If It Prints, I'll Let You Know

Learning is certainly a very interesting process. While in the early days of formal education, learning was perceived to be something that can only happen within the rather cramped confines of a learning institution, in recent years, people have opened their eyes to what learning has always been and will always be: something that can happen anytime, anywhere – through anything. After all, some of the truly great minds of old did not have formal colleges and universities to go to, and yet they somehow managed to formulate the schools of thought that serve as the very foundation of many of the modern things that we now enjoy.

One proof of this knowledge is the use of a rather unusual gadget as a tool for learning. In most households across America, the PlayStation Portable (PSP) has become a cause of concern for parents; these handheld harbingers of fun seem to be taking kids even further away from their studies. So does this mean that the PSP is nothing but an obstacle to learning and a good education? Not necessarily.

The Royal Navy distributed PSPs to its sailors, and they did not do it to give them something fun to do while at sea; they did it to encourage them to study and learn. What they will be learning and studying might be interesting to parents. The PSP is being used to study the physics and mathematics principles involved in their line of work. First up to receive the free gadgets are the marine warfare engineering technicians.

We are wondering whether the study packages that are pre-loaded into the PSP consoles for the Royal Navy’s use, which include slides and commentary from instructors, can be duplicated for the use of the general public. We can only begin to imagine the possibilities. It might just be more convenient to encourage a 13 year-old to pick up a PSP than a ratty textbook.

The other extreme involves teenagers everywhere dropping PSPs as it has become too boring and “bookish” for their taste. But that may just be a risk worth taking.

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