New Telstra research shows that 1.3 million households with school-aged children are likely to have at least one tablet, with 62 per cent of these tablet owners having purchased the device for education.Additionally, 40 per cent of households with school children that don’t have a device are considering purchasing a tablet for education, the research reveals.
However, while 71 per cent of parents believe their child’s education has benefited from tablet access, parents are also often concerned about their children “spending hours in front of screens, passively consuming content”.
Shelly Gorr, Telstra Digital Inclusion team senior adviser, noted “parents can play a part in encouraging their children to become digital creators rather than just consumers of technology”, improving digital literacy and setting them up for the careers of the future.
Gorr observed that, with science, technology, engineering and maths skills set to be a requirement of 75 per cent of the fastest-growing occupations, “increasing kids’ digital literacy can help equip them with the skills they will likely need for their future”.
“An emerging trend is the ‘digital maker’ movement, using technology to further explore children’s passions and hobbies, opening up richer digital experiences and new avenues for creativity and expression,” she commented. “This might be digital storytelling, or making art, music and video with digital tools.
“At a deeper level, digital making involves learning about the underlying technology itself, such as learning how to code to create your own website, app or game, or design and 3D print an object.”
While parents have bought their children a device for school, in a lot of instances they “don’t know how to manage it, or they aren’t aware of the implications of their child using a device”, Gorr observed.
“Often, this is because parents incorrectly think they need to be an expert, or that it costs money to promote safe and responsible device use,” she commented.
“There are a number of simple steps every parent can take that don’t cost money, and which will ensure their children are using their devices responsibly.
“These are things like setting ground rules and agreeing limits on usage, ensuring the device is password-protected, turning off devices when kids go to bed and reminding kids to be respectful when posting content online.”
Telstra offers the following tips:
– Help your children set up their devices to maximise safety: ensure they are password-protected and lock automatically, and that the privacy settings on their various accounts and social media are turned on and strengthened, and make the most of parental controls to help avoid inappropriate content.
– Set ground rules: smartphones, tablets and laptops are all expensive to replace, so give kids some responsibility for the care and maintenance of their devices. Set parameters around how much data can be used and who will pay for in-app purchases or if they exceed their data limit.
– Balance screen time with offline activities: encourage kids to have some screen-free time each day and turn off devices before bedtime for a better night’s sleep.
– Value personal information: talk to your children about the value of personal information, what it is and why it’s important to be careful sharing it.
– Use your device for good: teach kids to treat others the same way they’d like to be treated online, encouraging them to take a moment to consider whether a message, post or image could upset or embarrass someone else.
– Get your digital licence: help kids hone their digital smarts with the eSmart Digital Licence, an engaging and interactive cyber-safety quiz (age 10+).
