Tag Archives: smartphones

Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up Using Smartphones

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When my children were young, and I was very busy taking care of them, and the house, and homeschooling some of them, if someone would have handed me a device that would have stopped them in their tracks and kept them occupied for hours so that I could get everything done on that very long list of things to do that I always had….I probably would have given them each a device.

So I understand why today’s children (including some of my grandchildren) are spending time on smartphones. But we’re seeing more and more evidence that smartphones are a very bad idea for children. They keep them from playing, which is how they learn. They keep them from using their imaginations, which is not a good thing. And now a recent study shows that children who use smartphones spend twice as long using them as talking to their parents.

This is logical, and alarming. The parent-child relationship must supersede all else in a young child’s life. This is how they learn the most important things they need to know: from their parents. Anything that interrupts that relationship needs to go.

It will be hard. I totally understand. Even though I haven’t raised a young child in decades, I remember what it’s like. But it’s time to admit that children should not be allowed to do anything with smartphones. These devices are too addicting, and they take children away from far more important things, like conversing with their parents.

I Wonder When Parents Will Wise Up?

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I think it’s tragic that well over half of eighth-graders are considered “not proficient” in reading and math these days.

I also think it’s tragic that 25% of kids under age six have their own smartphones. Think of all the things those little ones should be doing instead of playing on their phones.

I could write endlessly about all the reasons why I don’t think kids should have phones.

But I won’t. Instead, I’ll just say that these two trends must be related. Children who spend all their time on passive entertainment are not learning about the world around them and are slowly being anesthetized. Had they been given the time, space and opportunity to learn naturally, they would probably be proficient at reading and math by eighth grade even if they didn’t go to school at all.

The most chilling quote from the second article has to be this one:

Eight in 10 parents surveyed said they don’t limit the amount of time their kids can use their smartphones.

When will parents wake up?

How I Escaped SmartPhone Addiction

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I bought my first cell phone about 20 years ago. It was handy for letting my husband know where we were when the kids and I were out running around, but since it was a prepaid phone and minutes were expensive, I only used it when necessary and kept it off most of the time.

I was forced to upgrade phones once or twice over the years, but I never got into using the thing regularly, partly because of the cost and partly because I like being out of the reach of others for periods of time. I need that time to think.

Once smartphones took hold, I looked into getting one and rejected the idea pretty quickly. As a writer and therefore a reader, I can’t stop myself from reading; I was addicted to news sites on the Internet before I ever got a cellphone. Having the Internet at hand 24/7 in the form of a smartphone would be going in the wrong direction.

Of course, like the few others who don’t have smartphones, I’ve suffered through having dinner guests who rudely keep checking their phones, nearly been hit by drivers who are checking their phones, and have occasionally been interrupted in worship by the chirping, dinging or singing of some fellow worshipper’s phone. Sigh.

But I never really thought about how fortunate I am to have evaded the call of the smartphone until I read this article. The writer describes his phone addiction and his efforts to break it in detail. (He also makes me glad that I’ve always limited my time on Twitter.) It’s particularly poignant that restricting his smartphone use now lets him spend more focused time with his wife and kids, but they too are addicted to their smartphones, so one has to wonder just how meaningful his newly gained time with them can be.

Someone recently pointed out to me that I miss out on a lot by not being on Fbook. That’s true. I wish that others in my family weren’t so addicted to posting their entire lives online where others can see and I can’t. That said, I think there’s a special place in hell for people like those who created Fbook, who lure people in with a software program that lets them keep in touch with others so they can make a lot of money sharing and selling those people’s personal information to other companies. I don’t want any part of that.

As for smartphones, that article made it pretty unlikely that I’ll ever get one. His experience makes a compelling case for living your life without becoming a slave to perpetual notifications on a gadget.

 

The Curse of the Smartphone

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I’m so happy to see increasing calls for people to put down their smartphones. It’s about time. I think driving became much more dangerous once people started texting while driving. I hate seeing parents out pushing their little ones in strollers or grocery carts and completely ignoring them because they’ve found someone more interesting on their phones. Then there are the people who can no longer hold a face-to-face conversation with another person without repeatedly checking their phones. Ugh!

I do think cell phones are great for security. I bought my first cell phone about 20 years ago, and I still have a dumbphone. The beauty of it is that I can put it in my pocket on mute and hardly know that it’s there, but if my car doesn’t start, I can give my husband a call without leaving the vehicle. Occasionally, I’ll send one of my kids a text to let them know my ETA, but otherwise I rarely text and don’t really understand what on earth is so important that people need to be calling or texting each other all the time, especially while they’re shopping, at the doctor’s office, etc.

I have to wonder if my dislike of smartphones is just a sign of my impending old age. Are there any young people out there who think like I do? I doubt it.