To preface this, no I do not have kids nor am I a child educator. The involvement I have with children is having been one.
TL; DR educate yourself, educate your kids, ease into stuff, explain why
So, what's this about? Well, I've seen it in my private circles, online, and quite recently by multiple governments proposals that children shouldn't access social media, have smartphones, or in some cases even no access to technology. It's a stance I find is borne in fear, uncertainty, doubt, and often ignorance. Now, I cannot claim to be much more educated on the subject than everybody else, but just like everybody has an asshole, I have opinion.
Abstinence is not often a solution to a problem. Sure, you could get pedantic and say abstaining from deadly things like alcohol, drugs and stupid actions, but to that I respond: it's all about the dose. Nigh everything has a lethal dose, even water. Anyway, abstinence from sex is the most common example of abstinence I know of, and it is not known to help. In fact, places that preach and teach abstinence only are more likely to have teenage pregnancies, youth and adults alike who know little to nothing about their bodies, safe sex, consent, and so on.
A lack of education and experience is not a solution I can feel comfortable with. Don't misconstrue my distaste for abstinence as a call for complete freedom. As with many things, everything in moderation (even moderation).
What am I actually proposing then? Education, my fellow humans. Educated actions. Children aren't stupid, they are just vessels that have just started being filled with knowledge, understanding and experience. Teach them about the things they are using or will use. Help them understand the advantages and disadvantages of things. Help them make informed decisions and provide guardrails based upon existing knowledge.
A specific example, too much screentime has been shown to impact mental and oral development in children. They get less time practicing how to flap their lips, discovering their physical limits, training their bodies and aiding physical development, and many other things. (Adults are of course not immune)
However, this world runs on screens and the things displaying things on them. Being unable to operate these devices leaves people behind technologically and reduces independence. Some people never get comfortable with electronic devices. Some because they lack the experience, some out of resistance, some are just afraid of looking dumb, and there are of course many other reasons.
The solution isn't to ban screentime entirely, but to introduce it slowly, provide alternatives, and explain why. But not just "I don't like it" or "you're too young". I hated those as a kid and probably you did too.
I understand that not all parents are educated enough to make informed decisions and that is a much bigger topic than for this brain dump. However just because it isn't that way, doesn't mean we should give up and not try to improve it.
And Apple. And Amazon. Actually, all the stuff from Magastan.
Anti Commercial-AI license