Entry Three

“ICT is acknowledged as being a significant part of people’s lives, and for many young children it forms the backdrop to their lives” (Archard, 2013). This is a quote that I disagree with. In my centre we do not have any technological devices that the children get to interact with. We have a television that we use occasionally to watch a movie on a wet day and a radio to play music but these are teacher’s resources. I believe that what you can experience from an iPad, you can experience in real life. A child does not need to use an iPad to do a puzzle, colour in a picture or stack boxes on one another. Children have the opportunity to get away from the screen and experience these activities hands on. Using calculators when doing maths isn’t making a person find the problem themselves, the child isn’t doing their own thinking.

An issue that has now been found in many homes is the amount of time spend on technology. Television and iPads have become a babysitter. Children are finding it difficult to pay attention to tasks. Reading a book requires your attention, encourages you to use your imagination, and requires you to memorise what you have learnt (Taylor, 2012). Whereas when sitting in front of a television screen, there is no need to use your imagination and no need to memorise things. Technology is hindering their learning. Too much time exposed to technology is causing our children to become less prepared for what life throws at them. Children have been seen to throw tantrums when their technology has been taken from them. Technology has become an addiction. I will say personally that I find myself lost and not knowing what to do when the internet turns off. If I could change one thing about my life, it would be to have spent a lot less time in front of a television or computer screen and spent more time outside. It is because of this that I do not like young children playing with technology and if I were given a choice to introduce an iPad to the children for a week, I would decline.

Another issue surrounding technology and children is that children are not socialising. With time spent eating, sleeping, and going to school, it leaves very little time to interact with those around you when you have a screen in front of you. HeartMath Institute, 2015 explains that with the amount of time spent on technology and not socialising with others can affect how children relate to others and register others’ emotions. Children are not developing empathy for others. This may lead to the loss of relationships and difficulty to interact with peers face to face. I have seen in my experience where a child will invite their friends over to play but all they do is watch a movie and play on separate devices and never communicating at all.

Our world is becoming technologically dominant and I can see that by being exposed to devices at an early age will benefit them in the future, but I would like to see children running around playing sports, playing dress ups and role playing with their friends, and socialising without having a screen in their face.

References

Archard, S. (2013). Democracy in early childhood education: How information and communication technology contributes to democratic pedagogy and practices. Early Childhood Folio, 17(2), 27-32. 

HeartMath Institute. (2015). Children ad technology: Should you be concerned? Retrieved from                 http://www.care2.com/greenliving/children-and-technology-should-you-be-concerned.html

Taylor, J. (2012). How technology is changing the way children think and focus. Retrieved from                 https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-power-prime/201212/how-technology-is-changing-the-way-children-think-and-focus