Effects of Technology on Youth

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The Effects of Technology on Our Youth In this world immersed in technology, our children as well as we adults have become dependent upon technology to fulfill our needs of entertainment, play, and social life. Marc Prensky describes those who have grown up with a steady influence of technology such as video games, internet, and television as “digital natives” (Herman, 2012, p. 36). The majority of the youth today fall under the category of being digital natives. Video games and television may have its negative effects on children and adolescents, but there are also beneficial outcomes of youth getting involved in the modern technology around them. Children undergo a critical stage of development which starts at birth and continues through the age of six. Upon reaching the age of eleven youth go through another extravagant brain development stage which lasts till the age of thirteen. In both of these stages of development our children learn and develop key cognitive functions (Herman, 2012, p. 36). Some of these key functions include mathematics, language, and social understanding (Heath, 2013, p. 177). Witherspoon and Manning (2012) report that children develop such functions best through play – a critical part in helping them develop to their full potential. A study done by the American Academy of Pediatrics informs us of how play, free of structure and rules, promotes the development of social, emotional, and cognitive functions. Play also helps children to manage stress and to be emotionally flexible. Throughout childhood and adolescence play plays a powerful role in the development of the brain by keeping them connected to the environment and those around them. At this day and age we find our children are experiencing far more developmental hindrances such as depressions, tobacco abuse, drug abuse, alcohol abuse, and early sexual interactions. Common
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