When should a child join the cyber world?

Nowadays, it’s as if children are being born with cellphones in their hands. Children used to have to rely on their own imagination to have fun, but now they can get on their Nooks or Kindles and search through apps that can do it for them, some of which even cater specifically to their age group. Even toddlers have apps that help teach them letters and numbers.

While technology obviously has its benefits, is there a line that it shouldn’t cross? I think there is.

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I grew up in a generation where, if you wanted to talk to someone, you called them on their landline, but I see no need for a fifth grader to have their own smart phone.

Quite honestly, I don’t see the need for an eighth grader to have a cell phone either. Children aren’t mature enough to fully comprehend what technology can do. They don’t realize the things they send each other or post online or search for on the Internet are going to be permanently stored somewhere in the cyber world. Giving a 10 year old a cell phone could easily lead to misuse and abuse of its power.

I can see why some parents would feel the need to give their child a phone. In a world that seems to move faster every day, it can be hard to keep track of a busy child’s schedule and no parent wants a minute going by where they don’t know where their child is. Being able to call and find out in a matter of seconds is a technological advantage that can’t be denied, but that doesn’t mean a 10 year old needs an iPhone.

The fact that kids that age are being supplied with them is unnecessary. Children need to learn what it’s like to not have something to fully appreciate it when they do have it. If a parent throws a fancy phone in his child’s hands and lets them do with it whatever that child wishes, that child isn’t going to value it. They might say thank you, but they don’t know what they’re thankful for.

To teach children how to appreciate the things they are given, to rely on their own imagination to have fun, and to truly understand their actions will have consequences, is much more important than spoiling them with modern technology’s latest and greatest.

As for social networking, it can be abused much easier than a phone can, so I don’t think you can say for a matter of fact that all 13 year olds are responsible enough to have one or that every freshman in high school is entitled to one. It all depends on their maturity level. If the parents decide their child is wise enough to understand the consequences of their posts on the Internet, that’s when I feel the child should be able to make an account; however I think parental supervision should be included within the first year of having the site, just to make sure it’s being handled the right way.

 Childhood should not be hindered by technology as it so easily can be. It’s a time in one’s life to look back on and cherish the memories.

My worst fear is that future generations will look back on their childhood and wonder what even happened, for their entire life has been lived through the Internet.