Technology and today's children

Last night, I went to the public library for a program about papercutting. The program was led by a man named Homer Hansen. He has created papercutting designs for years. By simply folding a sheet of paper into a square and making various cuts, he is able to create intricate designs.

I got to talking to Homer and asked him if he had any grandchildren. He told me that he didn’t have grandchildren. However, he often teaches papercutting programs for children at various libraries and schools. He said he doesn’t like the idea of video games where children are being exposed to killing and violence; he likes to show them simple papercut designs so that they do not get frustrated and will at least attempt to create a work of art.

Homer is an interesting man because despite being 8o years old and doing “old school” activities like papercutting, he incorporates technology into his life. He uses email to correspond with libraries and schools. He also has his own newsletter that he prints “whenever he feels like it” (that’s what it truly says on one of the newsletter covers). One of the newsletter covers was made through the process of scanning fabric!

I think about Homer and then I think about the children of today--- two vastly different generations.

I can’t say that the findings of this week’s readings surprised me. In the article, “Children Online,” I liked reading about the researcher’s experience of learning about an online community called Gathering of the Elves. The online community reminded me of the type of clique you’d see at a middle or high school. I didn’t think rejection could really occur in online forums, but the article gave the example of a girl who would post to awkward,off-storyline threads to the discussion board. For awhile, she was shunned and her posts were ignored. Finally, Elianna stepped into the situation and discussed the posts with the young girl. One could even say that Elianna intervened in a bullying situation.

While I can see how online communities are social arenas and while these virtual worlds provide opportunities for critical thinking and creativity, children still need to see one another face-to-face. I like the idea of the online community but it would be nice to imagine all of these online players meeting at a coffee shop once in awhile, bringing their laptops and planning out storylines and dialogue together, in person.

In connection to the findings of the Henry J. Kaiser foundation, what surprised me was that despite being told by professionals that children under the age of 2 should not watch any television, during a normal day 68% of all children use screen media (a majority use screen media in the form of a TV). While I think that it seems near-impossible for a parent to not have their child watch any television (99% of all homes own tvs, afterall), I worry about the television that parents do allow their children to watch. I work at a public library and parents are constantly coming in and taking out Leap Frog and Baby Einstein videos. I think to myself, instead of having your kid plop down and watch TV, why not give her enriching experiences like going to a children’s museum or walking around a park? The article even used the word “babysitter” in connection to some parents’ use of television.

The Kaiser article’s assessment of how proactive toddlers are in connection to technology makes me think about how many of today’s children seem to have this attitude of “Me, me, me!” When today’s toddlers and preschoolers are turning on TVs themselves, loading CD-Roms, and asking for favorite DVDs/videos, I have to ask myself, “Who’s the head of the household?” 54% of respondents said that they always enforce media rules within their household. What about the other 46% of parents/respondents? I also wonder what the specific media rules are.

Out of the entire Kaiser Family study, it was satisfying to see that reading/being read to is mostly a constant part of children’s lives, despite the advancements of video games and children’s entertainment. Although the article cited reading as a constant part of children’s lives, I think that it is safe to say that technology still plays a greater role in the majority of children’s free time. Things may reverse though---who knows? Things tend to work in the way of cycles. I recently read an article about math in schools and a “return to the basics.” While technology will always be a part of our lives, I have this idealized vision that eventually kids will be like the man who I met last night---mixing new technologies with simpler, yet valuable activities. A world consisting of countless Homer Hansens wouldn’t be all that bad.