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I will have to deal with this question soon. I am, at this point, really unsure about how to handle it. I do not want to artificially limit my kid to technolog
by zwaps 5y ago
I will have to deal with this question soon. I am, at this point, really unsure about how to handle it.
I do not want to artificially limit my kid to technologies that are no longer really relevant, but I do agree that safeguarding attention is THE skill of the next century, simply because it will be scarce.
Like many here, my thinking is mainly driven by my own experiences:
I started quite early and even though it's not my field of study, I now have this innate "talent" to code and figure out technical problems. I struggle much less to learn tech things. I think it's like starting to play Piano early. I want my kid to learn this and have the confidence in their technical ability as I do. I always felt this gave me a leg up, although it may of course be illusory. In any case, it came through coding early.
However, even back then, I wanted to use the computer for fun. I didn't "try" to be productive. There was no internet, I had barely any books and only a lot of dev software, and no games. So I had to learn to make games myself. And lacking any tutorials or information, I needed to trial and error everything. Would I have done the same today? Or would I have just consumed if Steam or GOG is freely available. Or, even when coding, stackexchange is just a click away. Would I be similarly positive about early computing if I had those things? Who knows?
Obviously, hacking into a bare shell or IDE without any outside info is not how people use computers nowadays. Furthermore, the above reads like a parent trying to recreate his own life in the life of a child. The world is different, surely.
Gah, I don't know.
I suppose the consume vs. create dichtonomy mentioned elsewhere in this thread might be a useful rule.
- throwaway47292 5y ago> Obviously, hacking into a bare shell or IDE without any outside info is not how people use computers nowadays. Furthermore, the above reads like a parent trying to recreate his own life in the life of a child. The world is different, surely. different for sure, most people use computers as spectators, computers happen to them; of course they can enjoy it, just as you can enjoy music without making music. But sometimes I feel musicians appreciate music in a different way, same as woodworkers appreciate a nice table in a different way. Reminds me of 'What I can not create, I do not understand' (Feynman's last board), but not entirely in the way he meant it.
- jvvw 5y agoMine are 8 and 10 and it's hard. They are playing a lot of Minecraft at the moment, and I feel that has really got them into the time of mindset that you describe as a child, making things incredible things out of redstone, more than the programming I have done with them. They do watch lots of videos about minecraft but it is those video that have inspired them to build things and try them. In terms of programming, Scratch is the de facto way of introducing programming these days. It has its pros and cons, but has a lot going for it. Microbits are fun too. Times are different though, and it is hard often to separate time spent creating vs time spent consuming.
- mensetmanusman 5y agoThe consume create dichotomy has worked for us. It’s interesting to see their reaction when I say ‘sure, you can use the iPad/computer, but no shows’ Sometimes it is whining and they go play outside or with toys because they don’t have the desire to use the screen for non-consumption, other times they play some games that have educational qualities or make digital art. Note: the TV is only for family movie night.