RAISING ALPHA: So your kid wants to be an influencer? Maybe that’s not so bad.

I am continuing to follow with great interest the bubbling conversations happening around the topic of a ‘digital childhood’. On the whole I’m welcoming all of the action and loving how nuanced the conversation is getting, talking more about specific devices, platforms, behaviours, ages and maturity levels versus a blanket ‘screentime’ point of view. One thing that does really stand out to me though is how adult-led this conversation is. Some argue that’s necessary, taking the point of view of say drugs and other substances, how we wouldn’t allow kids to make their own choices about them as they’re not ready and it’s our job to protect them. I agree. It is our role to protect them and we should make decisions in their best interests. That said, the problem we have with technology is that it is not wholly bad, there are many benefits and it is a part of the world they live in, actually I’d argue it’s going to be more relevant to them than it is to us making these decisions. I hope the next evolution of this conversation is less about rules and bans and more about a shared understanding of how to get to the best parts and stay there. Even the notion of a ‘digital childhood’ is a very adult perspective as it’s drawn from a point of view of comparing a time without to a time with something kids cannot relate to.