Dear Editor,
The points raised in Frank Fyffe’s letter captioned ‘How do we prevent the minds of our children from being polluted?’ (SN, March 15) are quite valid, as the quantum leap into the world of technology is fraught with dangers seen and unseen.
For about a century thanks to the invention of Alexander Graham Bell a phone was simply a tool used to talk to another person; it was not used to take pictures, or send messages, let alone play games. Now the digital age has turned the page. However, it is my firm belief that Mr Fyffe’s concerns, though well founded in fact, should be addressed specifically to parents. There are certain parents who gloat over the fact that their children are able to master technology, and it is the parents who are on the eventual losing end. There is a new language that has been designed specifically for use with digital technology, and you can ask many parents in Guyana how savvy are they regarding the phone slang of their children. Some smart phones contain secret apps that keep inappropriate photos and videos hidden from parents in plain sight. There is an app called Calculator%, which has the external appearance of a calculator, but in reality is a hidden vault. It is all good and dandy if you are searching for a calculator, but in reality children use this app to hide things they do not want parents to see. On another note in the same key, just go to the app store, and search the word ‘secret’, and parents will learn very quickly that there is a growing number of apps in which their children can conceal pictures, videos, photographs, and any number of items from them.
Each digital device throws another monkey wrench in the parenting arena. Parents are forced to become super vigilant and be super savvy. Believe it or not, the era of technology is determining how our future generation will be raised, and what it means as a parent to be on top of your children.
Regarding the smartphone, the existing consensus among experts in child psychology is that there exists no appropriate universal age at which a child is ready for a smartphone. However, it has been pointed out that it is imperative that parents be attuned to the emotional and physical maturity of the child before handing them a smartphone. Sadly, parents will always be outside the loop if they do not ask questions, or fail to establish guidelines prior to the child receiving the phone. Parent and child meeting on common ground to establish guidelines for proper usage and consequences for inappropriate site visiting, etc, can serve to avert future tears, scares, and fears.
Let us not be lulled into a false state of complacency; the danger also lies in messages that employ codes that can lead down some not so nice paths. Communication is vital to prevent incidents that could lead to harm, so parents need to digitally connect with their children and know the language to decipher their codes. For example POS translated does not mean Putting on Shoes, but in technological lingo Parent Over Shoulder; CD9- Code 9- Parents around. PAL—does not mean Peace and Love, but Parents are Listening; KPC is not Kentucky Popcorn Chicken, it is Keeping Parents Clueless.
Simply put, look at the smartphone as one would a car ‒ useful yet dangerous. To quote Albert Einstein: “It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity.” Enough said, aptly put.
Yours faithfully,
Yvonne Sam
