The future of learning: Pokemon Go
After the launch of Pokemon Go just last week, the game is already seeing huge international success (with an estimated 9.5 million daily active users attracted within five days of launch), and some educators are claiming it offers multiple learning opportunities. Teachers report how using the app gives children the chance to develop skills in vital areas such as: mapping and geolocation (as it is necessary for players to understand geographic positions to locate characters); mathematics (as players must work out the “combat power” relative to a potential opponent to take part in a battle); memorisation (as players must remember the relative merits of over 150 species of Pokemon); and lastly there are multiple reports from players who have learned about local historical landmarks that they were previously unaware of through the game. The recent launch of Minecraft for Education in American schools shows the increasing trend of gamification in education, so it is worth watching how Pokemon Go progresses.

GOTTA CATCH 'EM ALL: Has the future of learning arrived in the form of a Pikachu? You might think so after a weekend media frenzy that has inspired headlines including “14 Reasons Why Pokemon Go Is The Future Of Learning” and “Pokemon GO: What education should be.” To play the augmented reality game, players must get up off the couch and wander the streets of their town, city or college campus chasing Pokémon and Poké-stops. It draws gamers into the world to real places with other real people.

College campus police departments are struggling with students walking mindlessly into busy streets. Maybe if a classroom has a lure (which attracts pokémon to a geographic location), students will show up excited to catch that Bulbasaur during a lecture. (Might this just be the answer to truancy?)

But walking around mindlessly while pointing a camera isn't a good look for everyone. Pokémon Go provided a different experience for one black man. The map layer and implications of beacons on private property is mysterious, and troubling for some. Many users also automatically granted permission for the app to read their Gmail accounts, though Niantic Labs, who developed the game, claim they never accessed more than basic profile information.

This is a Rapidash

Editorial Note: the author of this blurb is at level 10 with a pretty stunning Pidgeot. In the light of his addiction, his judgment may be a tad bit warped.