An online study performed by digital security company AVG Technologies claims children are more proficient in operating a smartphone than in completing basic everyday tasks. According to AVG Technologies:
– 58% of children aged between 3 and 5 can successfully operate a smartphone but fewer than 1 in 6 can perform simple tasks such as making their own breakfast.
– An earlier stage of the study, released in 2011, found that for 2- to 5-year-olds, ‘tech’ skills are increasingly replacing ‘life’ skills. In fact, many toddlers could use a mouse and play a computer game, but could not ride a bike, swim or tie their shoelaces.
Tim Elmore, founder of Growing Leaders, a non-profit organization based out of Georgia that works with schools and civic groups to promote leadership qualities in children, said, “I see many parents doing everything for their kids instead of letting them figure out how to fend for themselves.”
* Why make breakfast when you can text a takeout order from IHOP?
* Having kids between 3 and 5 make their own breakfast is not the greatest. The parents end up spending over an hour cleaning up the mess they leave.
* Tying your shoelaces doesn’t get you the same cred with your friends as having the neighborhood high score on Angry Birds.
* And forget swimming. Today’s kids are too obese to swim.
* I’d worry more but adults have been saying that kids don’t know what they’re doing since the beginning of time.
* If you want them to learn to feed themselves, give them a feeding app.
* If you’re looking for grant money for a study, criticizing social media is a great place to start.
* Hey, no fair criticizing social media with an online survey.
* Maybe we should speed up the robot servant program. Sounds like we’re going to need it.
(LINK: http://www.avg.com/digitaldiaries/2010?ECID=af:cj)