Those of us from the 1900s likely recall public service announcements that popped up out of nowhere. They often came with a jingle and a star shooting across the screen.
Thought of one in particular this week while editing CNHI’s news series looking at kids and screens. It was the PSA where the dad found his son’s stash of drugs and he yelled to his son, “Who taught you to do this?”
“You, alright! I learned it by watching you!” his son screamed back.
That’s how it is with kids and screens, only without the illicit drugs, but maybe just as dangerous.
We’ve all seen toddlers in high chairs at restaurants, their faces buried in a tablet, often with an oversized, hardcover case to make sure nothing breaks when it inevitably drops.
We would never do that, we note internally. Except we all do that.
How many of us bury our faces in our phones at the dinner table? How many families scatter to their own corners of their home and spend nights in solitude, doom-scrolling through social media?
We live in a digital age. For better or worse. More and more parts of our daily lives revolve around screens: Working, shopping, healthcare, education, banking.
For as much social media as we dive into, we have really become anti-social.
I was fortunate enough to sit through both of CNHI’s digital roundtables with nine high school students from across the country for this series. Students from Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Oklahoma told us about growing up in a digital age.
They were fascinating and important discussions.
All nine are high-achieving students, well above my weight class. We talked of balancing multiple Advanced Placement and dual-enrollment classes, athletics, yearbook assignments, writing for the local or school newspaper, college applications and choices.
Some serious heavy hitters in the group.
The stuff they said was thoughtful and well-meaning. We spent more than an hour with each group; we could have gone another hour easily, just trying to understand a generation who have had screens in front of them since the day they walked into kindergarten.
Some things I noted along the way that stuck with me, especially as someone with kids of their generation:
One student said she was so busy with school, sports and church activities, she had to set an alarm on her phone to remind her to drink water so she didn’t dehydrate during cross-country.
Another said if one of her friends did something she didn’t appreciate online, rather than confront them face-to-face, they were more likely to respond through text.
One talked about how prevalent cyber-bullying has become and because of the 24/7 connected world we live in, you can’t escape it. Several used the word “exhausting.”
A student from the Midwest said someone they knew committed suicide due to cyberbullying. “And nothing changed,” she said.
“Very strict parents tend to have sneaky kids,” one said.
“You do you,” one said when talking about students using AI to cheat. “At least I am learning.”
This group sees the good and bad of screens, the internet, social media and artificial intelligence. They admitted to, at times, mindlessly scrolling, just to escape.
They get it, though, in part because they have embraced what the technology represents and understand the responsibility and risks. Be sure to listen to their voices. If more people handle these tools similarly, the better for all of us.