NEENA JACOB
The pandemic has resulted in kids being absolutely glued to the screen. Owing to the lockdowns, lessons went online and children also used devices for entertainment and for communicating with friends. With parents working from home and also having to manage home chores in the absence of house help, children were not scolded if they played games online or watched programmes for much longer hours.
Of course, there are definitely advantages of technology. We can listen to or play music of all genres from all over the world whenever we feel like it. We can use the internet to develop interests. I picked up crochet and Portuguese from apps. Movies can be viewed when we want and we have a whole array to choose from. Thanks to technology we can stay in touch with family and friends and even celebrate events and have parties! School assignments are also easier as one can access information easily, and do spell and grammar checks.
However, overuse can lead to problems like psychological depression when one compares what we have to the others in an ideal world be it material possessions, or friends and physical attributes. It can also lead to a rise in anxiety, reduce self-confidence, cause sleep deprivation and lead to eyesight problems like blurred vision and eye strain. There could be a lack of development of social skills in children owing to limited in-person interaction with others. Children could also become obese and develop other health problems as they become couch potatoes and lack physical fitness. It is possible that even accidents could happen as children try to multi-task, for instance, walking while using a video game or phone.
It is thus important that one looks out for signs that point to addiction. Is your child constantly glued to a digital device? Do they throw tantrums or sulk when not allowed to use these devices? Are they uninterested in other activities? Do they get so caught up that they are disconnected from the people around them? Are they always talking about online activities when not online? Then pull up your socks and take action now!
→ Slowly replace devices with activities they enjoy. You can get clues about their interests from what games they play.
→ Make a list of chores or activities that they must complete before going on to their devices.
→ Reduce device time gradually.
→ Replace content instead of stopping usage. One could enroll them in online music or craft classes.
→ Give preference to devices that have a positive impact. As a teacher, I used electronic devices effectively when dealing with kids who had spelling problems. I began playing scrabble with them online, thus developing skills in a fun way.
→ When it comes to television time, sit with them, get them to read the television schedule, and pick two programmes they can watch daily. Don’t let them sit in when you are watching your serials as well. If they do, give them less time to watch their programmes.
Though it will be tough initially, the whole family must participate. Make your kids develop hobbies. Encourage curiosity. My husband and I are keen bird watchers and we used to get our kids to come along promising them a good day and a special meal and rewards for spotting birds. They came very reluctantly and often said that these were “old people activities”. Eventually, we stopped doing this because they didn’t seem keen. But to our delight now, ten years down the line, they are keen bird watchers too.
(Writer is a volunteer in local schools and a trustee with Sethu)