Raising an Internet smart generation

BANGALORE, INDIA: "Necessity is the mother of invention", so aptly put! Whereas when there was darkness, light was invented, where there was crime, laws were invented, but life never came to a standstill. Today, in the digital age, new found fears have crossed our path. Even though kids are not let outside their homes for too long lest they come across any danger, keeping kids indoors means making them slaves to the television.

An alternative found to this one sided communication came to be more frequently used in the last twenty years or so in the form of the internet. Entertainment and education combined to its best to suit kids. While considered to be beneficial to all parents, there is always a tinge of hesitation in introducing the child to the internet. Why is it so that a platform that has some much more to offer kids is also something that has become a cause of concern to parents worldwide?

The internet has become a media that is all pervasive. From computers and laptops, the internet has infiltrated our lives to television sets and even mobile phones bringing along with it a new and exciting feature every time. Moving beyond the office space today the internet is commonly available within homes and educational institutions as well and is becoming almost impossible to avoid. While every new invention brings along a set of concerns - the internet being the cause for a new form of crimes that is cybercrimes which include cyber bullying, identity theft among many others, it is about time that communities as a whole strive to wipe out such menaces so that the internet is able to provide a safe experience to every child.

Whereas barring kids from the internet is not a solution, as a community, people need to effectively ensure that they stand as good role models to children. Children today have been brought up on technology and incase they have any doubts; they should know who to contact. Parents need to educate their kids on the various cyber laws put in place by the government and the implications of the same.

On the other hand, brands on the internet should be more responsible in their approach. There are many clickable links and ads that take kids onto a whole new platform altogether with content that is not suitable for kids to view. Since kids have the opportunity to interact on the internet, brands should be able to understand their audience more effectively and be provide more opportunities for creative engagement.

Providing for positive experiences on the internet has to be looked upon as a collective responsibility. For example when the issue of women's safety is raised, laws are implemented in the direction, corporates take effective measures to ensure safety of their employees and technology is created to aid in times of distress. In a similar manner, whereas internet crimes have become a cause of concern, it does not mean that we completely remove our kids from the internet; rather we take effective steps to make the internet a better place for kids. From an effective watch guard in terms of supervision to implementation of laws, the scope is extremely wide. A fine example of a step in this direction has come in the form of the ‘Good to Know' nationwide campaign launched by Google to raise awareness around staying safe online.

In the same manner that we watch our kids in a playground, this generation seems to be making a playground of the swipe of a screen. While we take immense pride that our kids know to operate gadgets way before they learn their ABC, it is now time to plan their future in this regards as well. Expecting 134 million kids online by the year 2017 in India alone, the expansion of the internet is eminent and there thus has to be an overall community initiative to work upon preparing kids to experience this evolution.

(The author is Head - Experience and Brand at Worldoo.com)