Tablets friend , but a new study suggests that these devices (including eReaders) are detrimental to a child's reading habits.
The research was conducted by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center and 1,577 volunteer parents. 62% of them have given their children (aged between 2 and 10) access to a tablet computer or eReader (via BusinessInsider) on a daily basis.
However, only 49% used the device to actually read, and when they did, they tended to spend an average of 5 minutes a day reading. Compared to the 30 minutes they spend with a traditional book, we can conclude that it distracts children from other, more “attractive” features that tablets.
The 44 % of parents consider that the content of their children's tablets is educational and the 57 % of them believe that the apps and games actually helped their children better understand topics such as mathematics or science. Parents, obviously, choose to ignore the warnings of experts, who do not recommend prolonged exposure of children to tablets, even for «educational» purposes.
These findings come at a time when more and more companies are releasing all kinds of special applications for children. For example, Archos has just released the 101 ChildPad which comes with an attractive removable Audio Player in the shape of a bear.
