Click culture comes easy to kids... even to tots. Ask any gobsmacked adult watching toddlers juggle TV, DVDs and PCs. It is really no surprise that children are early adopters of new technologies because their ever curious brains make them infinitely more observant, absorbent and adaptable. We must also include the impact of love, care, stimulation and nutrition.
Confronted by a gadget, toddlers pick up tech-savvy skills simply by playing with them. While techno-phobic parents binge on anxiety because their children's fun and games are so alien to their own upbringing, gizmo geek parents are likely to encourage their tots to go for click culture. They drool at how computer games teach simple but handy sums, and much more.
"Compared with his 12-year old brother, Zac (just turned five) is better at memorising words and figures, problem solving, understanding sentence construction and playing other games," says David, their IT manager father. "Zac also writes and communicates more than George ever did at his age. I am convinced that computer games specifically designed for preschoolers gave him an advantage."
David speaks with soft-spoken enthusiasm and his story is one of millions worldwide thanks to the mega industry of educational software. Only two years ago, Geetha Thaninathan made history when she passed a GCSE in IT at six years of age, joining the list of child prodigies. Wonder kids apart, interaction with technology is boosting children's IQ to unprecedented levels. Indeed, current research in America and Britain puts it at 25 points higher than two generations back.
Scientists are attributing these results partly to the influence of our much more complex, visual orientated and technological age. Ulric Neissr from Cornell University in New York, who has pooled international research on IQ, claims that the trend is predominant in westernised countries. His research points to the stimulating and fun factor provided by computer games and surfing the net. At the same time it is good to keep in mind that intelligence is notoriously difficult to gauge though tests have become more subtle and results more meaningful, even reliably indicating children's exam results and accurately predicting their economic status and earning power in adult life.
There is little doubt of the necessity to keep abreast of IT as it continues to overhaul our lifestyle with breathless speed. Back to the argument of computers as an educational tool, research and revision online are popular among children because they feel in control of the learning process. It also boosts their motivation and self-esteem and does magic to iron out untidy presentation. Besides, revision tests online give instant feedback.
Learning through the net is also fast closing the gap between learning at school and at home and giving a whole new zest to parental support that is so crucial to children's learning plus giving everyone access to a massive cyberspace library that is always open. Furthermore, the internet is realising an undreamt of nirvana for parents keen on educating their children at home, again a trend that is rapidly spreading in Britain despite wiping out the opportunity and challenge to socialise among peers.
Detractors of having children hooked to IT from an early age are not only worried about children's reliance on spell checks rather than bothering to learn how to spell. While computers are seen to improve mathematical reasoning, children are entering school with fewer language skills. Alan Wells, Director of the Basic Skills Agency in the US claims that "grunts and gestures" are replacing family conversation because children are hooked on staring at screens.
The Schwarzenegger typecast takes on a darker twist when we note how aggressive and violent computer games are. Controversy on how much violence on screen turns children into hoodlums and murderers erupts each time a pre-teen or teenager commits a horrifying crime - a phenomenon that is visibly on the increase in westernised societies. Even if we momentarily brush aside the more dramatic but nevertheless appalling abuse via the internet, tots are known to soil themselves when they get carried away by computer games, when these are said to demand perseverance, fast thinking and rapid learning.
Whether IT in the classroom is boosting learning is still questionable. Do relevant statistics take account of individual genetic make-up, personalities and aptitudes? The idea that computer games are the best way to learn is wrong and no substitute for imagination. They are just part of a wide range of activities children should be exposed to, and being aware of the media our children consume is part of good parenting. So much so that parents today cannot afford to be computer illiterate even though few can be as thumb dexterous as their children - just as they cannot afford to stick to the myth of quality time because children cannot be preprogrammed to receive attention in slotted timeframes.
Children need to be cuddled and talked to from day one. They also need to be listened to when they feel the need no matter how drained we may be, though they too must learn to be considerate. Coupled with love and attention, enhancing children's sense perceptions and learning skills goes hand in hand with wholesome meals. Indeed, better nutrition is another crucial determinant in children's learning abilities. Neuroscientist David Horrobin of The Madness of Adam and Eve fame verifies the powerful link between diet and brain function.
He claims that even marginal vitamin and mineral deficiencies impede babies, toddlers and older children from learning. "No amount of education and socialisation is likely to be effective with a biochemical malfunctioning brain," he says. His study is backed by a recent study conducted by Michael Nelson at King's College, London among London adolescents. He found that iron deprivation, a common condition, could reduce children's IQ by up to 10 points. When are we going to see similar studies conducted in Malta?
Meanwhile, what I feel is being glossed over is the added stress computer savvy children face when they aren't discouraged from handing in typed homework, because they will find it difficult to write in exams. Since interactive multimedia is the way forward in schools, so-called education gurus should come up with a quicker solution because anyone who has switched from writing to keyboarding undergoes a radical change in the thinking process so that formulating and coordinating one's script is no longer possible unless a keyboard is at hand.
Haven't these 'experts' woken up to the reality that a pen was reduced to an accessory over 10 years ago?