Kate Hawkesby: Kids and technology - why it's their world, not ours

Opinion

A frenzy this week ensued after a story was aired about kids choosing to draw YouTube logos and cellphones when given a piece of chalk.

The heated commentary in response was woe and misery around what's become of our kids, what's wrong with this generation and how tech is running - and ruining - their lives.

Much shaking of heads and wringing of hands was indulged in. It was referred to as "shocking". "Depressing, heavy and staggering", were also words thrown around to describe kids drawing technology.

Questions were asked as to what constitutes play these days, and how many kids won't or don't indulge in "free play", and how many prefer to sit inside on a screen.

I was one of these angsty parents once. I used to be aghast at the amount of time our kids would spend scrolling and staring at screens. We limited screen times, confiscated phones, tried to suggest alternatives and generally tied ourselves up in parenting knots over the state of it all.

But here's the rub. It changed nothing.

Our kids will always be different to us. They're more modern than we are. That's by design. It's as it should be.

They are of a generation which will be surrounded by AI and robots. Machines will be doing the menial tasks we once did. They will be getting from A to B in a flying uber. Their world will be different to ours and it's not necessarily a bad thing.

Since time immemorial older generations have been aghast at younger ones and the state of them, lamenting what's happening to the world. I'll tell you what's happening, it's modernising.

Just like my grandparents frowned at mini skirts and lipstick, and their parents frowned on rock and roll music. The generation before always frowns on what the next one is up to. But it's called evolution.

The stuff we think is "bad" isn't necessarily bad, it's just how we've been conditioned to view it. So it's different to us, but that doesn't mean it's wrong. The fact a kid chooses to draw a YouTube logo doesn't condemn an entire generation to hell. It just highlights what's important to them, what they know, and what the future will look like.

Rail against it as we might, freaking out about things doesn't stop it in its tracks. It didn't stop rock music or mini skirts or dancing becoming the norm, it won't stop kids from being in love with screens.

Yes, some are more obsessed than others and if I could find a way to limit how much time my son spends playing Fortnite I'd love to, but the reality is, it's their world, not ours. And they're not going to figure stuff out by just being told "no."