Steemit Engagement Challenge S3-W2: Impacts of Technology in kids' lives by @ukpono

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Take a moment to reflect on this.

When you woke up this morning, you probably turned off that shrilling, annoying sound that comes from the alarm you had set the night before. Next, you slipped your feet into those comfy shoes — one of the pairs @patjewell sent to you during her last trip to Dubai. Lest I forget, you logged into your Steemit account to view the new engagement post @steemkidss has created — who wants to miss these interesting posts anywhere? Oops! Your network provider sent you a notification that your data subscription has expired. You need to purchase a new one so you dialled your bank's USSD code and make a transfer of ₦3, 000 to your mobile data agent.

As you step out of your king-sized bed, your Redmi Note 11 beeps. You peep at the screen and see a notification from Google calendar. It reminds you that you need to purchase a movie ticket for a cinematic show you planned to see with your kids when they return from a vacation at grandmas. After making the sign the cross, you hurriedly completed the payment through the mobile ticketing app.

Then your stomach rumbles loudly. Daaaarrrrn, it is morning and you need to feed your belle and so without brushing your teeth, you grab a packet of noodles from the kitchen cabinet, turn on the gas cooker, of course, you do not need a kerosene stove, and then place the non-stick aluminium cooking pot on the fire. All is set so you begin to hum your favourite song but that song lacks symphony. Oh! there you go! Yanni's orchestra. Boom! your home theatre begins to groove to the loud music it is playing. All of a sudden, you find yourself at the arena. You grab a frying pan and strike a few strings. Your make-believe guitar produces a melodious sound that makes the crowd cheer. The paparazzi are all over you and the world seems to be a perfect place until you perceive a pungent smell. You wake from your daydream with a start and try shaking off the scary thought in your head. The music is still blasting while your nose is sniffing the air. It leads you to a lump of black-baked coal that would have been a palatable meal if you had stopped basking in the euphoria of nothing just 5 minutes ago. Well... you make plans to install a smoke dictator because you cannot come and hurt yourself.

The illustration above is only a snippet of how technology has impacted the world as a whole. Technology is primarily the use of scientific knowledge in creating new tools and devices that make life easier and better. It is integral to everything we do whether big or small. It is not only limited to the invention of flashy cars, smartphones and computers but also touches on the minutest thing like how to create a spark of fire. Agriculture, Business, Education, government, military and every other sector of life have experienced tremendous change over time due to the innovative ideas that keep evolving.

The kids are not left out on this one. Due to how broad this topic is, the focus of this post will be on Digital Assistance and Accessibility Tools, food, education, child care and communication. So, what are some of the pros and cons of technology in kids' lives?

Positive

Food
The manufacture of varieties of healthy foods for infants, tweens and teens. Scientists have been able to discover and recommend the right food intake for each age. Parents get to know the average calories, a child should consume at a given time and the right food to find these nutrients. When the meal is balanced, the child remains healthy.

Communication
Communication is paramount because humans are social beings. Children use smartphones and other devices to connect with people of like minds all over the world.

Education
The educational sector has changed as well. Learning is no longer limited to the conventional method as the curriculum is also adjusted to fit into modern-day society. Kids get to learn virtually too. A perfect example is The steemkidsedu project which I am a part of. These kids acquire knowledge weekly which gives them an edge over most of their contemporaries around the world. But would this have been possible without the invention of electronic communication devices or the establishment of a blockchain like Steemit?

Digital Assistance and Accessibility Tools
This includes screen readers/text-to-speech output, voice recognition software and Screen magnifiers. At the moment, Augmented Reality(Ar), Artificial Intelligence(AI) and the upcoming metaverse or virtual reality (VR) are the most profound innovation of all time. These were created primarily to improve user experience. This inclusive technology is not only beneficial to the once marginalized demographics — disabled persons — but also of great benefit to kids. How?

Children can become fluent in a language by just listening to the output and repeating what is said. It also limits screen time since they can use text-to-speech or speech-to-text while interacting with their devices.

Child Care
Newborns need adequate attention and a device like a Baby Monitor helps parents provide the necessary care the child needs promptly.

Negative

• Most children prefer to consume some processed foods that are not healthy such as noodles, junk, carbonated drinks etc.
• The availability of the internet exposes children to materials that might be deemed offensive or graphic.
• It leads to poor time management and addiction. There are several cases where children get addicted to social media and online games. As a result, they neglect their studies and fail to make sustainable goals for the future.
  

Despite these pros, technology has still brought about tremendous growth in present-day children when compared with the previous ages. While scrolling through my feed on Twitter, I stumbled on the profile of a 13-year-old who just completed middle school. He made a tweet about beginning an internship with Spotify. Out of curiosity, I perused his profile and got to know that he learnt to code. At that moment, I felt grateful for the modern age. Children get to develop their careers from a very young age. Imagine how bright the future is for the young writers on this platform.

And there is the question, “How much is too much?”

The manufacturer of mobile devices and computers understood this perfectly and so provided parental control options and screen time control. It is now possible to keep track of children's activities both online and offline by just installing apps like Life360, FamiSafe and Qustodio on their devices. Also, they can also be taught the dangers of playing with some technological products like cookers, etc.

Final Thoughts
The pros of technology supersedes the cons indisputably. What matters most is controlling the kid's exposure to technological tools like cell phones, games etc. This is the responsibility of every responsible adult and not just the parents.

I invite @edidiongeffiong @joymm @ghani12

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