[Utkarsh_Mood]

I have a brother who's 13 years old.

Before the pandemic, he was a pretty smart kid, around the top half of his class, with an interest in learning for the sake of learning itself. During the pandemic, classes happened online(microsoft teams) and almost all his friends were playing video games while teaching was ongoing and disconnecting if asked a question(Not chastising him here, I did this too at times ha!)

Back to school, he's been struggling with simple algebra and geometry, which should have been clear(in a normal scenario) a year ago. The desire to learn, has been replaced with other more short-term pleasures like watching yt,gaming etc. School teachers are ill-equipped to address this but thats a tangent I'll not go off right now.

My parents have hired a private tutor for math to help him address the struggles he's facing right now, because the school sure as hell wont.

[HWR_14]

If there is a more convincing indicator of a failing school system, it's that a 13 year old no longer wants to do schoolwork and instead play video games with his friends.

Seriously, puberty is a thing. Math in particular can go from clear to impenetrable surprisingly quickly.

[lIl-IIIl]

The exact opposite happened to me in math - math went from hard to easy. I attributed it to brain changes during puberty.

[pfannkuchen]

It also gets less boring and more abstract at some point. Engagement can make something feel a lot easier.

[BeFlatXIII]

I went from terrible at memorizing basic arithmetic to top of class at doing real math.

[emikulic]

I used to be bad at math but then I did a 360° on that.

[HWR_14]

Sorry, I intended two separate concepts. Puberty can mess with motivation. A new math subject can suddenly present a mental block that is hard to overcome.

[musicale]

I understand the addictive and short-term-reward nature of video games.

But for many, video games are also a gateway drug into technology!

I tend to think that video games (and tabletop games) are educational on their own. For example, I think RPGs, strategy games, and puzzle games are pretty good for thinking and planning, while shooters and action games are good for eye-hand coordination and reaction time. I also think it's educational to build, configure, benchmark, and optimize a gaming PC.

Also if gaming is something you do with friends (especially in-person), then it has social benefits as well.

If he's interested, I'd encourage him to get involved in game programming and mods. I think that programming in particular can synergize with algebra (e.g. variables and expressions) and geometry (since logical reasoning is used in algorithms as well as geometric proofs, and graphics often require geometry and trigonometry.)

Robotics and real-world computing and electronics can also be fun and game-like. For some (many?), hands-on activities can be more engaging than pure software. Maybe he might enjoy building robotics or electronics kits or projects, or building something at a local wood, metal, or machine shop or maker space. We live in such a virtual world of screens that it is often refreshing to work with our hands with physical things.

Also sports and physical activity are good for getting away from youtube and improving the delivery of oxygen to your brain (excepting possible head injuries that are common in certain sports.)