I'm sure all of us, as parents, do not mean to spoil and coddle our children. Especially in today's day and age, where technology is so prevalent in today's society, any kopitiam or coffee shop we can spot children being more obsessed with their cartoons or games on their iPad or Smartphone rather then engaging in conversation with their family members.
I'm sure as parents we would all shake our heads in dismay at the state of our child's generation, lamenting that we would never make that same mistake of giving the child a device which would shorten their attention spans, or distract them from family bonding time. Also I'm sure that there are times where we feel obligated to use the device as a means to buy some "quiet time" for ourselves but in actual fact are we really doing our children a favour? or merely finding the easy way out as parents?
My Child's Primary School recently shocked me with the news that ALL primary FOUR students are required to get their own personal laptop. It has come to the point where it has become COMPULSORY, not exempting families who are unable to afford any. When asked, the school merely said that there were Financial Aid Schemes in place to help the child get a discounted price. Are we really driving towards a society where we encourage our children to grow into adults where human interaction merely takes second place behind an electronic screen?
Of course I'm not a prude, I use the computer on a daily basis and enjoy being a couch potato as well on the weekends. however, I just feel that at the young age of 10, one should not be made to bear the responsibility of owning their own smartphone, let alone their own laptop. Of course responsibility and good character must be cultivated from a young age, I just feel that the Primary School is taking a wrong stance on this whole issue by forcing the decision onto the children and their families.
LKC
TRS Contributor