If one were able to eavesdrop on the conversations of parents of young children, the topic might eventually turn to the amount of time their kids are spending on the internet. The subject of internet usage has been a wildly debated topic among parents since internet became available and especially since the onset of Facebook in 2004. But, as illustrated by the articles from our class, usage of the internet is not necessarily a bad thing.
According to the information by Douglas Adams, people’s perceptions of the internet are based on their first encounter with the internet. For example, my parents, who are in their fifties and are not internet-savvy, view the internet as something they appreciate for the vast amounts of information they are able to obtain. However, there is also the element of sheer frustration at not being able to navigate the worldwide web with ease; for that, they must rely on their young daughters. For my sister and I, we were born at the time when the internet was available and so we “grew up with it” and consider it a normal thing that helps in our day-to-day life. My mother told me of a conversation she recently had with my sister when they were traveling. My mother explained to her about being lost in the Twin Cities in the 80s and about stopping to ask for directions and buying a map to try to figure out where they were. The entire concept seemed so foreign and difficult for my sister to understand. Today my mother is able to travel using Google maps and enjoys the relative ease of navigating in places that are unfamiliar. Douglas Adams spoke of how when we are born, we accept the available technology as normal. Between birth and the age of 30, we still view it as okay, but after the age of 30, we accept new technology with a certain degree of cautiousness. This is referred to as generational gap alarmism--fearing the unknown technology that one’s children accept as a part of their normal lifestyle.
For many, the internet is viewed as a necessary evil. We use it to gather information that would otherwise take enormous amounts of time if one decided to stop at the local library. The introduction of Facebook has brought people together in ways that know one could have foreseen. Imagine all the families who only connected on holidays who can now share photos of everything that is going on in their lives; it has become a great way to stay in touch. Is it a bad thing to spend hours on Facebook looking at people you know and seeing what they’re up to? Not necessarily according to experts. The media will often toss out stories about the negative aspects of social media and how much time people waste on the internet. But, the internet and Facebook can bring people together and help to make people feel more in touch and less lonely than if they would just spend the day by themselves. As an example, my aunt, who is in her late 60s, enjoys Facebook immensely. She spends time on Facebook connecting with people she knows--friends and relatives--and stays in touch in ways that couldn’t be imagined a decade and a half ago. For her, the time she spends is something that brings her joy. Is this a bad thing? Not really--it makes her feel connected to the world and ultimately, less lonely.
For parents, the frustrations with the internet stem from the fact that when their children spend time on Facebook they are not connecting with anyone around them. However, there are parental controls that help people gain control over the length of time and also to block certain websites so that children are not vulnerable to bad websites. The main thing is that parents need to use the blocks that are available and also enforce rules about the amount of time they want their children to be on the internet. The parents need to do the parenting and not just throw their hands up and call the internet “bad.”
Articles written point out that children learn just as well and maybe even better when exposed to learning on the internet versus one-on-one with an adult. The development is not impaired nor are the childrens’ brains “fried” when spending time on the internet. Once again, much of the information about the bad effects are simply things that are blown out of proportion by the media.
There is often talk of cyber-bullying and the effects it has on vulnerable children, when in fact, more children are bullied face-to-face than on the internet. Once again, the media tells the story of one case and then suddenly it becomes something that happens “all the time” on the internet. If the facts were not construed, one would realize that much of what we read is hyped up by reporters.
One subject that was not addressed extensively was the lack of physical activity when using the internet. To me, this is a major factor in the popularity of the internet, and I can see our generation becoming overweight simply by having too much screen time. Once again, parental control can help to alleviate this and limit the use so that kids can get regular exercise. Of course, one can also find thousands of exercises to do that are on Youtube and various other websites available on the worldwide web. This is another example of how the internet can help us.
Although much is written about the bad effects of the internet, there really is not much to substantiate the facts. Yes, it is true that people spend exuberant amounts of time on the internet, but, if not that, then what would people be doing with their lives. Certainly the technology that is available today is tremendous and there are even bigger and better things coming to us for future generations. One cannot even begin to imagine what might be available by the time our generation has children. We must learn to embrace rather than dread the technology that is available to us and remember that ultimately we still have the control over how much of our time we spend using it. This can be as simple as shutting off the power button.
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