Keeping track of a number of stories relating to ‘Raising Children in a Digital Age‘ in the news:
Tech-savvy children ‘no longer communicate with families’
More than half of parents worry that their children’s use of technology affects their interactions with friends and family, a survey has found.
A third of children aged seven to 17 check their phone for messages several times an hour and 64 per cent use their devices in bed, according to the Halifax Digital Home Index.
The study found that a child owns an average of £924 worth of electronic devices, while almost a third of seven to eight-year-olds (31 per cent) and nearly two-thirds of nine to 11-year-olds (63 per cent) now own a mobile phone.
Augmented reality digital signage takes on pirates in Oz
At the tail end of the Christmas school holidays earlier this year, Brisbane, Australia’s Mt. Ommaney Shopping Centre brought animated children’s characters to life as a way to engage with children and their parents in the mall.
Working with Brisbane-based digital signage integrator Prendi, the shopping center created an interactive augmented reality experience for youngsters — and the young at heart — that allowed them to duel a pirate, swim with the fishes or fight off a lion, live and on-screen.
Could your child’s phone be making them UNSOCIABLE? Two thirds of parents worry their children can’t interact with people
More than half of parents worry their children’s use of technology is affecting the way they interact with friends and family.
A third of children aged seven to 17 check their phone for messages several times an hour, while almost two thirds use their devices in bed.
The study by the Halifax Insurance Digital Home Index also found children own an average of £924 ($1,535) worth of electronic devices.
Is screentime beneficial or harmful for your toddler?
Last week, an advocate for limiting young children’s exposure to technology reversed his opinion, surprising both parents and pediatricians. Seattle pediatrician Dr. Dimitri A. Christakis helped write the 2011 American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) guidelines recommending parents avoid any exposure to TV or media for children under the age of two.
Australians urged to join digital detox
Can you go unplug yourself from digital technology for 48 hours?
Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten reckons he can only do it for a day.
On Friday he joined calls for Australians to join a digital detox and “clean the bloody garage” instead.
The 48-hour digital detox is part of a campaign to stamp out cyberbullying by the Bully Zero Australia Foundation, which provides care to bullying victims.
“Today really is about Australia taking a step back and detoxing,” foundation boss Oscar Yildiz told reporters on the national day against bullying.
Digital Distractions
One study, conducted by developmental pediatrician Jenny Radesky and published in the journal Pediatrics, had researchers observing interactions between children and adults dining in Boston fast-food restaurants. Of 55 dining groups observed, 40 had mobile devices. Not surprisingly, researchers found there was more “engagement” among groups where there were no mobile devices. In the groups that had the devices, adults were making phone calls, or “typing and swiping.”
TV and Electronic Device Use during Childhood Linked to Emotional Problems
This study looked into the TV watching and playing habits of 3,600 European children whose ages are between two to six years old. The children were monitored for two years and their parents were asked questions about their child’s self-esteem, emotional stability, ability to make friends, peer problems and overall well-being.
Find out about children using the internet to learn Italian, and remember you can use the internet to publish suggestions of outdoors activities, a series of talks in Ipswich (Salem!), plus a chance to invest in a kickstarter digital project.
