Discover Engineering

Appealing to a Playful Spirit

Mira Ola // Mar 18, 2010

The act of playing is a serious endeavour. Incongruous perhaps, but playing and the manner in which we do so, possesses both an intrinsic and instrumental value.

To play is to attempt, to perform, to engage, to display. More so, to play is to discover, to develop, to understand, to appreciate. Somewhere at sometime, the notion of playing was obfuscated. And at the cusp of adolescence someone, somewhere (more often than not) will lose that playful spirit.

The truth is: When we play, we learn; that’s the intrinsic value. The instrumental value is that playfulness leads to innovation, insight and further creativity. Playing gives us perspective. And in a field such as engineering, it is not so much the ‘How tos,’ but the ‘What ifs’ that allow us to experiment with new ideas.

An effective way to play is to participate in extra-curricular activities. These can be of an academic, professional, religious, cultural, humanitarian, athletic or social nature. Regardless of the activity you choose, you will find that while they all promote learning, they are both fun and practical.

In my years as an undergraduate, I had the wonderful opportunity of participating in various academic, athletic and humanitarian associations. These included: CUBE: Club for Undergraduate Biomedical Engineering, WISE: Women in Science and Engineering, being a SKULE intramural basketball player, mentoring high school students through SKULE Sisters and tutoring high school students through the Saturday Program and Pathways to Education Program.

Participating in extra-curricular activities has enabled me to explore avenues that I once knew little about. To know about the breadth of opportunities that are available beyond graduation strengthens my commitment to continue within the engineering faculty. The people I have met along the way have also been helpful because they offer their experiences and insight as students and as working professionals. In addition, working with other people has given me greater confidence in knowing that I can always make a positive impact regardless of the scale of my accomplishments.

I believe that practical wisdom is obtained and honed through personal experience and from one’s interactions with other people. Do not let your daily obligations and responsibilities become a deterrent to your education. The rudimentary knowledge you gain in the classroom serves as the framework for the principled engineer; do not neglect this. But remember that the galvanic presence of an individual is developed through interpersonal skills.

And so, I ask of you the incoming engineer: to appeal to your inner voice, the inner child, the innate curiosity with which we may once (or twice) have cast aside like a capricious notion. Embrace the opportunity to participate in new avenues that build depth and expand the mental faculties.

Be bold. Be serious about your endeavours. Break free from the conventional bounds of wisdom. Be playful. Most importantly, have fun.