How Technology Affects Children Development - Research Paper Example

How Technology Affects Children Development Abstract Technology has been adopted the world over with different areas having different definitions and levels of sophistication. In its maiden form, technology was there from the Stone Age but now slowly evolving and being adapted at different paces. The paper seeks to show the effects of technology and exposure on children development. It seeks to show how technology has varied impacts on different levels, different areas and different ages of children. In its methodology, the paper has taken a descriptive perspective and aims to establish the relationship between technology and a child’s normative and formative development. The study adopts a stratified sampling method with case studies in 1st world and 3rd world countries. The study found that all the kids targeted had been exposed to technology for not less than 10 years. The paper adopts both primary and secondary sources of data from observations and books respectively. The study concluded that there is a direct relationship between technology, exposure to it and a child’s development. The study recommends that exposure to technology be regulated to create a healthy impact on a child’s development without depriving them of their basic right to information. Introduction The Oxford English Dictionary defines technology as the application of scientific knowledge for practical uses especially in industry. It originates from the Greek word tekhnolojia meaning “systematic treatment”. Technology can also be defined as the branch of knowledge that deals with creation and application of technical forums and their social, economic, environment and life interrelationship. When trying to understand the issues facing the modern day child, one cannot help to reminisce about theirs. Gone are the days when children used to play all day long in the parks, riding bikes, playing outdoor sports such as football and building their houses with mad. Children of the past devised their own games that did not require sophisticated tools or even parental supervision while still encouraging bonding with other children. In the recent past- considering 20 years ago- family time was spent handling chores, was nature based and children had expectations to meet daily. Exits that ideal childhood enter the 21st century family. The massive adaptation of technology by this family is fracturing its very core foundation and causing disintegration in its values (Moran-Ellis 23). Entertainment technology (television, video games, internet, iPads, social media, etc.) has staked its way so swiftly to the family institution and so rapidly that it has made drastic changes to their lifestyles only noted later. It is also important to note that the modern parent relies so heavily on information, communication and transportation technology to be able to juggle between career and family. It is estimated that, on average, school going children spend eight hours per day of entertainment technology translating to over 50 hours a week. In North America, it is estimated that 65% of these children have TV sets in their bedrooms and a further 50% watch TV the whole day. Feature in internet surfing, mobile phones, emails and video games and you start getting a clear picture of the detrimental effects of technology in our homes. Grave to note is that children, especially in 1st world countries now rely heavily on technology to play and bond further incapacitating their imagination and creativity (Moran-Ellis 36). This inhibits their optimal sensory and motor development with the sedentary lifestyle resulting in delays towards attaining developmental milestones and subsequent impacts on their foundation and learning processes. So serious are the implications that the United States has termed media violence as a serious public health risk. This was preceded by observations and confirmations that indeed, children exposed to such were aggressive and joined school already grappling with self-discipline and attention issues creating major behavior management problems for teachers. The impact of technology on the developing child: Young or elementary children still developing motor and sensory systems have not yet evolved biologically to effectively cater for the sedentary but chaotic technology they are exposed to. The technology advancing at an exponential rate has contributed to severe physical, psychological and behavioral disorders clashing with the formative health and education systems (Wartella 35). To show how bad this is, it is estimated that every 1 in 10 children have a diagnosed developmental disability, 14% have a diagnosed psychiatrist problem and 1 in every 10 is living with obesity. A large number of reported and unreported cases have sleep disorders, depression, anxiety, sensory processing disorders which can be casually attributed to high exposure to technology in its subsequent forms. All factors kept constant (the child being from a 1st or 3rd world country); the three critical aspects of a child’s healthy physical, mental and social development are touch, movement and connection to other people. The three are inherent and will be exhibited in any child be they be in 3rd or 1st world countries. Movement, touch and connection are intertwined and are innate forms of essential sensory input crucial to the subsequent development of a child’s motor and attachment systems. Scientists advise that children be exposed to at least 3 hours per day of active play to achieve proper sensory stimulation to their vestibular, tactile systems and pro-prospective systems for normal development. Further studies show the critical period for attachment to be from birth to around ten years of age where relationship between the infant is facilitated by the infant/child-parent bond. Deprivation or total loss of bond between the infant and the primary parent or the society generates serious societal issues established right through adulthood. This is because there is lack of normal bilateral coordination, development of posture, optimal arousal states and self-regulation necessary for peaceful co-existence (Moran-Ellis 47). The effects of the use of basic safety restraint devices such as toddler carrying packs and strollers have further limited movements, touch and connection and can be felt as much as TV and online gaming overuse. Further catalyzing this is the modern parents perception of outdoor activities as unsafe and lack of outdoor facilities as most people are concentrated within cities. This explains the many visits by the urban parent to physiotherapists and occupational therapists for problems they can solve or better still prevent (Wartella 56). As the connection between children and technology continues to escalate, society is seeing a discord from people and nature. Children growing up do not know who exactly they are and it will be only logical to take identities from their “role models” in aggressive, graphical and explicit movies they watch. Whereas human beings needed movement to barely survive in the Neanderthal era now humans are devising ways to make movement as virtual as possible. The installation of escalators has not helped this in learning institutions. So hasn’t the mere integration of video games into learning activities. This has seen a worldwide trend and epidemic of devastating mental and physical health disorders. Deeper analysis on the impacts of technology on the developing child reveal that while the vestibular, tactile, pro-prioceptive and attachment systems are under stimulated and underutilized, auditory and visual sensory systems are in overuse. This sensory and hormonal imbalance can verdantly alter the overall neurological development as the brain’s anatomy and chemistry are fatally impaired. Children who have a high exposure to violence through TV and video games have been reported to have persistent body sensations, increased and unregulated heart rate and general uneasiness. This can be attributed to the adrenalin state and stress as their systems are not yet developed enough to decipher reality from the fiction they watch (Wartella 88). Consider a 3rd world child (rarely exposed to technology or its forms) and a 1st world child who lives with it. It was found that the frequent exposure to two dimensional screens like TV sets or laptops to the 1st world child inhibited their ocular development vital for reading later in life by a percentage greater than the 3rd world child. In a bid to curb the technology menace, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that children under the age of two be exposed to no technology and a threshold of hours be imposed on the older one. The benefits of technology cannot be overemphasized and when used well, it has helped children with learning disorders to do so. It has also been instrumental in ensuring that learning for other normal kids is tolerable with PowerPoint presentations for science subjects making them easier. Children are also fans of animation which give them a glimpse of how life was. The paper recommends that parents find a middle ground between technology and their children. While technology should not be entirely adopted or discarded, healthy outdoor activities are supposed to be incorporated in a child’s development. Filmmakers are film regulatory bodies are encouraged to censor the exposure rate of children to violence, pornography and use “all family viewing” language. Rather than providing children with more video games, laptops and TVs, parents are advised to learn of their detrimental effects on their children development and actually aim for more contact. Works cited Ian Hutchby, Jo Moran-Ellis. Children, Technology and Culture; the Impacts of Technology. New York, Saxton, 2013. Print. Rideout VJ, Vandewater EA, Wartella EA. Zero to Six; Electronic Media in the Lives of Infants, Toddlers and Preschoolers. Menlo Park, Kaiser Family Foundation, 2003. Print. Read More