Barbara Correa writes about work and family for the Los Angeles Daily News.Kids are logging on younger and younger
I'm kind of a Luddite -- if my husband would go for it, I would live without a TV, and I'd prefer that my kids not log on until they are in middle school. I realize that probably won't fly in the United States of 2008.
But I felt somewhat vindicated when I started reading a fascinating new study by Sesame Workshop.
The research finds that out of 69 video games marketed as educational, only two feature traditional educational content (literacy, math and science). The report, D is for Digital, calls for the development of more content that is truly educational.
Other findings: children beginning to use electronic gadgets at age 6.7, as opposed to age 8.1 in 2005 and they are increasingly multitasking, packing 8 ½ hours of media consumption into 6 ½ hours. And parents? The accept that their kids have become consumers of digital media, and a majority say video games are a positive aspect of their children's lives. See the complete study: www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/pdf/DisforDigital.pdf