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Screen time. This has been the centre of numerous disputes in recent years. Amongst many, it is said that excessive use replaces opportunities for children’s motor exploration and social interaction.
While there is much stigma around screen time for children, it is undeniable that technology is an integral part of our society and vastly embedded in our culture. Similarly to anything else in life, screen time for children can be part of a healthy lifestyle if set in moderation and with the encouragement of purposeful, educational and quality content.
There is now a multitude of quality educational apps, programs and tools that can promote learning in a positive, multimodal and interactive way that parents can feel comfortable and confident in allowing children to engage with.
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Many parents have surrendered to the fact that children are growing up in a world far different from the one we knew at the same age. With the continuous rise of technology, we would all have to agree that smartphones, tablets and computer screens are not going away in a hurry. According to a report recently published by Dell Technologies, it is estimated that 85% of the jobs that today’s learners will be doing in 2030 have not been invented yet. This means the majority of jobs our children will depend on for their livelihood are yet to be created.
So, if the technology is to be a continued presence in our children’s lives yet the very notion of children spending time in front of a screen opens up debate, this begs the question, how can we help prepare them for the new world and pave the way forward for a prosperous life ahead?
Positive vs Negative Screentime
The answer is simple; we need to understand how to better manage our children’s screen time and behaviours around them. As parents, we need to understand that the key is discipline and balance: we must learn how we can create positive experiences, rather than children going throughout life thinking it is bad for them.
Educational apps can help with children’s preparation when progressively introduced to them from a young age. When parents monitor screen time, within the recommended guidelines, it can help children to become more confident and happy learners.
According to the eSafety Commissioner, 81% of parents with preschoolers say their children use the internet. The reasons for their internet use varied from entertainment, to learn new skills, to keeping the children occupied when parent(s) are busy, creative activities, to unwind/calm down and of course…education. The ABC Reading Eggs program made up 25% of the online services that preschoolers accessed.
With a large percentage of children online, we need to understand what the guidelines for recommended daily screen times are.
Robert McKenzie, Psychologist from Youthrive Services, mentions, ‘When considering screen time for your children, make sure you consider how old your child is, what the guidelines for recommended daily screen times are. While various guidelines around appropriate technology use exist, it is up to each family to decide what fits them best.”
Second of all, it is worthwhile that we understand there is a difference between positive and negative screen time. Negative screen time is such that provides no educational value and creates the adverse effects we have read about in the media.
Conversely, when technology is utilised positively, and within the recommended guidelines, it can be enormously advantageous. Over 91% of parents report a noticeable improvement in their child’s reading skills after using ABC Reading Eggs because the program is based on solid scientific research.
Technology can help children develop a love for education as they become engaged with interactive learning tools. Robert McKenzie mentions:
‘Technology has allowed for more opportunities for self-directed learning than ever before. Thanks to the internet, autodidactic learners or those with a thirst for knowledge, have a relatively limitless number of learning resources at their fingertips. Educational programs, such as ABC Reading Eggs, are an example of how technology can assist in educating children outside of a school setting.’
Technology has enabled education to become fun, significantly more than any other time in recent history. Education has evolved, and technology is a part of children’s learning.
Make your living room into a classroom
Parents are often unsure how they can help prepare their child for school, coupled with this as we are living busier more stressful lifestyles than ever before, many parents find they have an insufficient amount of time to dedicate to their child’s one-on-one education.
Thankfully, online apps can offer an alternative approach to education. They deliver education in a context that is meaningful to modern life, helping prepare children for schooling, and potentially the modern workforce. Coupled with this, they provide equal opportunities to children across all socio-economic levels irrespective of your geographic location.
Parents are blessed with the opportunity to utilise technology for the better to create personalised learning opportunities for children to acquire new information, discover and inspire their children’s minds. This approach is an excellent deal less demanding for parents as the technology does the work for you, gone are the days when you would be turning the pages of an encyclopaedia.
Amongst many benefits, educational apps enable visual interaction with words and letters as a way of understanding the context in which they work. This enables a deeper level of processing and a higher capacity for learning to occur. They can also allow you to check, monitor the speed at which your child is learning alternatively and have children learn at their own pace.
What constitutes an app to be educational?
It is worthwhile to understand even at a basic level, the scientific principles that characterise an app to indeed be educational and how can they increase a child’s educational potential.
ABC Reading Eggs is a trusted program based on solid scientific research to give your child the best chance at reading success.
The program was created by expert educators with over 30 years of experience and is based on scientific research, focusing on the five essential keys to reading success. The interactive program includes hundreds of one-on-one reading lessons, downloadable worksheets and over 2500 online books. Parents can also access detailed reports to help monitor their child’s progress.
Technology does the work for you and has introduced limitless opportunities to develop children’s minds. It engages children in an interactive approach to learning that may be easily digested. It is just your job to pick the right platform for your child.
The ABC Reading Eggs program is a great place to start.
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References:
https://austparents.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/screentime.pdf
https://www.verywellfamily.com/the-negative-effects-of-too-much-screen-time-1094877
