by Growing up as ‘digital natives’, children nowadays spend more time on screens than every previous generation.
Common Sense Media Reports that almost half of all children aged eight and younger have their own tablet devices and spend about 2.25 hours on screens every day. This trend has led Gen Alpha ‘iPad Kids’ to be labeled. However, research suggests that excessive screen time could have harmful effects on the development of children.
The World Health Organization (WHO) does not recommend a screen time for babies younger than two years old and no more than an hour of screen time per day for children aged 2-4 years. Keeping these guidelines can be difficult, because screens are omnipresent in our houses and busy parents often resort to the use of screens to pacify their young, crying children. However, they can do a bad service to their child, so they cannot learn to manage their negative emotions.
Boredom is a natural part of life. For children it can encourage emotional regulations and help with the teaching of control and self -discipline. Moreover, boredom can cause creativity because children use their imagination to entertain themselves. Shifting a screen in a child’s face when they are bored or sad can work as a short -term solution, but in the long term can lead to frustration or unhealthy dependence on screens. Excessive screen time can also have health effects, such as poor sleeping, eye tax, neck and back pain and an increased risk of obesity.
Do young children learn from screens?
For infants and young children, learning takes place through direct interaction with the physical world around them. Two -dimensional screens do not offer the same learning opportunities as experiences from practice. Research has shown that babies and young children less effective learning from information presented on screens compared to personal interactions, a phenomenon that is known as the video shortage.
Patricia Kuhl, a prominent neuroscientist who studies thousands of babies every year, has explained: “What we have discovered is that small babies, less than a year old, do not learn from a machine.”
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In addition, screens can hinder various aspects of the development of a child, including fundamental skills such as empathy. Studies have shown that excessive screen time can hinder the ability of a child to read facial expressions and learn social signals. In contrast to face-to-face expressions, in which children can observe and interpret non-verbal communication, interactions with screens miss the depth and complexity that is needed to develop social skills.
Charles Nelson, a neuroscientist at Harvard University who is investigating the effects of neglect on children’s brains, has emphasized: “Until Baby’s language develops […] All communication is non-verbal, so they are highly dependent on looking at a face and deriving meaning from that face. “
The impact of TV
Watching television can also damage the development of children, in particular their language skills. A study showed that children who had TV two hours a day a day spent the age of 15-48 months were four times more likely to experience delays in language development. Moreover, if children started watching television before the age of 12 months, their chances of experiencing delays increased six times.
The problem can be exacerbated by the quality of the content that is consumed. Poor television programming, such as shows that are not intended for children, background television and lonely viewer can be more harmful than the enormous amount of time spent watching TV.
When young children watch TV, they often have limited interactions with adults, which form the basis for their language development. In addition, background television can distract and obstruct the ability of a child to concentrate on tasks.
When ‘iPad Kids” ‘iPad adults’
Excessive screen time during childhood can have long -term effects if individuals turn into adulthood. A concern is that this can lead to wasted time and an inability to focus. Instead of getting activities that promote personal growth, such as developing hobbies, learning new skills or participation in sport, children can be glued on a screen, which can offer immediate satisfaction, but nothing of real value.
While these ‘iPad kids’ grow into ‘iPad adults,’ they can be confronted with challenges with regard to social skills, their attention span and an exaggerated dependence on technology.
Adults who have spent a significant part of their forming years on screens may have difficulty communicating with others, finding it difficult to concentrate on tasks and strongly relying on screens for information and entertainment – but it is not their debt. Children model the behavior of their parents, and with more than 50% of Americans who believe they are addicted to their phones, it might be time for us to reassess our relationship with technology, so that children do not inherit our screen addictions.
