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| A Different Approach |
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How much time do your children spend in front of the TV and/or computer, either watching programmes, on the Internet or playing computer games? Granted that it’s a great way to shut them up for a while but what are the consequences? A recent study in the USA revealed that the average time is an astonishing 2 hours on school days and 3 hours a day at weekends, which was over three times their average periods of reading. |
The researchers found that even the youngest of children are no exception. Nearly two-thirds of kids under 2 years of age spend a couple of hours a day in front of the screen, which is very worrying. The American Academy of Paediatrics has recommended that children under 2 should not watch TV at all due to the importance of developing face-to-face communications, motor skills and co-ordination at that age. TV also affects children's reading abilities. It has been determined from long term empirical studies that children who do not go through the “normal” processes of playing physical games, building blocks, doing jigsaw puzzles, talking/listening, playing outside and reading from an early age will inevitably suffer. The outcomes will include anger, resentment, frustration, lack of co-ordination, poor reading and numeracy skills, poor hand/eye co-ordination, under-achievement, even loneliness and detachment, perhaps leading to physiological problems in adult life. Children with a PC/TV in their bedroom or who live in "heavy" households (defined as a home where the TV is on "always" or "most of the time") are less likely to be able to read by the age of 6. The study found 34 percent of 4 to 6 year-olds from "heavy" households could not read, while 56 percent of other children that age could. All of this has also led to an increase in child obesity, for obvious reasons, as we all know what coach potatoes end up like, don’t we? A friend of mine has a high speed Internet PC, TV, DVD and Playstation games console installed in each of his children’s bedrooms and admits that he and his wife have “no idea what they get upto..” They know it’s wrong, but they are both so busy working and juggling with the demands of modern life that often they are thankful that the children are kept out of the way. However, it is dangerous territory.
There is absolute certainty that children browsing the Internet on an unprotected PC will find highly inappropriate content, which almost certainly will have a profound negative influence on them in one way or another. It is getting harder and harder to protect our children from these threats, even with Internet content blocking software. So what is a parent to do? Some recent strategies in this area have been highly successful and I thought I would share them with you, so please read on.. Isn’t it so true that if you try and stop someone doing something, they will almost certainly find a way to do it anyway and resent you for stopping them in the first place! We all know that this phsycology is true of children in particular, e.g. “The Teenager”. The plan then is simple; firstly never ever give them their own personal TV/PC/DVD in their rooms until they can prove they deserve it and can act responsibly, so that probably discounts all children upto the age of 18 for a start! Secondly, you have to pre-approve the software that they use, for example, computer games that have an ‘Over 18 only’ label have that for a reason, so its unwise letting your 10 year old loose on it. This also extends to installing Internet Content Filtering software such as “Net Nanny” on the PC. This software effectively blocks offensive content and gives you a report of what your kids are up to. It’s a good start. Thirdly, get them to use the Internet and PC for their school work and projects, giving them incentives and treats if they do well on this using their computer. This has worked really well with my kids, for example in their school projects and maths / history / geography in particular with Google Earth.
Fourthly, strictly limit their time on the computer/TV each day and in some households, parents have actually put in a timer plug that only allows power-on at certain times of the day. In another instance, parents installed slot meters that required their children to pay for the service from their pocket money, but I am not sure about that one! Most responsible parents would also bring up their children with good manners and ethics. However, these days, it is probably a good idea that this be re-enforced in school. The reality is that in an environment of poor parenting, large class numbers and restricted budgets to attract good teachers, there is little time to allocate to this vital area, but that is a false strategy. Government needs to take this on board and spend real money on it, because unfortunately, there is a worrying pattern emerging of more and more delinquency in children. There is presently no formal teaching of “Life Skills” such as how to behave, the importance of good manners, how to dress, how to eat properly, the importance of being silent, listening and thinking positively. What a difference this would make to our children's lives. Over a hundred years ago, Dr Maria Montessori developed a radical way of pre-school teaching that has been proven to work. For example, she wrote that during the years 3-6, the child is experiencing various sensitive periods in movement, order, language, learning manners etc. The purpose being to feed into the child's sense of identity by giving him responsibility and imitate the activities of adults. One of the most valuable lessons was the “Silence Game” where the children have to learn that silence is an activity in itself as it helps to develop concentration and self-discipline. She advocated that silence is the fruit of well cultivated and purposeful movement. Why not teach these methods as “Life Skills” beyond Montessori Pre-Schools – as they make so much sense.
Jas Kalsi, BSc(Eng)Hons, MBA is a Management Consultant and Past President of the Ennis Chamber of Commerce |
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