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Most Parents Allow Unsupervised Internet Access To Children At Age 8
colinneagle writes "The timing for this study is interesting, given the arrests of two teenagers believed to have bullied a 12-year-old classmate until she committed suicide, but Microsoft found that 94% of parents said they allow their kids unsupervised access to at least one device or online service like email or social networks. The average age at which most children are allowed access to at least one online service, such as email or social media, was 8 years old, while 40% allow children under the age of 7 to access a computer unsupervised."
My kids are 4 and 7. They've been exposed to computers as early as possible. We play a lot of minecraft. The 7 year old has graduated to looking at odd things on youtube and "Movie Star Planet" She loves to tell me, "If you search Justin Beiber on google, it says, "Justin Beiber eats poop"
I think it's good.
Just last week I'm building a PC and the older one wants to help. It wasn't a full build, just plugging in cables. I was in shock though, she pretty much knew where everything was supposed to go. She just lacked the hand/eye to wiggle things in correctly.
In school they're both far ahead of their peers in terms of reading and typing.
You cannot filter everything they see and are aware of forever. It is the Internet, not real life, they cannot actually get hurt, decapitated, or disabled while using it.
That is why the Internet is such a great place for children to explore unfettered. Little Jonny can wonder off alone and learn about the word and himself, and you do not actually have to worry about them being eaten by a wolf or breaking their leg like our parents/grandparents used to, when learning about the worded entailed large amounts of real danger and life threatening situations.
As far as I am concerned, knowingly filtering a child's knowledge, and retarding their ability to learn, is nothing sort of child abuse.
Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
Here too, bro.
When I was 4, I walked 3/4 of a mile to a neighbor's house, cutting through a cornfield along the way, just to bring back a few quarts of strawberries for my mom.
When I was 8, I hung out unsupervised in that very cornfield lighting off firecrackers with kids 8, 9 and 10 years old.
By 10, we all walked along the interstate to the truckstop to look for half-smoked cigarettes on the ground left behind by truckers.
By 12, we were picking jimson weed along the highway to mix in with the cigarettes.
At 13, I was hanging out with 15 and 16 year olds who knew where to get pot.
By 14, I was one of those kids who knew where to get pot.
At 16, my source of pot introduced me to meth. I soon was selling it to one of my friends' mom in exchange for sexual favors (unprotected).
At 17, I got arrested for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possesion of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, was tried as an adult and spent 18 months in prison.
Now I'm 27, I've been clean for 9 years and work as a social worker with kids/young adults whose parents, like mine, couldn't be bothered to supervise them. This is real life.