How would you answer this essay writing question about children and if they spend too much time on computers?
How Much Screen Time Is Too Much?
Parents often allow their children to spend a lot of time on their computers and tablets to improve their technological skills. Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?
There are various reasons why many children spend hours every day using their computers or tablet devices, and the pros and cons of this are debatable. However, overall, increased screen time is a natural evolution as such devices and the associated technology, in general, are an integral part of everyday life in the 21st century.
Firstly, how much time children spend using such devices is somewhat subjective. Compared to adults who work with computers and utilize social media, the amount of screen time children are exposed to might be much less. In addition, children today spend far more time using these devices than children just a generation ago, but this is simply a reflection of the times and the prevalence of technology in modern daily life.
Importantly, to have a future skilled workforce, children need to be exposed to the technology of the day and develop the associated skills and abilities to become productive members of society. Often older people equate spending time on a computer with wasting time; however, the truth is that there are numerous educational apps for children. Simply becoming proficient at navigating different sites and appreciating what is possible in terms of apps and software provides essential training for children. In the same way that in the past, books were seen as a lens through which children could explore and learn about the world, computers provide a similar yet much more powerful lens to enable children to explore their environment.
However, as there has always been, there is a need for parental supervision in terms of the content that children have access to on such devices. Despite children having a high level of dependency on computers for many functions, it does not negate the need for teaching basic academic skills such as number theory. Such skills are still an essential building block of many other facets of life and possible future educational and professional career paths.
Overall, there are more advantages to permitting children to explore and learn using computers and mobile devices, so this should not be discouraged. However, it is only one aspect of childhood and should be seen in the broader context of child developmental activities.