Go ahead and marvel at how fast kids pick up on the iPad and can whiz around the computer, but if you’re from the older generation you’ll be happy to know that you are still one step ahead of today’s tech savvy youth — well as long as you can tie your own shoes.
A new survey of 2,200 mothers by AVG found that while today’s children are quickly gaining the technology skills and know how that will shape their future person to person interactions and career paths, kids aren’t learning life skills.
While I’m not ready to say that computer games are the root cause behind fewer kids learning how to swim or ride a bike, the results below may cause you to question the capabilities of future generations to handle an emergency or get from point A to point B without a car, at least before they turn 6.
- More young children know how to play a computer game (58%) than swim (20%) or ride a bike (52%)
- 28% of young children can make a mobile phone call, but only 20% know to dial 911 in case of an emergency
- 69% of children aged 2-5 can operate a computer mouse, but only 11% can tie their own shoelaces
Take away from this the fact that most children 2-5 can get around the computer, which is a huge change from when I grew up and you were lucky to touch a computer before grade school. Thanks to the iPad, tablets and internet connected devices that parents are sharing with their children I wouldn’t be surprised to see the number of children who can find their way around a computer before they can tie their shoes or swim increase.
Aside from the downside that the time spent on the computer could take away from time spent socializing and learning other life skills parents also need to be aware of the implications of their children using these web connected devices at such an early age.
What do you think about the trend towards younger computer experts?