NO ELECTRONICS

NO ELECTRONICS! This is what I say to children when children ask “Ms. Susan, can I use my phone?”

We do not allow children to use their smartphones or tablets unless they need to do their homework on them. We live in a world full of technology and we can achieve a great deal of convenience by using them. Children can have opportunities to make easier social contact with their peers by texting, talking, or even gaming online with their friends. They can gain immediate access to different types of knowledge by just searching or typing a word on their phones or tablets. However, there are drawbacks to using smart gadgets. If they spend a lot of time using those small devices, they get used to receiving fancy visualized information and convenient activities where they do not need to think a lot. Eventually, children get easily bored with hands-on and paper and pencil activities which need the involvement of active planning and thinking processes.

For this reason, USTC Cranston does not allow children to use their smartphones in the center. We encourage children to learn from hands-on activities. We want them to be active thinkers and creative problem solvers.