The ongoing worldwide pandemic and associated quarantines have increased the amount of time that people, especially youngsters, have been spending on online video games. According to Verizon, online gaming was up 75% in the US during the first week of self-isolation in 2020 and the sales of Nintend
Android devices account for about 86% smartphones worldwide. In the US alone, close to 130 million devices run on Android. Affordable and hardy, Android tablets/smartphones are often the first devices for children to explore the online world. Google launched its Android parental control app in 2019
Nearly 50% of homes around the world have a PC (personal computer). Microsoft’s Windows 10 is the most popular OS (operating system) running on over 75% of PCs across the globe! Younger children often take their initial digital footsteps on PCs shared by the entire family. It is therefore extremely
Sexting is the communication of sexually explicit material through online media. While sexting between consenting adults is neither a social evil (in most countries) nor a legal crime, when the act involves underage individuals, it becomes murky waters, both from the ethical viewpoint and legal.
Technology is inevitable and even critical to our daily lives today and plays a vital role in our mental and physical existence in the world – it’s no longer “I think, therefore I am” but is “I digitize, therefore I am”. While technology offers a new and unlimited medium for information and knowled
Parents of teenagers would be able to relate to the scene in which their adolescent ward is staring into their homework, with their thoughts lightyears away. Occasional funk is nothing to be worried about – after all which of us does not need an occasional external motivator to get out of ennui? A t
Many parents do not allow their kids below 13 on social media (and rightly so) but cannot exclude all forms of communication. Emails are a good option here, because there is control on who can communicate with the kid, and emails could actually help the child develop communication skills, like writ
I remember a time in my life that as I closed my eyes to sleep, my brain reverberated with nursery rhymes, the alphabet song, and because I am a nerd and decided to teach my in-house kindergarten kid the periodic table song (yes, I see a psychologist couch in my child’s future), that one. When I was
With the ongoing pandemic and associated protective restrictions on socialization, online tools are being increasingly sought for communication. While older children may resort to mainstream social media to stay in touch with friends and family, this is impractical and probably unsafe for younger ch
Teenspeak in the digital era“WTH*” says my teen, as I pour water over her sleepy head. “KMN*”, she groans, when I remind her that online school starts in about thirty-six seconds, and says, “TSNF*”. *What-The-He##, Kill-Me-Now, That’s-So-Not-FairLiving with a teenager teaches me that this breed of
Children watching pornWhile the age of digital information is here to stay, and indeed benefits humanity in many ways, its risks to kids and adolescents cannot be stressed enough. One such risk is exposure of kids to age-inappropriate content such as pornography – the elephant in the room that must
Why is cyberbullying a serious problem?It is well-established, both objectively and from experience, that the effects of cyberbullying are serious and cannot be ignored. The effects of cyberbullying range from social withdrawal to suicides and are exacerbated by the boundaryless nature of the Intern
