TechHuman for Families – Critically Digital
Children and young people in the UK are growing up in a world which is radically different than any previous generation. They have easy access to ‘always-on’ nearly pervasive technology that they can carry around with them; often 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. They use technology at school, at home and in their social lives. We see toddlers confidently operating tablets and smartphones. While the capabilities of this technology are amazing; there are worrying signs that the impact of this revolution aren’t universally beneficial to family life and the development of children and young people.
We want to work together to understand the true impact of technology on the lives of families today. We want to celebrate the benefit that it brings and encourage its wise use. We want to stay abreast of current research, understand both the actual harms and the risks that this technology brings and equip parents, grandparents, carers, communities and schools to use technology judiciously.
In our daily discussions with parents, we find a massive range of attitudes to the digital revolution; ranging from unbridled enthusiasm, to fear; from relief to desperation; from anticipation to anxiety. We want to learn how to be Tech-Smart parents. We want to learn what that means in practice. We want to fight for our children’s futures – where technology enhances our capabilities, our humanity, and does not distort human relationships
We want to host a cross-disciplinary dialogue exploring the issues that influence family life, like all the other interest areas we have within the TechHuman goals. We want to do more. Se are committed to getting out into communities with a workshop program where we can listen, share, work as parents, carers and as communities to help families thrive in a digitally dominated world. We know of a growing number of resources available for parents to monitor and manage screen-time and advise on safe settings for social software. We don’t intend to add much to that material – but where it makes sense we will use it. Our vision is to take half a step back:
to explore the hopes and dreams we have for our family life and for our children;
to understand the current and potential impact of technology on those ambitions; and
to develop practical ways to build positive behaviours ensuring that we remain fully present for our children as they grow up.
We will generate resources that will help explain the impact of technology on our lives; and patterns of behaviour that may be helpful to some. We want to help find and grow leaders within communities who with gentleness and wisdom can make sense of the world of digital influenced families and provide support to families on their own unique journeys.
We welcome all inputs. We celebrate the great efforts that we have already discovered in our own research – but there is so much more that still needs to be done. We are committed to playing our part in that struggle for families to thrive and working with others who are trying to do the same thing.
Jonathan Ebsworth