Digital parenting, our next challenge
2025-06-28 17:06:34
Manjola Lloja Bushati
Earlier this week, we got together with some parents and children to talk about technology.
The start was very good and the things that impressed me, and that I definitely want to share with you, were even more interesting.
First, children are smart, they have much more information than we think.
We as parents asked them questions, often much more naive than their answers.
They told us that they use social networks to see, that they need an account to follow others, but when it comes to posting themselves, they take care to delete, edit, and camouflage their personal details.
Children aged 9-15 told us that in online games they know not to turn on the cameras, even when someone asks them to, they know that they are playing with artificial profiles, and you can't find real friends in these virtual communities.
Of course, they told us about the time they spend finding materials for school... The little ones about the Knowledge of Nature (in our schools without cabinets, where will they see in practice how rain is created, for example..)
Older people search for their passions and curiosities: why is there so much tension in a match between Albania and Serbia? What wars have been fought in the Balkans? What are the reasons that drive a person to become a criminal? What does psychology say about this, or which personal care products may be suitable for girls who want to create routines in accordance with their age (where can they find this information... which teacher, which program is suitable for them, which parent has the answers for them?)...
In front of them...we show how from time to time we unplug the cable that brings WiFi to the house or stop paying for internet on their cell phones, in an attempt to distract them from online time.
We are almost ridiculous...like our parents who used to loosen the fuses so that the lights would "go out" and we wouldn't read until late... so we wouldn't watch TV on Italian or Slavic channels...😁
My belief is this:
I am convinced that children know more than we do about the digital world. I am convinced that technology is a reality that, used properly, can be a powerful instrument in improving the quality of life.
There are certainly endless risks, but what isn't? To see the biggest risk today in time spent online is simply naive on our part.
We need to be present, to talk to our children, not to "pull the plug," but to understand what they want, what they need, what serves them... just as we try to teach them how to walk, how to ride a bike, how to behave with others. We need to learn their digital language, which is different from ours, but not necessarily wrong.
It's up to us to be part of digital parenting, let's learn about it, see what specialists, guides, and manuals propose for this reality.
We must do this, for the good of our children!
We need to learn this new language. We need to convince ourselves and reassure children that the best way is communication, that we are there for them, trying to understand them, support them, motivate them.
After all, we often say that we are the generation of masters, that we managed on our own, without anyone forgiving us anything...let's successfully cope with digital parenting.
Who's ready, raise your hand!
