I spotted this story at Techdirt, but it apparently originated with stories in the Times Online and Asian News International (links are below). The stories quote a UK professor:
Lydia Plowman, Professor of Education at the University of Stirling, says parents should stop feeling pressurized into buying computerised toys for young children because they are no better than traditional methods of teaching children the basics.
Families eager to introduce their children to new technology should use lap-tops, mobile phones and other gadgets already in the home rather than splashing out on custom-built computers, she says.
"These toys are not particularly beneficial, although they are not particularly harmful either. There is no problem having them in the home. But in terms of literacy and numeracy they are certainly not more effective than more traditional methods of helping children to learn," she was quoted by Times Online, as saying.
In particular, she recommends giving children old mobile phones to play with so they can pretend to call their friends. "Family members often change their phone every year and give their old one to their young child. That's a very good way of introducing them to technology in an authentic setting," she said.
Link: Zee News: Old mobile phones are the best educational toys for your kids!
She begins with a good, though not terribly original, point: kids certainly don't need the newest electronic toys. The problem is with her suggestion that you discard your old phones or other gadgets by giving them to young children as toys. This is a stunningly bad idea for many reasons:
- Mobile phones have small parts that can break off and be a choking hazard.
- Mobile phones have toxic parts inside.
- If you turn the phone on so that it will make pleasant beeps (which people apparently do, according to the Techdirt story), you could be exposing your child to radiation. Not enough is known yet about the effects of mobile phone radiation, but if it's dangerous you can be sure it's most dangerous to young children, who have thinner skulls.
- Apparently toddlers have been known to dial 911 on old mobile phones (according to Techdirt). In the U.S. all phones will connect to emergency 911 services, even if service hasn't been paid for on the phone.
- Finally, and less importantly, the idea that toddlers need to be "introduced to technology in an authentic setting" is just silly -- no kid is going to be left behind because they weren't exposed to cell phones early enough.
In the ZDNet story about this, the writer is baffled by how to safely dispose of an old cell phone:
You were probably wondering what to do with that old cell phone anyway. It's bad karma to throw it away and have its components toxins leach into the landfill. The thrift stores won't take it.
It's not that difficult -- and it's worse than "bad karma" to throw it in the trash. Here are a few ideas; you can find more on the web.
- Many women's shelters and senior centers accept old mobile phones so that they can be used in emergencies.
- Many office supply stores have recycling bins for phones and other electronics that need to be disposed of safely because of toxic batteries and other components.
- Some cell phone manufacturers are (finally) initiating take-back programs so that you can return them to the manufacturer for safe recycling and disposal.
- Check out your community's hazardous waste disposal guidelines.
Links to stories mentioned:
"It's bad karma to throw it away and have its component's toxins leach into the landfill."
So, GIVE IT TO YOUR TODDLER, because they know how to dispose of things toxic.
Posted by: Neil | Thursday, November 23, 2006 at 06:41 PM