By Nora Al-Mutairi
(with photos) KUWAIT, Oct 28 (KUNA) -- Parents have been somewhat forced to offer smartphones or electronic tablets as a reward or pacifier to their children in spite of their detrimental effects during formative years of development.
Due to the widespread use of these gadgets, the majority of parents have turned to tablets, most famously the iPad, as a tool to distract or appease their children - some as young as two - when they are being naughty or disobedient.
You see parents, then, praising their kids' skills of pinching and swiping the touch-screen effortlessly and continuously, possibly not knowing or ignoring the fact that these devices could affect the development of the child's brain, shrink their attention span, hamper the development of their social skills or even ruin their eyesight.
In a recent study by Barnard College Center for Toddler Development in New York, child development experts observed several young kids and monitored their reaction to traditional toys versus the iPad.
The center tested for "distractibility" by having researchers call out the names of the children who were using the iPad in order to note how readily they responded.
Many of the kids were so zoned in on the apps they were playing with, that they did not respond to the researchers at all. However, once the iPads were confiscated, the researchers believed the toddlers transformed into more verbal, more social, and more creative creatures.
The tablet's interactiveness makes children immersed and focused and this is considered one of its strengths and weakness at the same time. Children need their imagination to be exercised in order for creativity to be developed.
However, the use of tablets limits tactile interaction and the three-dimensional perception of objects which is critical at the early years of a child's life, psychologist at Kuwait's Al-Soor Center, Zaina Al-Zabin told KUNA.
These touch-screen devices can decrease focus and attention on tasks which are less visually yet audibly stimulating.
"The overuse of electronic devices can eventually interfere with social development skills," she said, leading to addiction and over-obsession.
Some of the apps on these tablets are designed to stimulate dopamine releases, a chemical in the brain often associated with pleasure, hence, they encourage children to keep playing by offering rewards or exciting visuals, she added.
On this addiction, Jumana Al-Awadhi, a published writer who is the creator of the "We Love Kuwait" book series, which target children's development, explained that "some of these apps are built solely for a commercial purpose.
"Some companies just want to make money off of children's obsession with these apps, regardless of the children's mental and cognitive development.
"You see kids totally immersed in these apps because they want to level up in the game. This causes brain numbness. It is as harmful as watching TV, especially, in the formative years in a child's life," she added.
Nonetheless, both Al-Zabin and Al-Awadhi agree that toddlers can learn better from interactive media.
Al-Zabin suggested that "toddlers are experiencing the world at this stage, and tactile learning is still critical, therefore, it is important now to compliment learning by providing multiple ways of teaching. Using an iPad is a good tool that can aid learning, if used correctly.
"Tablets should be used as a complimentary means of teaching and entertainment, and not the only way," she added.
Al-Awadhi, herself a mother of three, also emphasized the importance of having some parental guidance when children use the iPad.
"They are diving headfirst into a vast world full of the good and the bad; therefore, it is important for parents to have some guidance to which contents their kids should view or engage in." The good side of iPads, and other similar tablets, is that they provide a direct and interactive learning environment. Kids get immersed in the content because these tablets use sound, video and other forms of interaction to bring children right into the content.
Thus, Al-Awadhi stressed that parents should take the best out of these devices by creating a "bonding time" with their kids. "Tablets can create a medium where parents and their children get to engage and interact, hence, extending not only the learning process but also enhancing their social and emotional development." It is a fact that children are increasingly learning through tablets and smartphones yet it is essential to find the right balance to avoid any harmful effects of using this technology. (end) nfm KUNA 281021 Oct 13NNNN