Is educational software backfiring?
Concern that children who are not exposed to technology at an early age will be left behind are unfounded, Linn says. In fact, she cites “mounting evidence” that a significant amount of time spent in front of a screen — whether watching TV, playing video games, or even participating in educational software — is contributing to attention deficit disorder, obesity, bullying, and even poor standardized test scores. “What’s going on is what the industry calls ‘aspirational marketing.’ They exploit the fact that children want to be like older kids,” Linn says. “If you’re 12, you’re being marketed products for 18-year-olds. And if you’re 6, you’re being marketed products for 12-year-olds. Younger and younger kids are being marketed products more intensively.” Some psychologists say today’s children are essentially the same as they were a century ago. John Cerio, professor of psychology at Alfred University in New York and a practicing child psychologist, says several studies show that techno
