Notes

The AAP's new View

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is changing its stance regarding "screen time" - or at least bringing its stance into the full-blown digital age.



The AAP's imminent revision to its policy statement was announced in October. It acknowledges that the current screen-time guidelines are out of date. They are most well-known for prohibiting screen time for children under 2 years old, and for limiting screen time for teenagers and older children to two hours per day. Some of the current advice was written before the widespread Internet use. Ari Brown, a pediatrician and chairperson of the AAP Children, Adolescents and Media Leadership Work Group, sent this email. "Our prior recommendations were created because we had sufficient health and developmental concerns about the potential dangers of using TV to educate parents about it."



Schools are eagerly implementing technology wherever money allows and that's not even including classes for students in grade school that teach programming software that allows kids to compose music on computers and the overwhelming evidence that playing Minecraft can benefit kids who have autism, the strict minimization of the obvious. Today's children are "digital natives." Technology is in their blood.



The AAP's new view which is summarized in "Beyond turning it off" How to counsel families on the use of media views computers, TVs, and gaming systems as just tools. Based on how they are utilized, the time spent with them could be beneficial or harmful to children.



The AAP has made addressing children and media a top priority starting in 2012, an effort that culminated in the May 2015 "Growing Up Digital" symposium. The symposium brought together experts from child development, social science and education. It also highlighted the growing body evidence that supports the potential (and potential) benefits of screen time for child and adolescent development.



At the symposium social scientists presented data that showed that when teens connect via the internet, these connections can be "significantly significant," and sometimes "more supportive than their real life friendships," reports Brown.



She says that the message is that there are many positive online opportunities for acceptance and support to help teens develop their self-esteem and identity.



Other insights offered insight into possible ways to enhance digital media's teaching potential. Neuroscientists presented research that demonstrated that toddlers can learn new words by using video chat. This suggests that it's the two-way interaction which matters most. Technology that facilitates this back-and-forth is more likely to help facilitate learning.



Here's the issue: Giving an iPad to a two-year old and then walking away is not going be enough to solve the problem.



"All of our experts emphasized the importance of co-engagement" Brown says. Parental involvement is the primary factor that determines the nature of screen time. For young children especially, positive outcomes rely on "screen time" also being "together time."



A lot of the potential for screen time for good, in fact, hinges on the parents, whether the child is 3 or 13. The AAP recommends parents join their kids in the digital world as often as they can and get familiar with their kids' devices of choice even if they do not participate in the activity.



Parents should establish ground guidelines for screen time. They should also establish "screen-free zones" (hint or dinner table) and monitor all content. Screen time can bring benefits however, there are potential risks.
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"Parenting has not changed," says Brown. "The same rules apply to any environment your child's life is in - school, home, tech ... Set limits, be a good role model, know the names of your kids' friends are and where they're going."



The AAP's new policy statement on children and media will likely not come out until late this year, however Brown says it will "acknowledge the research gaps are ... look to optimize the opportunity that the digital age brings and reduce the risk. It will be practical and broad enough to be more constantly updated, so the policy will be able to keep up with the latest tech thing."



Now That's Cool Kids with autism have their own private Minecraft server. "Autcraft" lets them reap all the developmental benefits of Minecraft without the bullying that takes place in the main Minecraft space.


Homepage: https://mpservers.net/minecraft-servers/