he penetration rate of personal computers among primary school students is rising rapidly. With age, the opportunities and time for children to use computers and the Internet continue to increase. And computer-related electronic games have become one of the main activities of children, and have had many impacts on their lives and development. Many parents are worried that computers and video games will have a negative impact on their children.
Rule 1: As the age grows, children spend more time online, and playing games is one of the main activities for children to go online.
The use of computers is becoming more and more popular. A survey involving nearly 200 primary and secondary schools in 10 provinces and cities across the country showed that in 2010 , approximately 17% of primary and secondary school students in the country had personal computers, and the penetration rate in cities was as high as 23% . In 2005 , only 10% of primary and secondary school students had personal computers.
With the popularity of computers, children are increasingly affected by the Internet. According to “Chinese Children Development Droop Report ( 1999-2010 )” shows that 2010 annual use of the network is the proportion of children 2005 year 3 times. According to the survey, in 2010 , 20% of children in the first to third grades of elementary school went online in their spare time; the higher the grade, the longer children spend online; playing games is the most frequent activity for elementary and middle school students to go online. In other words, electronic games have become an important part of children’s leisure activities. Foreign research shows that children between the ages of 2 and 17 spend an average of 7 hours a week on video games , and boys spend significantly more time on video games per week than girls.
Rule 2: Use computers and the Internet correctly and reasonably so that they can play an active role.
It is undeniable that computers and the Internet do have a certain positive impact on the growth of children. As long as computers and networks are used correctly and reasonably, their positive effects can be brought into full play.
Improve children’s interest in learning. For example, through computer-assisted teaching, pupils can learn more knowledge and prefer to go to school; the use of educational software allows children to learn while playing.
Broaden children’s horizons and knowledge. The computer can realize the network connection, consult more and richer information.
Promote the development of children’s creativity and thinking ability. In the United States, some researchers trained students in the first and third grades to use a computer language to draw, and found that compared with children of the same age who use general computer-assisted teaching, the trained children performed better in math problem solving and creativity.
Promote the development of children’s writing skills. Foreign research shows that compared with children who use computers less for writing, children who often use computers for word processing have longer and higher quality essays.
Law 3: Moderate video games are conducive to the development of children’s cognitive ability and increase children’s pro-social behavior.
It is undeniable that moderate playing of video games has a positive effect on primary school students.
Moderately playing video games is conducive to the development of children’s cognitive ability.
The process of playing video games is a training process of attention and reaction. Therefore, players pay more attention to the same thing for longer and more attention than non-game players.
Studies have shown that game masters perform better than non-game players on cognitive tasks such as memory and thinking, but the promotion of cognitive skills by video games requires more time to accumulate to show up, and different types of games have a greater impact on cognition. The impact of skills is also different.
Video games have a positive impact on children’s social behavior.
Video games can help children meet new partners and form a sense of belonging to a specific group when playing games. They can share more topics about the game with their peers. For example, children who have played the same game will discuss the content and experience of the game together to bring them closer together.
Pro-social games will increase children’s pro-social behaviors. For example, in some games that require cooperation with others (such as building together, treasure hunting together, decrypting together, etc.), children will better understand the importance of cooperation.
Law 4: Excessive playing of video games is not conducive to the development of children’s physical development, cognitive and social skills, and increases bad behaviors.
Although video games have their positive side, their negative effects cannot be ignored. If children are addicted to video games for a long time, the negative impact will be even greater.
It is not conducive to the physical development of the child. Playing video games for a long time can cause eye fatigue, thereby increasing the possibility of myopia; reducing children’s outdoor activities is not conducive to bone development, increasing the possibility of obesity. Especially after entering puberty, playing video games for a long time has a greater impact on children’s physical development.
It is not conducive to the development of children’s cognitive ability. Studies have shown that excessive indulgence in video games will have a negative impact on children’s basic cognitive functions, making them less sensitive to things and making it difficult to concentrate. Because children are accustomed to the competitive and interesting nature of electronic games, it is easy for them to lose interest in other things.
It is not conducive to the development of children’s social skills. Playing video games will reduce children’s interactions with peers in real life. The importance of interacting with peers to the growth of primary school students is self-evident. Children who are addicted to games have fewer friends in reality, which is not conducive to the development of children’s social skills.
Increase the child’s bad behavior. Computer games are full of violent information, and frequent violent games will make children more aggressive. The more violence a child has, the more likely it is to be hostile to others (arguing, swearing, etc.), which hinders the establishment of good companionship. And the negative effects of game addicted students are even more serious.
Rule 5: There are reasons why children are addicted to games.
Primary school is when children like to play games, and it is normal for children to like to play video games. But for some reasons, they are also easy to indulge in games.
Lack of playmates. Most of the children nowadays are only children, and their parents are also busy, lacking playmates and can only play games.
Victorious and strong. Video games can satisfy their psychology to a certain extent.
Lack of self-management ability. The self-management awareness and ability of primary school students are still weak, and they need to rely on adult supervision. Because children lack self-management skills, they tend to indulge in games.
The concept of time is weak and cannot manage time well. In fact, children have been playing video games for an hour, but they still think they have just played.
Can escape the unsatisfactory things in life. Simple games can relax children, and complex games can challenge and show themselves. In this way, children gain a sense of accomplishment in the virtual world, and relieve their negative emotions, thereby avoiding the tense interpersonal relationship and learning pressure in school and family.
