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Your kid’s gaming habit could be building a future career, new survey shows

Published

1 hour ago

May 3, 2026

Many parents worry about screen time and video games keeping their children from learning and developing crucial skills. However, a new study suggests that these same tools can be used to enhance learning experiences.

K12, a U.S.-based online education provider, recently released a new national survey of parents and working professionals aimed at exploring the long-term impact of childhood gaming. The survey showed that 52% of working professionals believed that their childhood gaming helped them build skills that benefited their career, including problem-solving and strategic thinking. K12’s survey also found that 86% of childhood gamers reported that they easily adapt to new tools and technologies, such as AI.

Niyoka McCoy, K12’s chief learning officer, told Fox News Digital that not all educational gaming experiences are the same, pointing to the difference between gamification and game-based learning. Gamification involves adding game-like elements, such as points, streaks or coins, to traditional learning. Game-based learning, by contrast, places the lessons inside the game itself and has students learn skills by playing.

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“Gamification means that, in some cases, it’s getting coins or you’re getting points to be able to go to a store. Game-based learning is where you’re immersed in the actual game, and you’re learning through that environment and everything that’s actually happening to you in that particular game,” McCoy said.

The game-based learning that K12 is using is much different from the types of educational toys or games that have been employed in the past.

“One of the things that we try to do is really hide learning in the game so that we’re connecting the two. So, students are learning, but they don’t even know it because they’re so embedded and so invested in winning the game or getting to the challenge that they’re not even realizing that they are learning fractions,” McCoy told Fox News Digital.

One of the games that K12 has employed for educational purposes is Minecraft, a popular online building game. The company has created several “worlds” that align with its curriculum, including the Roman Empire, Jamestown, Ancient Egypt and oceanic environments.

“Instead of a student reading a textbook and answering questions about Jamestown, they can actually be immersed in a Jamestown world, learn the same skills, and they can still go and take that unit test,” McCoy said.

“We looked at the difference between the students who just read the text, answered the questions, and the students that actually went through the Minecraft world and found that those students did do better on their assessment,” she later added.

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McCoy told Fox News Digital that K12 has seen that students who use the Minecraft spaces have retained the information while going through the gaming aspect because “they’re actually having to build, figure out problems that they’re solving or try to beat the challenge.” She noted that another important element was that students playing the game had to collaborate with friends, making it a more interactive experience in the real world as well.

As gaming begins to play a bigger role in education, it also presents career opportunities. In 2025, the Princeton Review released its ranking of the top schools for game design. Its lists of the top schools for undergraduate and graduate game design programs included New York University, the University of Southern California, Drexel University and Michigan State University, among others.

While these programs are becoming increasingly common, parents still aren’t fully aware of the option and are often concerned about their kids getting too much screen time. McCoy acknowledges that there is a learning curve for parents whose concerns about screen time remain, but she said it’s not about demonizing devices, but rather reorienting their use. Part of that involves differentiating between unstructured scrolling and engaging in games that contain educational content, even in a hidden way.

McCoy said K12 is focused on showing parents the opportunities that gaming can bring, as well as the effectiveness of game-based learning. She told Fox News Digital that some parents changed their views after engaging with the games themselves.

“Now we have parents that are in Minecraft, that are playing with their students. It’s like, ‘I learned so much about Jamestown, I had no clue,’” McCoy said.

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Trump Announces Humanitarian Mission To Free Ships Stranded By Iran War

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8 minutes ago

May 3, 2026

Addison Blake

‘They are merely neutral and innocent bystanders!’

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Duffy blames Biden-Buttigieg team for Spirit Airlines collapse after blocked merger

Published

8 minutes ago

May 3, 2026

Addison Blake

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Sunday that the collapse of Spirit Airlines followed former President Joe Biden’s administration’s decision, alongside former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the U.S. Department of Justice, to block a proposed merger with JetBlue, after the airline ceased operations early Saturday morning and entered liquidation.

“The Joe Biden-Pete Buttigieg administration and DOJ tanked that deal,” Duffy said on ABC’s “This Week.” “Immediately after that, they filed for bankruptcy.”

Duffy’s remarks came as Spirit halted all flights at approximately 3 a.m. Saturday, closed call centers and ticket counters and began what he described as an “orderly liquidation process,” while federal officials and airlines moved to assist affected passengers.

Duffy said the shutdown left no operational support for travelers.

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“Spirit does not have airplanes in the air flying as of this morning,” Duffy said. “If you have a flight scheduled with Spirit Airlines, don’t show up at the airport. There will be no one here to assist you.”

The Department of Transportation coordinated with major carriers to mitigate disruptions, with airlines offering capped fares and discounted tickets for displaced passengers.

Duffy said multiple airlines stepped in to stabilize pricing and capacity in the immediate aftermath.

“United, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest are capping their ticket prices,” Duffy said. “It is normally going to be about $200 for a one-way ticket.”

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Duffy tied the airline’s collapse to the blocked merger between JetBlue and Spirit, which had been challenged by the Justice Department under the Biden administration.

“There was a proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit and Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg along with the Biden DOJ decided that they did not want that merger to take place,” Duffy said.

He added that officials at the time framed the decision as beneficial to consumers.

“They bragged and said this was a victory for U.S. travelers who deserve lower prices and better choices,” Duffy said. “This is not better for travelers. This is not better for pricing. This is not better for competition.”

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Duffy said Spirit had faced financial instability prior to its shutdown, including multiple bankruptcy filings following the merger denial.

“Once the merger was denied in 2024, Spirit filed for bankruptcy immediately after the denial,” Duffy said.

He emphasized that the war with Iran was not the primary cause of the airline’s failure.

“Spirit was in dire straits long before the war with Iran,” Duffy said. “Their model wasn’t working. They couldn’t get to fiscal health.”

“We oftentimes don’t have a half a billion dollars laying around in a spare account that we can put into a bailout of an airline.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Biden and Buttigieg for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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Ellen Burstyn on the habits she gave up to stay thriving at 93 years old

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8 minutes ago

May 3, 2026

Addison Blake

Ellen Burstyn is sharing her secrets to longevity at 93.

During a recent appearance on the “Literally! With Rob Lowe” podcast,” the actress, who recently released her new book “Poetry Says It Better: Poems to Help You Wake Up,” revealed the habits that she gave up to adopt the healthy lifestyle that has kept her thriving into her ninth decade.

“I don’t drink alcohol. I don’t smoke cigarettes anymore. I don’t smoke marijuana anymore,” the Oscar winner said.

She continued, “I don’t eat meat. I have a plant-based diet. I exercise, walk my dog several mornings a week or almost every morning a week, and have a trainer, workout in the gym.”

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“So I live a healthy life and it pays off,” Burstyn added.

While appearing on “Live With Kelly and Mark” last Tuesday, “The Exorcist” star said that she still exercises every day, noting that she particularly enjoys taking walks in New York City’s Central Park.

“That’s how you get to be 93 and still kicking,” Burstyn told co-hosts Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos.

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Burstyn previously opened up about her choice to embrace a healthy lifestyle during a 2023 conversation with her “Law and Order: Organized Crime” co-star Christopher Meloni for Interview magazine.

The “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” actress pointed to eating well, becoming a vegetarian and avoiding alcohol, smoking, and drugs as key decisions.

“That’s what I decided after doing all those bad things for a couple of decades,” she said.

Burstyn explained that she also keeps her mind active through reading, creative work and maintaining a social life.

At the time, Burstyn questioned if ageism in Hollywood is a myth and revealed that her career was busier than “ever” at the age of 90.

Burstyn expressed her surprise over being offered so many roles in her later years, telling Meloni, “This is so bizarre. I turn 91 in December and I’m busier than I can ever remember being at any point in my career.”

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“And I don’t understand it at all,” she continued. “I mean, what’s all this stuff about ageism in Hollywood? How did I get left out of it?”

When the 62-year-old actor asked Burstyn for her thoughts on the reason behind her continually robust career, the Michigan native offered one theory.

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“I don’t know, except possibly that everybody else who could play those parts has already died, so I’m the only actress still standing who can play the great-grandmother or something,” she said.

After Meloni asked Burstyn asked what keeps her going and excited to work at her age, she shared that she begins every day with gratitude.

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“I try to have the first words out of my mouth be, ‘Thank you,’” she said. “Thank you that I’m alive. Thank you that I’m safe. Thank you that I’m healthy. Thank you that I’m 90 and still going. Thank you for my doggies. I mean, I have a lot to live in a state of gratitude for.”

In “Law & Order: Organized Crime,” Burstyn played Bernadette “Bernie” Stabler, the troubled, bipolar mother of Meloni’s character Detective Elliot Stabler. Burstyn originated the role during the tenth season of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” when she appeared in the episode “Swing,” earning the Primetime Emmy Award for outstanding guest actress in a series for her performance.

She became a recurring guest star in the “Law & Orde: Organized Crime” starting in the “Law & Order” spinoff’s second season in 2021.

Last month, NBC announced that it had canceled “Law & Order: Organized Crime” after five seasons.

Burstyn will next be seen in the upcoming drama film “Place To Be,” which also stars Taika Waititi, Pamela Anderson, Édgar Ramírez, Lena Waithe, Murray Bartlett and Maika Monroe.