:get the message Get the message?
If you've ever had to text a child who has been in the same building as you… you need to read this
"It is appallingly obvious our technology has exceeded our humanity". ~ Albert Einstein
OK, SO WHEN ALBERT Einstein made this quote he was talking about "The Bomb" but has the technology of today for all its wonder and functionality actually created some adverse effects to the humanity of our youth? Kids these days know more than anyone about the latest gadgets
and gizmos. Kids know how to operate them, play games on them, and frustratingly they get used to them when the models change without blinking. Kids in the current generation are almost one with technology. Although perhaps it is not that they love the technology so much as the simple fact they have never lived without it. Today's youth are constantly immersed in technological
advancements that promote nonstop communication and instant gratification, whether this be through smart phones, gaming systems, computers or even MP3 players to some degree. Social relationships have changed as a result of the high-tech
culture. Our kids are in constant communication with their friends, almost 24/7.
68 | www.hermagazine.co.nz The concerns here are that this technology has become so depended
on that it really is nonstop. Whilst the off button is physically on the devices, it is not yet connected to the emotions or thought processes of the youth of today. Take your child's smart phone away and see how long it is until the begging for it to be returned begins. Without being bombarded with constant incoming digital information the world seems to have come to an end for many of today's younger generation. Technology has also had an impact developing patience in our
youth's lives. They become fretful for example when a file takes a minute extra to get downloaded. The instant gratification associated with this type of technology
may be causing our youth to expect this kind of instant gratification in all walks of their life; their play, their work, their relationships, everything! Because of this interaction style our youth may have allowed
their interpersonal social skills to slip. Small things, such as what my generation would call common courtesy disappear, for example you don't have to look at someone when you're talking to them if you are texting so why do it when you're talking?. Why worry about your appearance when you are not actually going to meet but just send messages electronically? The worry here is that when communication skills are gradually
