Who can argue, technology is everywhere. When you look around your home, how much technology do you see? Although, I am not any more distracted by technology than I would be by anything, our children are a much different story.
In an article written by Matt Richtel for The New York Times entitled “Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction,” a much different picture is painted for our youth. In his article, Mr. Richtel points out that computers and cellphones offer a continuous stream of distraction, and youth are rewarded for shifting from task to task. A child moves from homework to texting and eventually back to homework (hopefully). Many of these young individuals are provided with technology with little (if any) parental supervision; however, that is not entirely the fault of the parents. Parents are able to monitor computer use, but they are not able to monitor cell phone use as easily. Social children are faced with texting, instant messaging, and Facebook; less social children are dealing with YouTube and gaming. Regardless of the type of technology, the distraction is there. My daughter is no different; she will carry on an actual conversation while maintaining a text conversation. In a study done by the German Sport University in Cologne has proven that children are more distracted by the computer than by the television. The scientists have found that video game disrupt sleep and patterns and possible reduce vocabulary retention.
All of this is probably nothing we did not already know; however, what I would love to know is where we go from here. Obviously technology is here to stay, so how do we help our children maintain focus?
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