gary Gygax’s Video Gaming Legacy
Comment by: Islandkiwi

“I owe this man a lot. When I was a kid in the late 70’s - early 80’s, D&D was a new kind of experience. Playing it with my friends allowed us to puzzle-solve, deduce logically, and think creatively. I mean, you could create your own stories. We branched out to Gamma World, Top Secret, then there were the new games like Ultima and…what was that car one, we friggin’ loved that game.The point I’m trying to make is that D&D opened a creative door that got me and my friends thinking, rather than being mindless hooligans we became thoughtful hooligans. The result has been an explosion of sci-fi/fantasy books, games, and movies. From a more personal perspective it allowed so many of us to think…we always think learning takes place in the classroom, but for many of us learning also took place in small groups, with small statues and dice.

I stopped playing sometime in intermediate school, but I went on to college and law school and became the man I am today. Games like D&D encouraged creativity and critical thinking, and I personally believe that the experience of putting my brain to use helped me get to where I am today. And it’s funny, even twenty years later I can still recall some of those missions I played with my friends. They were good times, and I thank Mr. Gygax for inviting us all to play.”