Examining the Effect of Smartphones on Child Development

Examining the Effect of Smartphones on Child Development
Published by Concordia University, Nebraska 2 years ago on Fri, Feb 28, 2020 1:03 PM
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Excessive smart phone use has already started to affect some of the youngest users. According to a Pew Research Center study, just over half of U.S. teens surveyed said they believe they spend too much time on their phones. For better or worse, this trend has already begun to trickle down to younger children.
According to a Common Sense Media study reported by NPR, more than half of children under the age of 11 now own a smartphone. As a result, parents and researchers have begun exploring the positive and negative effects of smartphones on child development.
The Positive Effect of Smartphones on Child Development
While it may be intuitive to focus immediately on the consequences of smartphone technology on youth, the learning benefits of smartphone technology cannot be ignored. Equipped with miniature computers, students from elementary school to college can develop digital literacies and research skills earlier than previous generations.
To find out more about these scholastic opportunities, of USA Today surveyed teachers across the United States. Many believe smartphones in classroom environments can yield three profound benefits in the development of children:

1. 
   Self-sufficiency: Through early guidance and support, parents and teachers can help children learn how to self-regulate the time they spend on their phones. This lesson will help them create and practice healthy self-awareness and self-reflection practices that will better prepare them for adolescence and, eventually, young adulthood.
   
2. 
   Digital literacy: As children use smartphones, they effectively prepare themselves to engage with future technologies. Because some schools offer high-speed internet access to students, children can begin to develop a greater knowledge of how to navigate resources online through their smartphones. One teacher interviewed by USA Today found that this level of access has a democratizing effect, which can help bridge the digital divide between families of different income levels.
   
3.