How the iPad replaced the toy chest: Researchers find children play with touchscreens more than traditional toys - The following claim was made in Mail Online in the Science and Technology section. This online paper originates in the UK and appears to look much like the New York Post strewn with photos and the latest scandals. Nevertheless, I tracked down the research report and came across this disclaimer:
The research was funded by the U.S. Department of Education as part of the Ready To Learn program, award
numbers U295A100016 and U295A100026. The contents of this report were developed under a cooperative
agreement with the U.S. Department of Education. However, these contents do not necessarily represent
the policy of the Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal
Government.
The report was written by a firm called the Michael Cohen Group LLC and taken from this infograph. The Joan Ganz Cooney Center, always monitoring the landscape of children’s interactive media, was listed as one of the resources, as well as Common Sense Media, who rates and advocates for kids, families, and schools and always has trustworthy information. These are both very respected and reputable organizations, so my thinking is the article must be legitimate. We are living in a time where technology is rapidly changing, we need to harness this and use its powers to educate our children. There has never been a time where we are so aware of how children play, learn, and develop; we need to apply this knowledge into our everyday life, as this cutting edge technology continues to infiltrate all aspects of our lives.
Touchscreens have overtaken every other type of toy to become the most popular way children play, researchers have found
How the iPad replaced the toy chest: Researchers find children play with touchscreens more than traditional toys
- More than 60% of parents claiming that their child uses a touchscreen
- Most popular use is games
- Increasingly they have their own device
By MARK PRIGG
The poll found more than 60% of parents claiming that their child uses a touchscreen. They have overtaken dolls, action figures, board games and other traditional toys - and experts say their popularity is still rocketing.
'I have never seen a more intuitive technology for children,' said Michael Cohen. His firm, the Michael Cohen Group (MCG) today released the results of its recent nationwide survey, which polled 350 parents about the play habits of their children 12 and younger. Touchscreen devices got the most overall playtime according to the poll, with more than 60 percent of parents claiming that their child uses a touchscreen 'often' and roughly 38 percent claiming 'very often.' 'Touchscreens are the primary play activity now,' he said.
He said the rise of the touchscreen has been incredible.
'We've been tracking children for around 30 years.
'I've never seen the world changing as fast as it is now. It took 30 years for TV to be accessible to everyone - this is the most rapid introduction of a technology we've witnessed.'
Researchers found that over 70% of children in all income levels are living in homes with smartphones and over 55% with tablets.
Increasingly they also have their own device.
'Of the kids who have access, 36% own their own device - and that was in single digits last year,' said Cohen. 'That figure will skyrocket.'
Touchscreens beat toys that have been around for decades, such as dolls and action figures, arts and crafts, and construction-based toys, all of which had a roughly 50 percent usage rate on the poll. Gaming consoles had a usage rate of a bit less than 50 percent, with other children's staples such as vehicles, puzzles, and board games landing closer to 40 percent. The poll reveals that 10 percent of parents 'always' consider touch devices as playthings, while 58 percent considered them 'sometimes' toys. The remaining 32 percent claimed that mobile devices should never be put in the same category as physical play products.
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