Kevin Corbett – #EdTech

educational technology (#edtech) #elearning

Menu
  • Topics
    • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
    • Augmented Reality (AR)
    • Blended Learning
    • Blended Learning Videos
    • Creativity
    • Educational Change
    • Future Tech
    • Gamification
    • Higher Education
    • Internet of Things (iot)
    • Internet Safety
    • Liberal Arts
    • Minecraft
    • Mobile Learning
    • Neural Network
    • Online Learning
    • Robotics
    • Social Media
    • Virtual Reality (VR)
  • #EdTech News
  • About Me
    • About Kevin
    • Classes
    • Contact Me
Menu

Babies and Mobile Devices. Where Are YOU on the issue?

Posted on July 26, 2014July 25, 2014 by Kevin Corbett

X7045-newborn-to-toddler-apptivity-seat-d-2

Everywhere I turn I see babies, toddlers and young children with tablets/ipads and smartphones.

The glow of the brightly colored illuminated device is attractive and alluring for people of ANY age.

But, at what age is it appropriate?

Consider the following product from Fisher Price and the differing perspectives.
Share your thoughts in the comments section at the end.

The Newborn to Toddler APPtivity Seat

On the other side

Natali Morris in Mashable responds

Opinion

As a technology reporter and mommy blogger, you’d think the Fisher-Price Apptivity Seat for newborns — an infant seat with a holder for an iPad — would be something I appreciate. But I do not. Nor, it seems, do a number of advocacy groups that want it pulled off the market because they think iPads and babies are a dangerous combination.

Fisher-Price insists its seat is a sign of the times and age appropriate. I have done enough homework on early childhood development to tell you that not only is this seat a symptom of lazy parenting, it is guaranteed to make your baby more stupid.

It Takes Effort

Those of us who are parents know that raising children takes much more effort than we had originally planned, and this just doesn’t sit well with some people. Does the Fisher-Price Apptivity Seat promote laziness? I’m not sold on that. The kind of parent that overuses baby seats and hardly holds or interacts with their children may find that the Apptivity Seat supports their lifestyle. But if it wasn’t available, they’d just use the TV.

What’s more, research suggests it might be detrimental to a child’s development.

The Wrong Stimulation

Tablets give off blue light, which has been shown to disrupt sleep patterns. This isn’t ideal for newborns, who are supposed to sleep every 90 minutes, according to pediatrician Marc Weissbluth, author of Healthy Sleep Patterns, Happy Child. Naps promote healthy growth, so why would you want to disrupt them?

In Your Brain On Childhood, developmental psychologist Gabrielle Principe outlines the way that an infant’s brain develops. Screen time can actually delay that growth. She says babies learn through eye contact and interaction with the world. In fact, humans are the only primates with the whites of our eyes showing, Principe explains, which means we teach with our eyes. When we say the word “apple,” our babies know what we mean because they follow our pupils to that object.

When babies look at a screen, they’re not following their parents’ eyes and movements; instead, they are staring at something that does not interact with them. Sure, apps may try to engage babies, but they don’t have eyes or limbs. Babies can neither make eye contact with, nor imitate an avatar — no matter how cute. Most developers of children’s apps know this; that’s why most apps are written for children over 2, who are far too big for the Apptivity Seat.

Screen the Screen

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screen time before babies are at least 2 years old. I admit that I did not abide by this rule, but I also avoided handing my children a tablet just to shut them up. I played carefully selected apps with them. I used the tablet as an interactive book — not as a babysitter. I made and still make efforts to limit screen time.

There will come a day when we have to tear electronics out of our kids’ hands. We will beg them to talk to us, look at us, interact with us. I am painfully aware of this. So why place them in front of screens almost from the moment they emerge from the womb?

In Brain Rules For Baby, brain scientist John Medina says there are two statistically significant ways to boost a child’s intellect: Talk to your baby, and nurse for up to a year. Not everyone can do those things, but do you want a tablet in your way while you try?

If you’re a lazy parent, you’ll come up with plenty of excuses to defend Fisher-Price’s $80 Apptivity Seat. But if you’ve done your homework, and read the research on early childhood and brain development, you’ll steer clear of it.

Source: http://mashable.com/2013/12/14/fisher-price-apptivity-seat/
Follow Natali Morris on Twitter @NataliMorris

“Fisher-Price’s Apptivity Seat Is Bad for Babies” was a Trending Topic on Twitter this past December

 

Read the Reviews in Amazon

There are many passionate reviews of the product on Amazon. Click the image to read.

amazon-reviews

 

From the American Academy of Pediatrics

aapMedia is everywhere. TV, Internet, computer and video games all vie for our children’s attention. Information on this page can help parents understand the impact media has in our children’s lives, while offering tips on managing time spent with various media. The AAP has recommendations for parents and pediatricians.

Today’s children are spending an average of seven hours a day on entertainment media, including televisions, computers, phones and other electronic devices. To help kids make wise media choices, parents should monitor their media diet. Parents can make use of established ratings systems for shows, movies and games to avoid inappropriate content, such as violence, explicit sexual content or glorified tobacco and alcohol use.

Studies have shown that excessive media use can lead to attention problems, school difficulties, sleep and eating disorders, and obesity. In addition, the Internet and cell phones can provide platforms for illicit and risky behaviors.

By limiting screen time and offering educational media and non-electronic formats such as books, newspapers and board games, and watching television with their children, parents can help guide their children’s media experience. Putting questionable content into context and teaching kids about advertising contributes to their media literacy.

The AAP recommends that parents establish “screen-free” zones at home by making sure there are no televisions, computers or video games in children’s bedrooms, and by turning off the TV during dinner. Children and teens should engage with entertainment media for no more than one or two hours per day, and that should be high-quality content. It is important for kids to spend time on outdoor play, reading, hobbies, and using their imaginations in free play.

Television and other entertainment media should be avoided for infants and children under age 2. A child’s brain develops rapidly during these first years, and young children learn best by interacting with people, not screens.

Source: http://www.aap.org/en-us/advocacy-and-policy/aap-health-initiatives/Pages/Media-and-Children.aspx

Baby Brain Rules

 What do YOU Think?

1 thought on “Babies and Mobile Devices. Where Are YOU on the issue?”

  1. Pingback: IPADs in a Baby Swing? | Shanna Laney

Comments are closed.

Recent Posts

  • 100 of the Best Quotes About Reading
  • Elon Musk: Warns Against Killer Robots
  • Gamification In Genetics
  • Dr. Joyce Stewart Everett School District Honored
  • Flipped Classroom Bridges the Gap To Gen Y

Categories

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • Augmented Reality (AR)
  • Blended Learning
  • Creativity
  • deep learning
  • Educational Change
  • Future Tech
  • Game Based Learning
  • Gamification
  • Higher Education
  • Higher Order Thinking
  • Hololens
  • Infographic
  • Internet of Things
  • Internet Safety
  • Liberal Arts
  • Minecraft
  • Mobile Learning
  • neural network
  • News
  • Online Learning
  • Robotics
  • Social Media
  • Technology
  • Uncategorized
  • video
  • Virtual Reality (VR)

Archives

  • November 2018
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • December 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • March 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • March 2012
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • July 2010
  • March 2010

Tag Cloud

#highered BYOD college college cost college debt college debt crisis Coursera e-learning edtech education educational educational technology elearning facebook flipped classroom game based learning games Gamification Google Higher Education infographic Internet internet of things Internet Safety iot ipad LEARNING liberal arts MIT mlearning MOBILE mobile devices Mobile Learning mooc online Online Learning People Safety school STUDENT Teacher Tech tuition twitter video
©2023 Kevin Corbett – #EdTech | Theme by SuperbThemes