Due to the retirement from print journalism of Walter Cronkite, and his attacking of internet reporting, this story has re-emerged. Like most rational people I think the controversy in the early eighties over D&D was just silly, but I'd like to share an anecdote that made me realize the importance of gaming in education.

In the fourth grade, a Jewish friend of mine introduced me to the Basic D&D game. After a year he moved and I did not get back to it until I was a freshman in High School. That first year, a Catholic friend of mine introduced me to AD&D, we played as a group for about a year.

Now to the point. During both of these friendships, I talked to my friends parents, since my father was a little hesitant about this game. Both sets of Parents, far from being worried about the game were enthusiastic about their sons playing. The usual answer was "It develops mathematical ability, analytical reasoning, and cost-benefit reasoning, etc.". Far from being anti-social nerds, both of these friends were very out-going, but were extremely adept at math and sciences.

I have heard back over the last ten years from each of them. The Jewish friend is now a Computer Engineer, and the Catholic friend is mid-level Officer and pilot in the U.S.A.F and a graduate from the Air Force Academy.

My friends whose parents kept them from gaming? Usually they could not get past the dumbed down freshman level college science courses, and usually ended up in social sciences, the arts, the humanities etc.

Something to think about.