A blog on Wired.com discussed a recent Disney survey that asked parents about their children’s technology usage.
A few of the results:

• 48% of parents said their child began using a cell phone at age 5 or younger
• 80% said they were worried about online safety
• 26% said their children age 8 or younger were allowed to use the Internet by themselves
• 81% gave their children an email address to register for a site online
• 69% have uploaded a photo
• 59% have used instant messaging/chat features
• 7% of parents reported that they themselves buy the newest technology gadgets

The results of the survey indicated that the parents weren’t exactly using good discretion with their children’s technology usage.  Disney created a web site to help parents figure out what technology is age-appropriate for their children.

I navigated around Disney’s web site a bit to see what it was like, and it seemed like it would be pretty useful.  Their technology timeline tells parents a little bit about their child’s cognitive abilities at each age and what type of toys or gadgets would be appropriate to let them play with.  They also offer several articles on kids and online safety tips, the effects of gaming and technology on children, games and quizzes for both parents and children, and suggestions for kid-friendly sites.  I think it’s cool that Disney created this site; I hope it gets well-marketed and that parents find it useful.  From my experiences babysitting, I think more parents should exercise more control over the technology their children use.  I’m always stunned when a young child has a cell phone, gaming device they are addicted to, or only wants to watch movies all day.  When I was growing up, even though that wasn’t that long ago, we didn’t have most of that stuff.  My parents let my sister and I only watch 1 movie a day; the rest of the time we had to use our imaginations and play outside.  I think with the amount of technology available to children at younger and younger ages, it’s asking for trouble if parents don’t maintain tight control of their children’s usage.

Source:  Wired.com