kids don't "go out and play" enough anymore

This is a pretty long post. I'm sorry I don't have any picture to entertain you.

Source: http://aboutmyrecovery.com/download/

Synovate studied the modern lifestyle of Filipino kids by conducting face-to-face in-home interviews with kids ages 7-14, and their parents, in Manila, Cebu, and Davao. Majority of the participants (84%) came from Manila, and are part of the Socio-Economic D Class (53%).

Television and Media Consumption
The study shows that all of the participants have at least one television set at home. That's not at all shocking. Television has been the main medium of entertainment in the Philippines for decades.

More than 94% of the kids in the study group spent their 'yesterday' watching the television. And 23% of the parents don't have any rules on what their kids watch or when. Whatever happened to house rules? Did these parents simplify a set of house rules into, "stay out of my way, I'm busy"? Or are they simply being trustful?...too trustful perhaps?

I've seen parents shoo kids away and "strongly suggest" that they go to the room and watch the television because they're too tired from work and want to "relax in peace". That makes one think - do the kids watch too much television because they want to? Or is it because the parents don't give them options for a more positive form of entertainment? - Like playing with the kids in the neighborhood because you're too scared that their skins might darken playing too long under the sun? Keep your vanities to yourself and let your kids enjoy Vitamin D.

Cellphones and Internet
93% of the kids live in a home that has a cellphone; 26% have their own cellphones, where as only 46% have landlines. This particular information was apparently stressed in the study, stating, "Cell phones outstripping landlines 2:1".

I don't know what's so shocking about that - cellphones, although personal, unlike landlines that are shared by a whole family, have evolved to be necessities in our society. Parents wouldn't let their kids go to the mall with their friends unless they're sure that they can check on them every now and then - and that implies that cellphones are considered as security investments for their children. Landlines on the other hand - well who'd want to be seen carrying around a wireless Bayantel landline phone? That's social suicide for any kid.

"4:10 with computer; quarter with Internet" ~ shows a 40% more kids have at least one computer at home, and a 53% increase of kids having internet access at home from 2005 to 2007. This sounds like good news to me. I know how many grade school teachers could be irrationally demanding when it comes to school work. They expect kids to research on certain topics that couldn't be found in neither their textbooks nor in the very limited books of the school library. If you want your kids to excel - you have to have a computer and internet access. But if you want your kids to grow up as people and not turn into stupid jerks whom everybody curse and just hope to drop dead, then you better be a responsible parent and limit that internet access.

Tip: don't let your kid have his own computer in his room. Provide a family-owned computer in the living room or in the dining area. And don't be stupid. Make sure the the computer monitor doesn't face the wall or you would have ruined the whole thing of "parental observation". This set up gives kids less courage to "explore" too deep. And seriously, just don't be stupid. Don't let your kids dictate how you raise them. They're not your parents.

65% of the kids used the internet in the past 30 days. And of these 65%, majority of them played online games "today/yesterday". This reminds me - do you know how to block sites so that your kids wouldn't be able to access them whenever you're not around? (If you do allow them to use the computer and go online unsupervised). It's something every parent with young kids should know.

Parting words
My very bright nephew (my cousin's son) asked me who would win if Jesus and God fought each other...Apparently, he has been playing flash games online, "Jesus vs God". I don't know what went into my brother's head but he actually allowed a 6 year old to play THAT game. It might be funny for some and it might not even be religiously offensive for others but it's hell confusing for a kid. Be careful what they see on the internet - even porn-free sites aren't necessarily child-safe.