Children Today Are Not Encouraged to Use Their Imaginations - Case Study Example

If one just tries to analyze a sample of the varied computer games available in the market, it would turn out that they mostly happen to be a programmed version of the contemporary cultural icons, scarcely facilitating an opportunity for the exercise of imagination (Bennahum 78). These games are not only turning children away from the playgrounds, but are also depriving them of the opportunities for the free play of imagination that playing in a group scenario, in the lap of nature, under the blue sky, surrounded by the stimulating presence of birds, animals, insects, and plants could present.

Considering the fact that most of the contemporary adults today prefer to opt for a career, parents today scarcely have the time and the inclination to go for an imagination rich parenting (Gilbert 146). They simply do not understand that buying the luxurious gifts simply could not take the place of things like camping with the child in the woods, telling fanciful bedtime stories while nudging the child to fill in the gaps in the plot with one’s imaginary ideas and creations, watching a spooky movie with the child and enjoying its momentary grip on her nascent imaginative faculties.

Moments to exercise imagination are fast fading away from the family experiences of children. The irony is that modern education, which is supposed to polish and hone the imaginative faculties of the children, actually happens to fall short of such expectations. For instance, most of the academic institutions resort to very standardized curricula, turning a blind eye to the fact that strict regimentation of learning opportunities not only curbs the opportunities for the exercise of creativity and imagination but sometimes snub imagination (White 7).

A regular mathematics teacher will feel really irritated if a ten-year-old says that number 2 looks like a duck, or number 8 resembles a fat woman. No wonder, the modern world marked by adult aspirations and a lack of time is coming heavily on the aspects of life that encourage children to exercise their imagination or rather appreciate their creativity and imagination. It is high time that the education system and the parents pay attention to this aspect of child education and upbringing; otherwise, the future societies will fall short of citizens, who could use their imagination to come out with innovative ideas, inventions, and discoveries.