14 DAY TRIAL // America's Army is a videogame developed by the United States Army in order to promote their programs and training to the young people of America. Although many critics have said that it is nothing less than a propaganda meant to get young people recruited into the Army, the game really caught on, due to the fact that is was available for free download over the Internet or on a DVD available at the US Army recruitment centers.
Modeled after the hit FPS Counter Strike, the game brings realistic weapons and combat environments in which the player can interact and fight. An interesting fact is that the player has to go through training modes in order to be sent to the war zone, whereas almost all the FPS games out there just give you a weapon and send you to face the enemies. Such training modes are set to imitate the real life programs employed by the Army. Now, as part of an effort to enhance the curriculum of the high school students, the Army has developed a program based on this game.
According to Colonel Casey Wardynski, the director of this project "The U.S. Army is committed to educating today's youth. We are honored to work with Project Lead The Way to employ our technologies to allow students to explore critical subjects like math, engineering and the sciences in an innovative and hands-on manner. Encouraging our youth to develop expertise in science and engineering is imperative. The America's Army Technology Education program provides a unique offering by combining the power of gaming and simulations with real life equipment to create a compelling academic program."
Undoubtedly the Army saw potential in binding this game with the educational needs of American students, but nonetheless, this move should really be considered thoroughly by the head of American education. The last thing they would want is a school filled with students who think that weapons and shooting other people, even if they are enemies, is fun.