Guest Post By Scott Reddler
It’s no secret that we are raising children in an increasingly digital environment. They have access to television, gaming consoles, computers, tablets, and smartphones. In fact, most of our sweet boys and girls have no recollection of a time before the Internet or days when everyone had landlines in our homes. And, don’t even get us started on the difficulty of trying to explain dial-up connections or modems to today’s kids.
This modern invasion of technology has offered our families many benefits and perks. We can share information, ideas, and communicate with each other at the swipe of a screen. Within seconds, we can connect to a world of ideas and resources. Smartphones and other devices are allowing people to express themselves in surprising ways. Unfortunately, hidden among all the positives, we are finding out that all of our gadgets and devices are exposing our sons and daughters to some scary and dangerous situations.
Over the past few years we have read or heard the terrifying tales of cyberbullying, sexting scandals, online predators, and identity theft gone wrong. Even with all the negative possibilities, we know our boys and girls will need to understand how to safely use and navigate digital technology, like smartphones. This dark side of today’s tech can find many of us questioning the role we should allow it to play in our children’s lives, because we know that these gadgets and devices aren’t going to disappear, if anything they will become more prevalent in our society, schools, and jobs.
