There is nothing new about concern over the impact of technology upon the human spirit. As French philosopher Gabriel Marcel wrote more than 50 years ago: “In our contemporary world it may be said that the more a man becomes dependent on the gadgets whose smooth functioning assures him a tolerable life at the material level, the more estranged he becomes from an awareness of his inner reality.”
According to Joshua J. Whitfield, who passed along that quote in a guest opinion piece for the Dallas Morning News, Marcel was writing about the impact of radio upon society. But the words seem positively prophetic in the age of smartphones and other all-consuming technology.
Undoubtedly, there are dangers inherent to our increasing obsession with such devices. As Columbian staff writer Scott Hewitt wrote in a recent story titled “Outsmart your smartphone:” “Some hardcore electronic gamers’ craving to play, and their rush of pleasure as that craving is satisfied, is a ‘druglike’ dynamic, scientists keep saying. Mature decision-making, impulse control and empathy for others all decline; isolation, agitation, impatience and dishonesty all increase.”
In other words, technology has the power to bring the world closer but drive us farther away from our humanity. As 23-year-old Ammon Perea noted in a guest opinion for The Seattle Times, “I am part of a group of kids that has been bombarded with information since we were young, most of which is completely useless.”
Such is the dichotomy of the information age, one that has taken shape in the form of hundreds of TV channels, thousands of movies available on demand, and the entire internet in the palm of your hand.
This is not meant to denigrate the benefits of smartphones or the vast wealth of information at our fingertips. The educational power of modern technology is indisputable. But it is meant as a word of caution, particularly for parents. As The Columbian story detailed, today’s 8- to 10-year-olds average nearly eight hours of screen time per day; older children log more than 11 hours a day. Those numbers represent an excess that has allowed screen time to take the place of actual human interaction, and they warrant some advice culled from experts in the field:
• Set screen-time limits and stick to them.
• Devices are not the educators they’re touted to be; conversation and experience are.
• Children are mimics, so model proper behavior. Never text while driving.
• Teach children that “online” means forever. There is no such thing as privacy and no real “delete.”
There are other guidelines, as well, helping parents to embrace a quickly changing landscape just as their children do. Teachers and school administrators also are navigating that landscape as devices such as iPads become integral parts of education. Both Vancouver Public Schools and Evergreen Public Schools are launching digital learning programs for students, and Mark Ray of VPS noted: “All students who get iPads go through six different layers of training. Who am I online? How is my online behavior affecting others?”
Those remain essential questions for both adults and school kids, and they are ones that must continually be asked. Meanwhile, it is essential to maintain balance between being online and engaging with the real world. Smartphones and other devices can enhance one’s education and understanding of the world. But so can reading a book or going for a hike.
