The Effects of Media on Children [Infographic]

Children are being exposed to more media today than ever before. Children under the age of two spend twice as much time watching TV and videos as they do reading books, and 42 percent of children ages zero-eight have a TV in their room. Of children who use digital media, an average of nearly two hours of their day goes to television.

Parents are becoming concerned with the media saturation in their children’s lives. Seventy-three percent of parents would like to limit their children’s TV watching. They are concerned about social media as well, their main concern being the violation of their children’s privacy. Sixty-six percent of parents talk to their children about the dangers of social media sites.

Though there are concerns about television and social media, technology can be used as an effective teaching tool in today’s classroom. Seventy-four percent of teachers say that incorporating tablets into the classroom would be helpful to their students’ learning. The downside is teachers say that attention span suffers as a result of media usage.

Though there are positive effects of media on childrens’ lives, by and large the negative effects outweigh the positive. To learn more about the effect of media and technology on children in the US today, check out the infographic below.

Source: Early Childhood Education Degrees