Positive and Negative Effects Of Technology On Children

Starting with the definition, Technology refers to methods, systems, and devices which are the result of scientific knowledge being used for practical purposes. This means that technology is meant to be used and not imagined.

In this time or age, technology has become an indispensable constituent of daily living. For children, their initial contact with technology needs to be properly planned as this now determines their perception of life.

In this article, we will be looking at the positive and negative effects of technology on children. Let’s take a walk on the topic of discussion.

Technology is of different types which includes Agricultural technology, Biotechnology, Assistive technology, Educational technology, Financial technology, Food technology, Medical technology, Information and Communication technology, etc. For children as well as adults, the closest technology is that of Information and Communication, which directly or indirectly influences other technologies and it users. Starting with the positives, here are the effects of this technology on children.

Knowledge Relevance

Have you ever heard of the phrase “Stay relevant”? Kids now need that as well. The society of today is powered by a lot from the Information and Communication industries. Therefore, a good background or acquaintance with the use of related products gives the child a better chance of making an impact in it sector. That is already a compulsory requirement for so many.

Dynamic Presentations

The cognitive strength of children varies, especially when thought with a general method. Not everyone learns quickly from reading just text, some learns better with the inclusion of images or illustrations, special font styles, text colors and other favorite features. With the use of computerized tabs, all of these requirements are met (customizable) and the child will end up with more intellect.

Complementary solutions

This has to do with assistive technology for disabled or impaired children. Children with ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), Dyslexia and similar defects can use their smartphones to set reminders, save events and that will help them in recollection. Smartpen and speech processing applications are also helpful in this case as well as to blind and hearing impaired children.

Resource accessibility

For children, Disney can be brought to their room with just a click. So also, they can reach their teachers and class mates for educational supports and of course, Google; for more information on assignment and the like.

Distant relationship

Some children have their parents working or living a far from home, all they need to do is make a video call and they will feel much better than just watch a picture album or read a letter. Virtual reality even makes the distance extremely short.

No matter how relevant a product or invention is, it can still be abused, thereby leaving the user with a negative impact. Even humans, abuse each other but that does not make having a neighbor completely a bad idea. Here are the negative effects of technology on children.

Health Risks

According to WHO (Word Health Organization, 2016), the number of overweight or obese infants and young children (aged 0 to 5 years) increased from 32 million globally in 1990 to 41 million in 2016. If current trends continue the number will increase to 70 million by 2025.

Health-care experts have apportioned a major cause of childhood obesity directly to the use of Smart phones, tablets and other entertainment computer-based devices, as these tend to deprive children from physical activities such as playing, which is a major form of exercise for them.

The effect of blue light, which emanates from device screens, is another threat to the eyes, brain and depressive state of children.

This is not just a problem with adult but children as well. They now have the opportunity to easily select who to interact with no matter the distance and stay all day in their rooms without knowing the name of the child next-door.

Unintelligible Speech and Writing

We can hardly get better orators in comparison to those of the older generations. Writing is worse, as auto-complete and grammar correcting apps have drilled a deep hole through that ability on children.

Inappropriate Contents

Uncensored contents are everywhere and un-monitored children see all of it. How can they handle that as children?

This is where the conclusion comes. Technology is a doubled edged sword. If used out of control it will definitely hurt but if used in control, it will serve it positive purpose. It all depends on the parents, guardian or authorities that oversees the affairs of the child.

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