Do we think technology is healthy for children?
Technology is all around us and children more nowadays are exposed to all kinds of technology. Playing on technology is becoming the norm for many children, they see their parents on their mobile phones accessing social media and even in today,s society many grandparents use technology. Finding the balance is important when it comes to children have accessing to technology as it can have an impact on their development.
Nine times out of ten children will at some point in their lives have access to tablets and mobiles phones; these two pieces of technology are becoming more familiar in children’s everyday life.
As we all know technology is here to stay, the figures for children using tablets rises over the years and playing games on mobile phones is increasing. For some parents they can see many downsides as to why children of a young age shouldn’t be exposed to these. However many parents can argue that it is giving children opportunities to develop problem solving skills and learn early literacy and numeracy skills.
As technology is rapidly being introduced it is very hard to determine whether it is having an impact on children’s development. Therefore it is advised that parents are to be on the cautious side as to how much time children are spending on technology. When it comes to children using the technology children are only using their small hand movements and other skills such as running, balancing and practising their co-ordination skills are forgotten. The larger movements are important for children’s health and there is thought to be a link between physical activity and brain development.
Children are becoming more and more independent it accessing technology of which you can argue is a good thing, however the games children are accessing are not necessarily helping them practices their social interactions such as eye contact, using facial expressions and sharing two way conversations. These skills can only be developed through face to face experiences.
So what is the right amount of time children should be spending on technology? This can only be decided by parents as to what they feel is appropriate, there is however guidelines from the NHS which states that children under 2 shouldn’t be exposed to any technology and children from 2 to 5 should have limited access.