Technology's Impact on Childhood, a Comparison of Past and Present

As our generations and technological world has vastly began to develop and expand rapidly, a repeated debate of whether technology use for young babies and children is beneficial or harmful to the physical and cognitive development of the child. As research has taken place to determine more answers around this topic, experts and parents from all different generations cast their opinion on the matter.

According to a 2010 Kaiser Foundation study, which involved elementary children, concluded that on average 75 percent of parents allowed their children to have bedroom TV’s, North American households keep their TV’s on for 50 percent of the day, and use 7.5 hours of technology entertainment per day (Rowan). Technology is becoming a problem throughout the United States, especially in elementary aged kids. Parents are introducing technology as early as infants so that they understand certain information at an early age. When parents introduce technology at such an early age they are giving their children the advantage to be addicted to the wonders of it. Young children are at a high risk of brain damage with the advancement of technology. The more adults introduce technology to younger children the higher the chances of problems it causes. Technology has a negative effect on younger children and should have limitations on the age in which it is being introduced.

“Children in the past used to play outside all day, riding bikes, playing sports and building forts” according to The Huffington Post on an article “The Impact of Technology on the Developing Child”. In this article the author Cris Rowan a pediatric occupational therapist, biologist and speaker talks about technology and the effects it is having on children and families. Rowan says technology has advanced so rapidly, that families have scarcely noticed the significant impact and changes to their family structure and lifestyles. This is defiantly true, as technology keeps advancing and new items are placed at our disposal we are up to date on the latest without realizing the effects this has in our daily lives. In the article “The Impact of Technology on the Developing Child” makes a wakeup call to parents to understand how quickly technology is affecting families and children by destroying family foundations, causing disintegration and making us more reliable on technology.

In this paper I will address why technology has a direct correlation with the soaring childhood obesity rate in our society. In the fast past sedentary lifestyles we live today make technology such an efficient way to get things done. Although technology has it perks and has made a remarkable contribution to our society, it is often overlooked that it is negatively affecting our health. For parents, it seems easiest to just give your child a phone or computer to play on to keep them occupied. What parents aren’t realizing by doing so is that that is a

Technology has brought us nothing more than negativity toward people. The first effect is health. technology affects individuals' exercises; so children become lazier and are most likely not motivated to work out. Along these lines, numerous health issues like obesity are brought about by the effects of technology. The second impact is communication. Ironically children don't have the chance to socialize with each other in person. They’re wasting their time using electronics instead of exploring the world and developing human nature. In addition, individuals lean toward using communication devices than collaborating in person.

With a flip of a switch or press of a button, Parents can have their child entertained for hours on end. Televisions and Tablets are the twenty-first century babysitters. The average child spends an astounding 7.5 hours per day on some form of technology (Rowan 2), when the recommend allotted amount of time should be no more than two hours (Kaneshiro 1). Technology is rapidly evolving, making limitless possibilities available for entertainment. This virtual “babysitter” enables the parents to devote all their time and effort into their work or engross in technology with limited amounts of distraction from the children. Although, the parents are able to have free time, excessive amounts of screen time is proven to be detrimental to their child’s health and overall well-being. The technology that is drastically making life easier is a big blessing, but at the same time is a big curse.

Technology can be positive towards a child’s development. If the child learns how to not take advantage of the technology given, then having them use it won't be a problem. However, what if the child does take advantage of the technology? DeLoatch explains, “Using technology can change a child’s brain.” Children who dependably using search engines may turn out to be great at discovering data, but not great at recollecting it. Moreover, children who utilize an excessive amount of technology might not have enough chances to utilize their creative ability or to peruse and contemplate the material. “Using technology,” explains DeLoatch, “can affect a child’s ability to empathize.” Abuse of technology can likewise influence a child’s own particular

It is said technology these days is pervasive, it floods our lives and for most of us we couldn’t imagine living without it. It is being used more as an entertainment tool and an educational resource for our children. But have we stopped for a minute to think about whether this technology exposure is good or bad? Although some New Zealand organisations provide guidance, it may now be time to create and communicate a country wide view that takes into account both positive, and negative effects that technology can have.

Technology has become a part of our daily lives, our entertainment and our main source of information. Every day we use some sort of device, even kids as young as one or two. But giving young children electronic devices, such as phones and tablets, can negatively affect their development as they grow.

Reading is the hardest thing in the world, because for different people it could be a different point of view. Different texts have different features that will employ your text in the different genres. A good text is when your audience understand about your concepts and intention without having to explain word for word in the text. To be an effective writer, you must use language that is audience understand. In other words, for different text you could have different language that is used. Different audience have different needs and understanding.

Other studies have shown that using technology devices, both during and after school, not only decreased student’s productivity and made it harder for them to learn; but it also negatively affected their social life and health. Vandewater and colleagues (2007) found that technology can adversely affect children’s development because students have a harder time socially, academically, and physically (Vandewater, Rideout, Wartella, Huang, Lee, & Shim, 2007). Their study showed that young children are more inclined to stay indoors and watch television than to go play outside, allowing the possibility of long term negative effects. For example, children can also develop sleeping disorders if the parents use the television to put them to bed or

How many people could take a whole day out of their week to not look at their phone? “Tech Free Tuesday” could be the new hit of the times. Children in today’s world grow up with their iPad’s, iPhone’s, tablets and computers that basically does everything for them What about dinner time conversations, playing in the neighborhood, and exploring at their own leisure. We are constantly consumed by our technological devises and the newer generations are continuing to grow worse with the amount of technology they use on a daily basis. The age at which children begin using technology continues to grow younger and younger. In this day and age people would rather spend their free time alone consumed with electronic devises rather than engaging in conversation. Therefore, reducing the amount of technology use in homes across the United States could have serious positive

The times are changing, when I was younger I had some great times playing games outside with my friends and neighbors, but unfortunately ten years later I rarely see kids out playing. In today’s society children are substituting healthy outdoor recreation with indoor technology use. As time goes on more and more technology is coming out on the market that is brilliant and fascinating. But in reality, this brand new technology is depriving young children from the outdoor recreation that they need in order to stay physically healthy and to mentally develop properly. Also, this technology is robbing young children of necessary time spent interacting with their peers. Children are being negatively affected by substituting outdoor recreation for indoor technology use. In the TED talk, “Play is More than Just Fun” by Stuart Brown, he explains that play is more than just exercise, that it is good for the development of young children. After watching the TED

Children are spending too much time on technology, causing impatience and excessive boredom in their everyday lives. Heidi, who is a mom of 2 kids, has noticed an increase of impatience with her kids ever since she started allowing them to have technology access (Croatt). Also, the more exposed kids are to technology, the more they’re exposed to bullying on the Internet. Young kids shouldn't have to worry about bullying at such a young age (“How Young is too Young for an iPhone?”)

Technology has many adverse effects on young children that could cause permanent damage in their lives. How many young children in your family do you see exposed to technology? In this day and age everyone including toddlers are frequently exposed to some sort of technology such as a television, computer, laptop, smartphone, or a tablet for hours. Technology is rapidly becoming an addiction for young children because parents are continuously using this as a form of appeasement. I fear that in a decade a toddler will be teaching me how to use an intricate device. What parents do not know is that this frequent exposure to technology is the core to their child lacking communication skills, acquiring numerous diseases, and preventing them from the four critical factors necessary to achieve healthy child development.