Yes, you read it right. Marc Prensky pens a book on the subject of what kids have been telling their parents for years. Prensky reports that the complexity of today's video games opens up an entirely new facet for learning.

Here's a book title that will bring joy to parents and children engaged in daily battles over computer time: "Don't Bother Me Mom — I'm Learning."

Its premise, put forward by American software developer Marc Prensky, is that children who play computer games have distinct advantages over those who don't, even when the content of the games is violent.

This is not a popular theory. Most parents feel compelled to limit computer time, given the consensus that too many hours in front of a screen is bad for development, learning and general sociability.

The British government is now so concerned about the effect of the Internet on young people that it has commissioned a panel of experts to examine the impact of violent video games and Internet pornography on children.

But, says Prensky, kids have changed.

"They're not little versions of us any more," he says. "Because of the technology they're growing up with, they're able to learn in different ways, able to teach themselves in different ways, and one of the greatest places they've got this from is by playing the complex games of today."