- Dell Technologies commissioned a poll on how UK parents feel about esports
- According to the results, two-thirds of them are positive about gaming and believe it teaches valuable skills
- Many believe there are benefits to adding esports to the learning curriculum and 32% would like to see their children as professional players
A recent poll shows that many parents in the United Kingdom are convinced that esports teaches children valuable skills.
Parents Have Warmed Up Towards Gaming
Gone are the times when parents were strictly opposed to gaming. A recent esports poll commissioned by Dell Technologies and led by OnePoll questioned 1,500 parents on their opinion of esports. The results show that two-thirds of British parents believe that competitive gaming has a significant positive effect on their children, enhancing the youth’s confidence, teamwork, and leadership qualities.
According to the results, two in three parents have warmed up towards the idea of gaming and believe that it affects their child in a positive way. Only 6% remain opposed to esports and think it doesn’t provide any benefits whatsoever.
Although not everyone agrees on the benefits of competitive gaming, 50% of the respondents said that they appreciate the boundary-breaking aspect of it. Lindsey Eckhouse, the director of licensing, eCommerce, and esports at McLaren Racing elaborated on that, pointing out how esports don’t have physical requirements and can be played by people regardless of their strength or gender. Eckhouse added that esports can be played online and can connect people from different countries and cultures, thus nurturing a sense of inclusivity in the young. This last sentiment is shared by 47% of parents, according to the poll.
A whopping 70% believe that esports helps high school and college students become more sociable and inclusive to one another.
Including Esports in the Learning Curriculum
British parents not only believe that esports teaches their kids to be more accepting of others but also provides them with valuable skills. According to 69% of parents, competitive gaming helps their children pick up skills they wouldn’t otherwise learn. Those include problem-solving, communication, and teamwork. Another 50% are convinced that esports helps their kids build up confidence and 52% believe this will translate to academic successes.
Thanks to this, 60% of the respondents said that they sincerely believe that esports is a legitimate learning method with 48% suggesting it can be added to the school/college curriculum.
The poll also questioned 500 educational stakeholders to find how they feel about esports. Although a significant part of them still doubt that esports has all of those aforementioned positive effects, 79% are willing to give esports a try and think it should be taught in schools. 67% of them are firm that esports should teach children soft skills. Half of the stakeholders agree that the inclusion of esports will help children to improve their overall grades.
However, because of the price of esports equipment, many educational stakeholders are still reluctant to commit. Tom Dore, head of education at the British Esports Association explained that he welcomes the idea and has seen cases of positively-affected students with his own eyes but would like to see more conclusive research to be able to convince others.
Esports Can be a Legitimate Career
Currently, students between 11 and 18 years old are estimated to play around three hours of competitive gaming a day. 94% percent play at home and 40% tend to gather in a friend’s house.
Eckhouse spoke about the professional side of esports and mentioned that kids have real prospects of becoming world-tier players. However, esports isn’t only about the players. Eckhouse reminded that esports is a whole ecosystem that opens opportunities for lots of jobs, such as publicists, physiotherapists, nutritionists, and so on.
“We must embrace more ways for children – of all abilities, needs, and backgrounds – to learn, and those ways should reflect the future career landscape,” Eckhouse said.
Thanks to the popularization of esports, 32% of British parents said they would be happy if their kids became professional esports players.
