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Wait Until 8th

waituntil8th.org

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Re: Wait Until 8th

#301

Post by tuumi »

miki123211 wrote: post #292

As somebody who grew up right when the smartphone wave was starting, I feel extremely uneasy about ideas like this one. I have had almost unrestricted access to a computer since the age of 9, and to a smartphone since the age of 12, and I can definitely say that I wouldn't be the person I am right now without that access. It's sad to see people lament the demise of the "hacker spirit" on one hand, while denying their…

You may have a case if there isn't access to any other tech. My five year old son and I use the PC and 3D print to make cool contraptions. We use a computer for Xlights to make light shows for the holidays. He isn't quite ready for online gaming but that could be an option in a few years. There he would, hopefully, be able to have communication with people around the world. This link references smart phones and the unfettering access kids have that rewires the brain due to the short quick dopamine hits of social media.

Re: Wait Until 8th

#302

Post by pflenker »

Indirectly related to smartphone usage - it’s incredibly hard for teenage kids to actually _find something to do_, at least here in Germany, where I live. Going to watch a movie is very, very expensive - without snacks, you pay around 10 EUR, while the recommended amount of pocket money is around 30 EUR per month. There are less and less public swimming pools, playgrounds usually don’t appeal to teens and are frequently neglected (on top of that, teens who meet at a playground are often chased away since they tend to leave litter behind, and the playgrounds are for younger kids).

The list goes on. In my opinion, we shouldn’t focus on taking smartphones away, thus limiting the options to do something even further, but instead focus on creating compelling, affordable alternatives, and teach kids to use their smartphones responsibly.

Re: Wait Until 8th

#303

Post by zelphirkalt »

BirAdam wrote: post #295

My son is in high school. He has a smartphone. He doesn’t have social media accounts. I was just honest with him about how such companies make money, how they actively encourage addiction, etc. He chose, like me, to not have accounts with those companies. I am not sure why people believe that they cannot explain things to their children. My son was in middle school when we had this chat.

I congratulate you, for having a son, who is able to be so principled about things like that. It is great that you had this informing chat as a parent with your child, and that he was able to understand and draw his conclusions.

That said, I think for many kids that social pressure or network effect is quite a motivator to get social media accounts. Say all their friends have one and they have a group, where they usually organize. Or say they are interested in someone and wants their contact info, but they only give them their social media details. For many people traditional ways of communication are somehow not their way any longer. I am talking about e-mail, phone calls, SMS, letters, and whatever else.

It is a sad fact, that most people become supporters of the big tech data sharks, even if unknowingly, by creating peer pressure. I wish you and your son can both stay strong in your resolves and that your environment is not too excluding.

Re: Wait Until 8th

#304

Post by batch12 »

miki123211 wrote: post #292

As somebody who grew up right when the smartphone wave was starting, I feel extremely uneasy about ideas like this one. I have had almost unrestricted access to a computer since the age of 9, and to a smartphone since the age of 12, and I can definitely say that I wouldn't be the person I am right now without that access. It's sad to see people lament the demise of the "hacker spirit" on one hand, while denying their…

> Unrestricted (and even more importantly, unmonitored)

As someone who grew up during the beginnings of the web, and started playing with programming when I was about 7, I'd agree that access to technology is important. As a parent that has the responsibility of making sure my kids develop good habits and stay safe, I believe that access to the internet should be restricted and monitored.

Re: Wait Until 8th

#305

Post by gr4vityWall »

I have mixed feelings about this. Having unrestricted access to my devices at an early age is what made me have a career in software development later on. Having a computer, portable consoles, and then smartphones on was crucial - those were the devices I were playing with, and eventually tried developing for, or even just running homebrew programs.

Some of my lifelong friendships were made over the Internet, sometimes at a very young age (9~10yo), and we still talk to this day. I started posting on forums back when I was 7. Some of my friends got into their careers in similar ways - for example, by playing sysadmin when they were kids, then teenagers.

I don't know. I have mixed feelings about this. I think not allowing smartphones to be used in class is more reasonable.

Re: Wait Until 8th

#306

Post by vasco »

thebruce87m wrote: post #271
vasco wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Primary 1 seems to be a pre-primary school type curriculum and you leave secondary school at the same exact age. So you reinforced the parents point, even your exception is pretty much the same except you call it P1 instead of nursery. From what I read, in most schools P1 activities are play based, many times there's no individual desks. It's basically kindergarten.

I think I’m missing your point- is your (overall) point that I should have known what age range 8th grade is in the US without looking it up? And that I should also know what activities happen in a US kindergarten?

My point is 6 years old is a good heuristic to use for "start school" age and even scotland is similar

Re: Wait Until 8th

#307

Post by GreenWatermelon »

miki123211 wrote: post #292

As somebody who grew up right when the smartphone wave was starting, I feel extremely uneasy about ideas like this one. I have had almost unrestricted access to a computer since the age of 9, and to a smartphone since the age of 12, and I can definitely say that I wouldn't be the person I am right now without that access. It's sad to see people lament the demise of the "hacker spirit" on one hand, while denying their…

You had access to a computer for 3 entire years before you had access to a smartphone, that's what contributed to your growh. Had you had the phone forst, I doubt you would've attained the same growth.

Smartphones these days aren't tools that promote creativity and curiosity; they are passive consumption devices. They promote brain-rot and short attention spans, extremely hostile to curiosity and tinkering, promote walled-gardens and siloed ecosystems as they are designed to funnel you unto the specific add-ridden attention strip-mining facilities they call "Social Media" ala facebook, instagram, tiktok, and all that crap.

I would feel more at ease sendingy kids to a red light district.

Re: Wait Until 8th

#310

Post by thebruce87m »

vasco wrote: post #306
thebruce87m wrote: post #271

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think I’m missing your point- is your (overall) point that I should have known what age range 8th grade is in the US without looking it up? And that I should also know what activities happen in a US kindergarten?

My point is 6 years old is a good heuristic to use for "start school" age and even scotland is similar

I’ve had really strange replies to my original reply. I posted some information that I had to look up for the benefit of other people and now for some reason I need to say that school starts around age 6 in my country when my son started Primary 1 when he was closer to 4.5.

Others are trying to say that I should somehow automatically know that most of the world uses the similar(?) age ranges. I don’t even know what age school starts at in other parts of the UK despite sharing borders with them. Maybe I’m ignorant but it’s never been information that I needed to know or retain.

Was posting the age range of US grade 8 so controversial?

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