But as we have read and heard, where exists good, there
exists evil too. I believe that technology and Internet have brought along with
them some far reaching disastrous consequences which is causing the human race
to drift apart. People prefer to be connected to virtual world while living in
an isolated capsule. In other words, we humans are on the verge of becoming
emotionally handicapped.
This post might seem like the typical write up where I’m
going to give you the pros and cons of technology. It’s not so. I’m going to
speak about a much more crucial topic, which if not addressed and acted upon
immediately, will transform humans into technology slaves.
So where do I begin? Let's start with the title of this post.
Old-School is an adjective in the English language which refers to anything
that is from an earlier era and looked upon with high regard or respect. With
regard to the post, when I speak about old-school, I refer to the way children
were brought up back in our days. I’m speaking of a childhood devoid of
technology.
Today I see a lot of parents, the techno-savvy ones in
particular, providing different kinds of hand held gizmos to their young ones to
keep them busy. When I visit public places, whether it be a movie theatre or a
restaurant or even the park, I notice a lot of parents hand over their mobile
phone or tablet to keep them from creating a ruckus while they can get a
particular chore done or may be just hand around with friends. What seems like
an easy way out may cost heavily on a child’s progress and brain development.
In this way, the seeds of distraction and emotional detachment are sown right
from the start. The same child who according to his age, should be playing with
toys and going outdoors, gets accustomed to the virtual world where if he makes
a fuss, he will get his share of entertainment through mobile games and cartoon
videos.
I would like to share a personal experience about a similar incident
which happened to me in the recent past and infuriated me beyond words. Just
about a month ago, I along with my husband had gone for our usual temple visit
to our native place. Sitting a few metres away, was a young couple along with
their daughter who might have been around the age of 3. While I was praying,
out of nowhere I heard Sunny Leone’s song “Paani Wala Dance” playing in the
background. It was totally unexpected, especially at this very divine village
shrine.
My immediate reaction was to tell whoever this person was, to
stop playing the damn music and let me pray in peace! As I turned towards the
direction of the sound, what do I see? The same little girl operating a mobile
phone, absolutely loving the music without even knowing what the song meant. To
make things worse, she was cuddled up in her mother’s lap who was totally cool
with what was happening. Even the father was being completely ignorant about
the situation and the surrounding. Irresponsible to another level! In spite of
being furious, I politely asked the mother to stop the music. She gave me a
dirty look but stopped playing the music immediately. Within a span of 2 minutes, the music started
playing again. That’s when I realized what a big problem this was. Parents are
choosing the easy way out. Instead of talking to their child and making them
curious about different topics, they choose to completely shut out their creativity
and pacify them with technology.
Parents are supposed to set examples for their kids to learn and follow. Are these really the examples children need to follow? Kids of my generation never had gizmos till the age of 17. I remember my childhood playing outdoors at the park with my gang of girls, sailing paper boats in the rain and reading books written by one of my favourite childhood authors, Enid Blyton. And not to forget Tinkle Digest, Panchatantra and lots more! Even TV viewing was limited to 2 hours a day. This is what I mean by old school.
I sincerely request all parents out there to inculcate the
right habits in their young ones and do the right thing. Bring them up the old
school way and see what a bright future they would hold.
