I am a hypocrite.

I love technology, I get excited about it, and I like to embrace it. I am also a private person and do not like sharing things on Social Media and I do not really understand that culture very well (of sharing). I do not mind sharing with those I am close to, but I have this strange feeling of people grandstanding when they use social media.

You may think I am a hypocrite because I love tech, but do not like social media. That is not why I am a hypocrite. I understand why some may like social media, I just am not the sharing type of person.

I am a hypocrite because of how I am raising my children. My daughter is 6 (almost 7) and my son is 4. On an unengaged week (where I am just not in the mood to wrestle, be a dinosaur, tell a story, build with legos, play family…etc.) I am more inclined to utilize a screen to keep my children occupied. On a week like that, my children may get, a maximum, of 8 hours of screen time. This does not happen often. They usually get around two hours a week, an extra hour or two in the winter, and less in the summer. In fact, we have not even tried to figure out how to work the Apple TV in the house we are staying at this summer.

Today in class we had an very interesting guest lecturer, Jessie Miller, https://www.mediatedreality.com/ He talked about the roles we can play in shaping digital citizenship for youths. This has made me think of my parenting with my children.

I do involve technology in their lives. They both fluidly navigate their Google Home to play their favorite songs and tell them stories. My daughter enjoys building (and occasionally programming) her Lego Boost set. But I do not encourage them to use screen time, and definitely limit the amount of time they can watch TV. I think my main concern with the type of screen time they crave (TV) is that it is such a passive form of learning. They passively consume the media. I try to get them to be in control of their passions, playing, and learning.

I am now starting to think that I should start having conversations with my daughter about digital literacy, sharing, and media. I am not sure how I will navigate it, but am sure I can handle it. This especially hit home when I looked over BC’s Digital Literacy Framework. According to that, a child should be exposed and aware of a lot of social structures and workings of the Internet by grade 2. As my daughter is entering grade 2 this year, I now feel I should help her be aware of how to navigate this space more purposefully so that she can be more prepared to excel within it, if she wants, later in her life.

Maybe I am not a hypocrite, maybe I am just more of a cautious parent trying to navigate this world.

I would probably say the same things to my students. The more they can be actively in control of what they are consuming, doing, and participating in, the more they will be living the lives that they want.