【文稿】5岁就上网，你爸妈知道吗？

Xiaohua: A newly released report shows more than half of children in China under 18 started to use the Internet before they reached age 8, two years younger than was the case in 2010. John: Put cameras in the bedrooms and make sure they are using the Internet. According to a report by the Chinese Youth Pioneers Business Development Center, a fourth of the 10,000 students in the research learned to use the Internet even before they were 5. So is it a little bit surprising? Zhou Heyang: Well, I guess this kind of news just really makes me feel old. That Xiaohua just said and then more than half of children in China under 18 started using the Internet before they reached 8, two years younger than was the case in 2010, and it just seems like Internet has become such a vital part of these young people’s life and I think they are probably the generation that grow up with it. Not like myself. John: Also we have to be careful what exactly do we mean by using the Internet. Zhou Heyang: Logging onto Internet? John: What does that mean? Xiaohua: Clicking something? John: Exactly, are we talking about play an MMO? Xiaohua: No. John: Are we talking about using QQ to chat? Are we talking about web browsing? So the idea of using the Internet, NO.1 is changing quite a bit, because if I turn on my phone right now, I will be using the Internet, because it automatically connects to the 3G or wifi network. And then information begins to be transferred, so this point is the technological capabilities of the devices that we have, f you put an iPad into the hands of a toddler, they are going to be connected with the Internet. Zhou Heyang: Well, but are they browsing the Internet? Are they using the functions? Although, yes, it’s automatically connected, it doesn’t mean you are automatically using that. John: But according to this report, playing games is entertainment, right? So playing games and QQ…These are the top reasons. John: Right. But we don’t usually think of playing games as being on the Internet, do we? So I’m just trying to point out that this idea of being on the Internet is much, much different than what our oldsters might think. Xiaohua: Exactly. We use it for different things obviously, but for the young generation, because they are born with the Internet around them and their parents are using it all the time probably, so that’s why they get to use it a little bit earlier than us. That’s probably not that surprising, but for parents it might be worrying, because some might worry of either their eyes getting worse or they are being addicted. Zhou Heyang: Yes, and also I think parents worry about the kind of content that their children could be exposed to or… John: Oh, no, pornography. Zhou Heyang: And those things, they can be very scary for the children or whatever. John: I think they are all genuine and valid concerns that parents do have. However, if you are a parent that’s involved in your child’s life, that spends as much time with them as possible, talks with them as much as possible, limits their access to this type of devices, to screen general, I would say, then you’re probably not gonna have much of a problem. Zhou Heyang: Well, I think it is something that, like we talk about earlier, these young people are growing up with and I think it’s going to have different effects on them than let’ say myself who only started using the Internet when I was in middle school, so I think it’s going to be a different role that it can play in their lives. Xiaohua: Yeah, but I think, generally speaking, the Internet is a more tricky sort of toy, you know if you are talking about youngsters than just building blocks or something, because the Internet can be a double-edged sword. It can be both really good and really bad. John: Life can be a double-edged sword. This is the thing. The way we talk about it, we talk about it as if it’s its own unique thing that is somehow outside of history and we’re going to areas that we never explored before. No, no, no. we have been human for more than ten thousand years. The physiological aspects and the way our bodies and minds operate have been basically the same for tens of thousands of years. So the idea that the Internet is somehow different is just not true. The same rules apply, but they are applied in different ways and it will end up expressing itself differently. But we still have to apply our own common sense and knowledge about these things. Zhou Heyang: When it replaces time to play outdoors and other more healthy activities? I certainly think it could become a problem. John: But again if you are an involved parent, it won’t. That’s my point.