Video games are notorious for the decline in any child’s grade but this does not mean that video games are compromising your child’s cognitive health. Due to spending a huge chunk of their time playing excessive video games, children often fall short to devote adequate time to their studies which results in low grades. 

Contrary to popular belief, grades and smartness are not synonymous. A decline in grades of any individual does not, in any way or aspect, indicate that their brainpower is crumbling. There are ample reasons someone’s grades might be deteriorating but putting the blame on their intellectuality cannot be validated. There hasn’t been a substantial amount of research conducted on the subject of video games’ effects on children’s brainpower but some research that did get carried out might have overstated the harms playing video games withheld. 

New research conducted by Timo Gnambs, a professor of psychology, suggests that video games do affect grades negatively but the effect is negligible to such an extent that it makes no odds. Furthermore, research also suggests that computer gaming can induce aggression in a human mind; on the other hand, another research lists down positive outcomes of playing video games. All in all, researchers have never researched how the long-term use of gaming impacts and changes a child. 

Therefore, to find out the long-term effects Gnambs monitored the behavior, cognitive competence, mathematical and reading abilities of about 3,554 children who played video games for two years. He concluded that even after eight hours of gaming per day, the repercussions on grades were not bothersome. 

Furthermore, Fatherly team-buildingalso says that the core competencies of children playing video games remain intact and no serious harm is caused in any aspect of a child’s mind or body. He emphasizes the need to shift the mindset of parents and stresses how parents should pay attention to their child’s schedule of gaming instead of limiting their gaming time. 

Moreover, not all video games contain just guns and violence; games like jigsaw puzzles or crosswords that push children to use their cognitive side are not only fun but also encapsulate several other benefits. Let’s take a look at how video games impact your child’s cognitive side. 

• Improved Decision-Making Skills 

While playing video games, children often find themselves in situations where they have to decide to move forward in the game. The decision they take determines if they will be able to move to the next level or not. In case they make the wrong decision, they will have to play again and reconsider their decision.

During this entire process, they can see their mistakes which polishes their decision-making skills. Therefore, learning the art of decision making through video games will save your child from making poor choices in the future.

• Improved Memory 

According to a study, playing video games can result in improved memory and may decrease the chances of dementia in the future. Therefore, if your child isn’t interested in any activities that might help in sharpening their cognitive abilities then video gaming is the best resort. 

• Increased Competitiveness 

Video games are mainly based on competition which convinces children to become the best version of themselves so that they can win. Competitiveness in a child affects all aspects of their life; for example, they will pay more attention to studies to achieve the best grades and become more active physically to ace every sport. 

Furthermore, individuals who play video games tend to show an increase in their ability to perform different tasks more efficiently and with much better accuracy. 

• Team Building 

A lot of video games require children to play in teams and cooperate to win. According to Brigham Young University’s study, people playing team-based video games showed way better performance in real life than people indulging in other kinds of team building activities. Therefore, this proves that playing video games with your teammates can increase your cooperative and collaborative skills that are highly valuable in the job market today. 

To conclude, video games have nothing to do with the grades any child secures; but it is important to keep a check on whether they are maintaining a healthy balance between education and video gaming as children often get addicted to games and start disregarding their academic life.