Technology has played a major role in the way today’s families raise children. With the development of technology, more and more children are being exposed to it. Although there are reasons why we should wait to introduce new technology to our children, there are many benefits that come with technology. Some benefits are enriching their learning environment, as well as enhancing their social skills, leadership skills, motor skills, and creativity. How children are developing now is the most noticeable way we can see how technology is enhancing their development. Technology is affecting children by altering their education, improving children’s health and well-being, and making children’s creativity better through video games.
One of the arguments about children and technology is the education aspect. While parents may not see the need to add or update technology to the classroom, teachers and students think otherwise. Children today are being exposed to technology earlier in their lives than ever before. They understand the digital world better than any other past generation. We need to understand that the way we have been educating our children needs to be updated to the digital era. Parents need to understand that this is not the same world they grew up in, meaning we must use all available recourses to enrich children’s education. There is a general resistance to change from parents due to the privacy and security concerns of their children (Hajela, Wiggins, Grushetsky, 2015). This is understandable, however as technology evolves, so will security software and online privacy laws. The capabilities are out there, the question is why society hasn’t implemented it to our benefit. Another reason why parents may oppose a radical changed is that no parent wants their child to be a guinea pig (Wakefield, 2015). But many schools have already made changes. The change that many schools have introduced a “flipped” classroom concept. “The ‘flipped’ classroom -The idea of inverting traditional teaching methods by delivering instructions online outside of the classroom and using the time in school as the place to do homework – has gained in popularity in US schools” (Wakefield, 2015). This new method of teaching allows for a teacher to make corrections and tailor learning material to each student, vise teaching the whole class the same material. This is great because children have different ways of learning and this system captures the best possible way for them to learn as an individual. On the other hand, this requires students to have access to technology to compete and excel in schoolwork. Another example that technology brings to the table in a classroom is that children are not limited to just crayons and paper. With the development of 3D printing, children can now create something in a tablet and see it take form with a 3D printer. Kids are no longer just bound by textbooks, books, and teachings with limitations on a subject. New technology can now be adapted and help a child learn the way they learn best because no child is the same as the other.
Children today are more reliant on technology than any other generation this world has seen. Because of that, children who are exposed to technology have had improvements in health. Having knowledge at children’s fingertips is an amazing advancement and can make an entire generation more adapted for the real world. Children now rely on technology for the majority of their play (Rowan 2017). Granted the lack of physical actives does come with some health implications but making changes to the use of technology by limiting the way children use it can make a great impact on their wellbeing and health. Introducing technology to children enhances motor skills by increasing reaction time and attention abilities. In an article by Green (2017) Dr. Carl Gabbard, director of the Child Motor Development Laboratory at Texas A&M states, “You could argue that the iPad is beneficial for developing specific eye-hand and visual-motor skills”. Using technology with moderation improves eye-tracking and hand-eye coordination. This translates to children becoming better readers, therefore expanding vocabulary and knowledge. Also, playing video games enables children to think faster in critical events in their lives. “The more adolescents reported playing strategic video games, such as role-playing games, the more they improved in problem-solving and school grades the following year, according to a long-term study published in 2013” Bowen (2014). Their decision-making skills are better than those who do not play video games due in part because they have to be able to think on their feet while playing video games. Technology has the potential to help children become more capable adults in the future.
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Creativity is what made our world what it is today. Every man-made object required creativity. A command argument against children being introduced to technology is that children will lose their creativity, or their creativity will be hindered (Bowen 2014). Children’s creativity is enhanced when they play video games. This has to do with the fact that there is no limit on what they can create while playing. For example, when kids play Minecraft, they can create anything. This ranges from characters, to houses, or a whole new world. Playing Minecraft has other benefits as well such as problem-solving. When kids play Minecraft, they often have to figure out how to survive, whether they have to hunt, create a shelter or find food. Additionally, kids can also collaborate with other kids or friends around the world. They have to learn how to work together by gathering resources and building shelters together. Its constant communication and cooperation. This builds social skills that can be used outside of the game in real life. Another way a child can develop their social skills is by playing video games in virtual reality. In virtual reality, similar to Minecraft, children can connect and meet with friends anywhere in the world. They can network with other kids and can develop lifelong friendships. While playing online multiple player games there is always a person that has to take the lead, therefore, developing leadership skills and team building. Jagad (2011) notes that “A leader is one who encourages the use of new procedures and individualized rewards to reach unique goals” additionally a leader also knows the strengths and weakness of teammates, keeps everyone informed, ensures the tasked is understood and accomplish, makes timed and sounds decisions, and developed a sense of responsibilities among subordinates. Online multiplayer games offer the opportunity to develop these leadership skills early on in a kid’s life. In addition to learning leadership skills with online video games, children also learn the importance of working together for a common goal, in other words, “teamwork”. Without teamwork, they will not be able to move on to the next level in any game. The importance of working together is crucial for survival and to advance levels in a video game. Anyone in the military will agree that a person with all those leadership trails is very sight after no only in the military but out in the civilian sector as well.
Educational advances, health improvements, and creativity developments through video games are all ways that technology has improved the lives of children. Despite the claims that technology will hinder children’s development because of the negative side effects, we need to understand that anything in excess can be harmful including the use of technology. Technology will continue to advance where we get on board or not. The question now becomes, are we doing a dishonor by not introducing children to technology? It is time to focus more on the benefits and positives that technology has to offer to everyone but the ones who will benefit the most are today’s children.
