Summary: The Ambiguity Of Playtime

As we all know, technology has greatly changed everybody’s lives, specifically the development of children. I believe the major negative effect that technology has produced is that it has reduced the amount of playtime. Playtime is a powerful tool that aids in the development of children. Best of all, play is a free activity. According to the book called The Ambiguity of Play:

‘‘Play is the most ideally effective form of developmental aid because the child becomes familiar with the world, himself, and his limits’’ (Sutton-Smith, 2001)

Play helps children communicate and interact with other children. It is a form of exercise, which is beneficial to everyone. Because children are spending so much time indoors, they are starting to live a sedentary

They see it as a place for socialization and interaction. Most parents do not allow their kids to go out to play in the streets. They believe that every person that would interact with their child will be a bad influence on them. It is understandable to a point. People believe the streets influence children making them more vulnerable to weapons, delinquency, etc. It is true that there is a lot of delinquency nowadays. It is also true that everyone is exposed to maladaptive behaviors, but not everyone is affected. The streets are not violent at all times. Teenagers need to hang out and ‘‘chill’’ with other people their age. They do so by going to the park. They do not necessarily use the slides, they mainly go to talk and unwind.

The 21st century is the century of digital media and new technology. Technology gives us many learning opportunities. However, it can be very addicting if not used wisely. Everyone uses online networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, and online games. People seem to be addicted to such networks and tend to stay indoors to ‘‘keep up’’ with them. A research project called digital media youth research was conducted from 2005-2008. The project focused on the correlation between youth, new media, and learning. The following statement was extracted directly from the