My first opportunity to observe a child using computer technology for entertainment and learning was with my three year old nephew in September, 2001. I'd only been relying on the internet myself for about 3 years at that point, and I was impressed to see how quickly he learned new things for an only moderately intelligent mass of cells.
The games were most likely from Disney, Atari or Nintendo.....pretty old-school for today's PlayStation sophisticates. Concern over the effect all this new 'computer stuff' was having on kids began to emerge in 2001: The warnings from this August 2001 article in The Guardian that "Hi-tech maps of the mind show that computer games are damaging brain development and could lead to children being unable to control violent behaviour" made me laugh out loud just now. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/aug/19/games.schools. Evil nephew-conspirator punched me later that month while his parents were away, later tattling to his mother right in front of me that 'Kathleen hit me!'
More than a decade later, news of various research studies showing how technology is changing our brains is center screen. Embedded in this 2013 article from Huffington Post, "This is How the Internet is Rewiring Your Brain" http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/30/shocking-ways-internet-rewires-brain_n_4136942.html , is a telling slideshow entitled 'What happens in one minute on the internet'.
Whyville is a creation of Numedeon, Inc., "a company started by scientists at the California Institute of Technology's CAPSI (Caltech Pre-College Science Education Initiative), with the mission of creating an engaging, inquiry-based learning platform for children. The first social networking site was thus born in 1999 and since then has been part of the lives of more than 7 million children worldwide." www.whyville.net It has the backing of an illustrious group of investors and the pedigree of a famous founder, Roy Ash. They've won National Science Foundation awards and received a grant to develop PlayMath. This site is worth the effort to explore if you want your kids to smarten up.
Club Penguin is from The Walt Disney Company. They have several links for parents, branded with this trademark:
On the homepage, a video welcomes visitors with an introduction to the site.
This site is a fun, hyper, interactive, fully developed creation. You can bet that Disney's lawyers have fashioned a site that is safe and age-appropriate. www.clubpenguin.com
Habbo is a site that's difficult to review without actually playing the many games that are featured in a bold matrix on the home page. www.habbo.com The banner motto advertises it as "A Strange Place With Awesome People" which might appeal to a bit older youth. It's for ages 13 and up. "Habbo Hotel is meant for users 13 years old or above. Users under the age of 13 are not permitted to register an account on Habbo." I've never hear of its owner, the Sulake Corporation, but that doesn't mean anything, really, as I don't teach children and I'm new to teaching with technology. I do think that parents like to see the endorsements that Habbo offers.
Habbo seems like an entry into a more sophisticated world like Second Life (see my blog from Sunday, April 19th) because it offers Avatars and the players inhabit set spaces like the 'Habbo Hotel'.
In closing, I told you that I'd report back on my Star Stable experience. www.starstable.com My horse's name is Rock Ruby and my alias is Katalin Younghill. I wasn't able to ride outside of the courtyard enclosure because I didn't pay to use the site, I only downloaded it to my Macbook Pro and didn't pay to be a 'star rider'. It's kind of cute, albeit a bit old in terms of tech; the horse isn't anatomically correct by anyone's estimation. It is available in 11 languages, most of them being horse-centric countries like the Netherlands, Germany, France and Hungary.
No comments:
Post a Comment