Is the Internet a Waste of Time for Teens?

Posted on November 22, 2008 at 8:00 am

Parents often fear that their kids are wasting their time clicking around the web. But a new study on teen use of online media commissioned by the MacArthur Foundation found that “America’s youth are developing important social and technical skills online – often in ways adults do not understand or value.”
image_teens_computer.jpgThe most extensive U.S. study on teens and their use of digital media was conducted over a three-year period by 28 researchers and collaborators at the University of Southern California and the University of California, Berkeley. They interviewed over 800 young people and their parents, both one-on-one and in focus groups; spent over 5000 hours observing teens on sites such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and other networked communities; and conducted diary studies to document how, and to what end, young people engage with digital media.
“It might surprise parents to learn that it is not a waste of time for their teens to hang out online,” said Mizuko Ito, University of California, Irvine researcher and the report’s lead author. “There are myths about kids spending time online – that it is dangerous or making them lazy. But we found that spending time online is essential for young people to pick up the social and technical skills they need to be competent citizens in the digital age.”
The study found that there were two primary categories of online activity, “friendship-driven” and “interest-driven.” “While friendship-driven participation centered on ‘hanging out’ with existing friends, interest-driven participation involved accessing online information and communities that may not be present in the local peer group….Youth are navigating complex social and technical worlds by participating online.” But, the study concluded, they are not taking full advantage of opportunities to go beyond their known social connections to reach out to new contacts and educational opportunities.
I agree that these skills are important. But I worry that we are ignoring some other skills children and teens also need. No matter how wired we become, in-person social interaction (call it analog if you must), from polite conversation to thank-you notes, will always be indispensable skills, as will research that can only be conducted off-line and the ability to write complete and grammatical sentences. The online world is an important one, but so is RL.
Thanks to my dad (and BFF), Newton Minow, for sharing this study with me.

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Internet, Gaming, Podcasts, and Apps Teenagers Understanding Media and Pop Culture

Parenting the Facebook Generation

Posted on November 15, 2008 at 9:00 am

Be sure to take a look at the excellent Ten Tips for Parenting the Facebook Generation from Beliefnet’s Hesham Hassaballa. Technology has made the risks and humiliations and cliquishness of the early teen years exponentially more treacherous, and these guidelines will help keep kids safe until they can become wise. The most important rule, as always, is loving involvement in your children’s lives, so they know they can talk with you about all of their concerns.

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Internet, Gaming, Podcasts, and Apps Teenagers Tweens

Movie Mom’s Top Children’s Entertainment Blogs

Posted on November 12, 2008 at 6:27 pm

Thanks very much to blogs.com for asking me for my list of the best blogs about children’s entertainment. Please check them out, especially Elizabeth’s Children’s Books Blog, Kids Music that Rocks, Zooglobble (where I found this adorable clip), and, for Potterites, Muggle.net

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Internet, Gaming, Podcasts, and Apps Lists Media Appearances

Indies–Coming Soon to Your Computer

Posted on November 1, 2008 at 8:00 am

Dozens of films released each month never play in theaters outside of a few big cities. But Gigantic Digital is making independent films available online for a modest charge.
For a ticket price of just $2.99, we’ll stream it to you in super high quality. And you can watch it as often as you like for 3 full days before your ticket expires. And there’s some excellent free stuff to watch too! So give the babysitter the night off, park the car in the garage, microwave some popcorn and settle in for a relaxed movie-going experience where you can talk all you want (although we don’t recommend it) and where you never have to turn off your Blackberry (although we do recommend that.)
They only have two films available so far, but more are coming and I hope before too long everyone will be able to see all the quirky little independent films they want without having to go to New York or Los Angeles.

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Independent Internet, Gaming, Podcasts, and Apps

Look Who’s Playing Video Games

Posted on September 15, 2008 at 3:00 pm

NintendoWii.preview.jpgThe Washington Post has a great photo of my friend Ally Burguieres playing video games with her mother and sister. The article says:
Women and girls make up 40 percent of the gamer population, according to the Entertainment Software Association, the video game industry’s trade group. And with game software sales at $9.5 billion last year, companies are paying closer attention to the titles women seek out…
For years, the video game industry spent its marketing dollars on trying to get guys excited about the latest sports or shoot-’em-up title. It was generally assumed that women and girls weren’t interested.
But that started to change in 2004, says industry analyst Michael Pachter, when Nintendo launched its DS portable game system, named for its dual screens. Its features stretched the notion of what a video game is — and who might want to play.Rock_band_cover.jpg
Women gamers even have their own website. And this is a delightful Amazon list of games for “women with lives.” It wasn’t that long ago that it was assumed that women would not be interested in games. Sheri Graner Ray, who says she got into the game industry in the first place “Because it was the only industry where I could list 15 years of running “Dungeons and Dragons” games on my resume as valid job experience!” She wrote a book about “gender inclusive game design.” Microsoft’s xBox brochure tells its buyers “Here are some things you might want to tell your wife this thing does.” Maybe with the next upgrade they will remember that women like Ally Burguieres, currently studying for her PhD in linguistics, don’t need anyone to explain it to them. Women are not just playing, they are entering tournaments.
Late last year, Nancy Davies, an 84-year-old woman living in a retirement community, defeated a real-life bowling champion in a Wii Sports tournament. She had been playing for only one year.

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Internet, Gaming, Podcasts, and Apps Understanding Media and Pop Culture
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