Screens EVERYWHERE

Technologic advances help civiliations in a myriad of ways. From education to entertainment, health and communications, screens large and small enhance our lives. There is a darker side to this technoloyg, however. Everywhere children look, they will find screens display all kinds of information. Much of it is helpful, but some information can confuse, freighten, or damage young minds.

Now that seemingly every pocket in the United States houses a smart phone connecting owner to the internet, the entire world's knowledge is carted around begging to be engaged with. The ability to quickly answer a question rather than ponder it, or to waste away valuable moments on mindless entertainment is affecting the attention spans and today's youth. While a valuable tool, this technology comes with a host of issues.

Parents are becoming all too aware of the sway this technology has over their children. The adjacent video shows parents discussing the media technology surrounding their children.

Smartphone Use by Children

Studies on the affects of smart phone and other media use on children is still in its infancy. However, early numbers are starting to paint a startling picture. Common Sense Media, a watchdog group that among other things rates appropriate ages for popular movies and television, conducted a survey to look at the media use by teens.

What they found was that over half of teens use a smartphone daily, while two thirds have thier own personal devices. Teens who use a smartphone average spending over four hours per day on it.