Technology and our Children

[paulsifer42]

I'm not sure if this is already being discussed, but it's something that's been on my mind for a while and then I read the article linked and it made me think even more about it.

 

I have a three year old who already knows how to handle a tablet.  I'm worried, currently, about how her using the tablet will affect her, as there are studies that show lowered attention span, hurting social skills, etc.  But, I also know touch screens are the future.  My kids will use them in school and work, and I don't want my kids' learning to be hindered because they spend all their time using the new-fangeled technology that is totally foreign to them, making them focus on learning how to use it, as opposed to using the software on the device.

 

Of course, I also think about the future (when I'm feeling brave).  What will my kids encounter on the internet much younger than I did?  How will that affect them?

 

So, where's the balance?  Those of you with kids, how do you do it now?  Those of you in my situation, or who have no children, any good theories?  As the article points out, we really can't 'know' what to do, as we're pioneering this, but I've always thought kicking around a hypothetical helped in real world situations.

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/parenting/wp/2014/09/29/parenting-as-a-gen-xer-what-its-like-to-be-the-first-generation-of-parents-in-the-age-of-ieverything/

[Guest]

Every generation goes through the same questions.  I imagine the British going to their pubs bemoaning the invention of the ships that brought all manners of illness to the British isles or sending their children to foreign lands getting influenced by their barbarism... and I didn't have to imagine my mother's shrill voice telling me to stay away from that evil thing called a television that will kill me with radiation and corrupt my brain with spoon-fed entertainment... or my mother's voice telling me to rip that stupid walkman off my head because she feels the next generation is going to be a bunch of people who lose the ability to properly listen... and of course, she doesn't seem to see the connection with her arguments with her mother about the indecent hip gyrations of Elvis and the evil that befell her generation because of it...

[Backroads]

In many ways, I'm all for the basics. But technology is the way of things. All of our brains are being reprogrammed - every experience does the same thing.

[Guest LiterateParakeet]

Here's some food for thought:

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cris-rowan/10-reasons-why-handheld-devices-should-be-banned_b_4899218.html

[priesthoodpower]

as a parent you will need to make that determination yourself but I personally think that we shouldnt hide them from technology. I tried with my first child and realized that it is a normal thing for this generation. You still need to make rules and monitor the devices but over all let them explore. Teach them that its ok to get on youtube and watch educational and exciting videos that they are interested in but monitor it and teach them that there are bad videos on youtube too.

[The Folk Prophet]

Tablets, like most things, can be wonderful tools or nasty vices. Help kids use them as tools and they're awesome. Let kids use them as vices and they aren't.

 

Plus, since when does use of a tablet mean the exclusion of other things. What kind of parent is going to let their kid sit all day on a tablet and never teach them to...I dunno...clean...do dishes...cook...fix things...read and write...etc., etc., etc... Just because tablets exist doesn't mean we can't teach our kids other skills.

 

These studies mentioned are not meaningful if we actually bother to raise our children. Let the TV and the computer, and now the tablets raise them, and yeah...they're gonna turn out like they were raised by TV, computers, and tablets.

[Crypto]

Every generation seems to extol the "evils" of the younger generation. And almost every single time they are right about some of the feared effects of [insert subject here].

 

Music, technology, culture etc...

 

However they often overlook the positive aspects, and miss out on unforeseen consequences (both positive and negative.)

 

Positive aspects of technology, some food for thought :
http://www.apa.org/monitor/nov07/itsfun.aspx
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970203458604577263273943183932

http://www.infopackets.com/news/4266/technology-has-mixed-effects-child-development-research-suggests

 

One example:

Technology while potentially causing lower attention spans, can also potentially cause them to be more self motivated. The key thing is to use moderation in all things, allow them access and use to technology and balance it out with other good activities too!

[Dravin]

There really isn't anything magical about tablets; exclusive focus (or complete rejection) on one area is going to tend to lead to an imbalance. While I suppose there may be aspects of socialization that are different if your kid isn't doing school work because he's spending too much time shooting marbles is that really better than spending too much time playing Angry Birds when it comes down to it? Both are cases of allowing leisure activities to dominate to the point it is hurting responsibilities.

Edited October 8, 2014 by Dravin

[Mahone]

as a parent you will need to make that determination yourself but I personally think that we shouldnt hide them from technology. I tried with my first child and realized that it is a normal thing for this generation. You still need to make rules and monitor the devices but over all let them explore. Teach them that its ok to get on youtube and watch educational and exciting videos that they are interested in but monitor it and teach them that there are bad videos on youtube too.

 

Yup. In my case, I was the child that was banned and hidden from technology for a period of time, because my parents, neither of whom to this day really know how to use a computer, were fearful of the harmful effects it would have on me - I wasn't allowed to use any kind of computer at home. Despite their very best of intentions, it was a naive decision. I think that lasted about a year when I was 14, until they gave in as a result of my protests. Even then I knew I wanted to work in system administration, and not being allowed to go near the very subject of the career I wanted was damaging at best and would have been a lot worse had it continued.

 

Shunning technology entirely for any age is rarely a good decision, IMO.

Edited October 8, 2014 by Mahone

[PolarVortex]

I develop educational apps for children, so I'm biased.  My opinion is that tablets and mobile devices themselves are a lot more neutral than we might think, just as a television is neutral until you start selecting programs or DVDs.  What children do on a tablet is far more important than the act of using the tablet.  Playing solitaire for hours at a time is worse than playing a game that teaches math or a foreign language.

 

I know this is anecdotal, but my mom and aunt are in their early 80s and they play games all day on the computer.  They're as sharp as a tack and don't seem to be suffering the same mental decline that see in other elderly friends.  I've often wondered if the games helped them.

[simonesays]

Well, there are two sides of everything, Good and Bad. Sorry for the shortest post in the world. I hope you see my point though.

[NeuroTypical]

Limit access.  Go in to such things, in agreement with your spouse about what will be allowed and what won't.  Make sure you're unified against your kids as they grow and want more and more.  

 

My 10 yr old just uploaded the first 3 chapters of her fanfic, and got two good reviews.  2500 words, in a few days.  Because she's enraptured by social media.  

 

There are ways.