As a member of Generation X, I’m no stranger to generational labels. But I can’t help being surprised that my daughter’s generation has already been labeled. And unlike her parents, who were saddled with the stereotypes associated with slackers and grunge music, she and her peers will be part of a generation labeled for “the ability to be in touch with each other immediately at earlier and earlier ages.” Now there’s something to name a generation after! So, if you’re child is under 11, you’re the proud parent of a member of Generation We.
Now what does this mean for us as parents? Well, for me it confirms something that my wife and I have already seen: technology will be a huge part of our daughter’s life. She’s not quite eleven-months-old yet, but she’s already banging on the keyboard while Babysplat decorates the screen and plays sounds. And she’s been taking part in webcams with distant relatives pretty much since birth. And while these are fairly trivial examples, she’s not even one-year-old! I’m sure parents of older members of Generation We can share many other examples of how communication and interactive technologies play a role in their family life.
As parents we can take advantage of these technologies and use them to help us be better parents. Like anything we let into our home, they can have both positive and negative effects. It’s our job to help our children understand the difference. For example, when my daughter asks why the sky is blue, instead of stumbling through an explanation of light scattering through the atmosphere, I’ll be able to show her, complete with animations and video. Together we’ll be able to find additional information on related topics. Think I’m kidding? Try Googling “why is the sky blue.”
But will I turn her loose on the computer without supervision? No way! And what about TV? Am I going to hand her the remote so she can access 100+ channels of digital TV by herself? Again, not a chance. Of course, I’m sure there will be a day when my kids will know more about the devices in our home than I do, and perhaps are even able to get around the safeguards their parents put in place. I just hope on that day that our children understand what we expect of them and that we’ve given them the tools they need to make the right choices.
But on a positive note, our kids won’t argue over which show to watch during the critical 8:00–9:00 timeslot like her parents did. Instead, thanks to OnDemand and Tivo, we’re pretty much guaranteed to have something appropriate to watch when we want to watch some television together. Of course, she won’t know why her parents always talk about “taping” a show…
So here’s to Generation We!
[News.com]