91–98 of 98 posts
So the generation that grew up with free love and drugs did everything to prevent their children from experiencing the same, and the generation that grew up with free tech does the same with tech. The cycle continues.
Something about this topic disturbs me. I would always have loved computers no matter what, but if my parents had restricted my screen time during my obsessive periods I don't think I would be half the programmer I am today.
My parents were like this. They hated video games, and to them the only thing a computer was capable of was video games. They would heavily limit "screen time" or ban it outright, regardless of what I was doing. I would need to spend time doing activities they approved of to earn more "screen time." Writing code? "Stop playing video games and go outside." Toying with Linux? "Stop playing video games and go outside."…
Please don't restrict mediums. Restrict activities.
That's a great way of putting it.
When I turned 8, the deal was to read the chapter of a book (real book, like Jules Verne, Arthur Clarke, etc..) and write it's synopsis. Dad would than read it and correct the grammatical mistakes. If all was well and done, I was allowed 2h of screen time.
Never seen another dad with such an odd methodology
Earlier quoted context omitted.
"I just cannot fathom why parents feel some need to be so controlling about this stuff. It just does not compute for me." Especially on hackernews. We're (mostly?) programmers, right?
Personally, it's about teaching a child to actively seek out information vs passively consuming it. I love programming because it is interactive and I learn continuously. I want to teach my kids the joy of learning by doing. Hence the limitation on passive forms or consumption, like the television and the emphasis on activities like story telling, Lego and drawing.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
My parents were like this. They hated video games, and to them the only thing a computer was capable of was video games. They would heavily limit "screen time" or ban it outright, regardless of what I was doing. I would need to spend time doing activities they approved of to earn more "screen time." Writing code? "Stop playing video games and go outside." Toying with Linux? "Stop playing video games and go outside."…
Have your parents come around at all on this, or do they think you're getting paid to do things they don't approve of now? Please don't restrict mediums. Restrict activities. That's a great way of putting it.
Let me share the unusual approach my father applied. When I turned 8, the deal was to read the chapter of a book (real book, like Jules Verne, Arthur Clarke, etc..) and write it's synopsis. Dad would than read it and correct the grammatical mistakes. If all was well and done, I was allowed 2h of screen time. Never seen another dad with such an odd methodology
My kids are older: 11 and 9. Here are the rules: - Tablets can be used for reading at any time - Schoolwork is a valid reason to use devices - Music without videos is not "screen time". - anything else is "screen time". - Screen time does not exist on Monday through Thursday. (This was originally "from school end until all homework is done", but it turns out that their behavior is significantly worse when we allow th…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
"There's no such thing as educational tv..." I don't see how it's possible to claim this.
Its possible to claim anything. Sometimes harder to justify the claim, though.