A toddler uses a smartphone in this file photo provided by Yonhap News TV.
SEOUL, April 17 (Korea Bizwire) — In a recent study conducted by the Korea National University of Education’s Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation, it was found that a concerning number of children between the ages of 3 and 5 were introduced to digital devices such as smartphones, tablets, TVs, and laptops before they even turned 24 months old.
Shockingly, over 10 percent of these children had their first digital device before they even turned two.
This trend of younger and younger exposure to technology has sparked calls for appropriate digital safety education for parents.
The report, titled “Developing Support Materials and Content to Strengthen Digital Literacy Competency in 2022,” sheds light on the issue by revealing that 54.3 percent of children in the 3 to 5 age group enrolled in kindergartens nationwide were introduced to digital devices at or before the age of 24 months.
The survey involved 2,179 parents of 3 to 5 year olds who were enrolled in kindergartens across the nation, and was conducted at the end of August last year.
The study also found that the percentage of respondents who reported their child was first introduced to a digital device decreased with age beyond 24 months.
While 24 percent of children were introduced to digital devices when they were 25 to 36 months old, 14.7 percent were introduced to digital devices at 3 years old, 5.4 percent at 4 years old, and 1.7 percent at 5 years old.
As children grow older, the time spent on digital devices generally increases, with 75.1 percent of respondents reporting that their child’s time on digital devices has “increased” as they have grown older.
The average time spent on digital devices per day was found to be split, with 33.6 percent spending 30 minutes or more to less than an hour and 33.2 percent spending an hour or more to less than two hours.
Despite parents setting rules for their children’s device use, as reported by 75.7 percent of respondents, 24.3 percent did not set any rules at all.
Furthermore, the report suggests that parents harbor concerns about the harmful and developmental effects of digital device use in infants and toddlers, as reflected by the higher perception of harmfulness (3.28) compared to the positive perceptions of necessity (3.21), learning effectiveness (3.20), and developmental usefulness (2.91).
The researchers concluded that while parents recognize the need for appropriate use of digital devices, support materials should be developed to help parents use these devices appropriately in infancy and toddlerhood.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
