Esports in Education

Esports combines students’ love for PC gaming with the opportunity to develop skills, leadership abilities, and social-emotional growth through extracurricular engagement.

What is Esports?

Esports (or electronic sports) is a segment of the gaming industry where teams compete in organized online video gaming competitions, requiring practice, skill development, and teamwork. Factors contributing to its popularity include technological advancements, beloved games like League of Legends and Valorant, and streaming platforms like Twitch and YouTube.

Esports is now prevalent at professional, collegiate, and K–12 levels, offering cognitive, behavioral, and social benefits such as improved self-esteem, focus, engagement, and academic performance.

Introducing esports in schools can leverage students’ existing interest in gaming while fostering skill-building and social-emotional growth.

Benefits of Esports

Participation in esports offers students a range of strategic, technical, and social benefits. They develop strategic thinking by selecting characters and responding to various in-game situations. Moreover, students gain technical knowledge about computer components and learn skills like event coordination and broadcast engineering.

Esports fosters positive interactions, teamwork, and leadership skills, promoting a sense of belonging among participants. Importantly, it’s inclusive, allowing students of all skill levels and backgrounds to join.

Additionally, esports can inspire students to pursue STEAM careers, with many colleges offering esports programs and scholarships. These opportunities provide pathways to higher education and future careers in gaming-related fields.

Could Esports Help K–12 Boys From Falling Behind?

Boys face significant challenges in K-12 education, with higher discipline rates, lower test scores, and decreased graduation rates compared to girls. Integrating esports into schools could be beneficial in engaging boys in learning. By recognizing the success of esports in captivating boys’ interest, it can be also be helpful in supporting boys’ educational needs.

Esports can serve as a valuable tool for academic and personal development, offering a platform for boys to excel and reignite their passion for learning. Despite initial skepticism about gaming, there is a positive impact of esports on boys’ engagement in school, with increased attendance, reduced absenteeism, and improved academic performance among esports participants.

Conclusion

Esports, with its popularity and inherent benefits, offers schools a means to enhance students’ academic and social success while preparing them for future careers.