Children Are no More Able to Hold Pencils Due to Excessive Screen Use

We are very happy to keep out children in a school where teachers teach with the help of gadgets like laptops and tablets. We take pride in saying that our children study and so and so IB school where they do not need to carry any books to the school. Have we ever thought that what are the circumstances of these?

Not only these gadgets make the eyes of our children weak but also they have made the children so dependent on these screens that they are no more able to hold pencils and pens in their hands. Sally Payne, the head pediatric therapist at the Heart of England Foundation of NHS Trust in the UK, said that children in the school do not have that dexterity to hold pencils that they had 10 years ago. Children in the school are given pencils but they are more focused towards the screen movements.

To hold a pencil strongly and write lucidly you need to strengthen your finger bone muscles, which is possible through regular practice but today when children are so indulged into smartphones and tablet screens they do not write on the workbooks as they used to before. Teachers and parents find it very easier to provide the children with an iPad rather than sitting with them and make them practice writing words.

Due to the overuse of technology, children are not developing the required skills like writing at the right age. Writing skills are very subjective and it depends from person to person. Mellissa Prunty who runs a research clinic said that why a particular child is not able to write properly may or may not be due to technology. Hence giving a strong assumption against technology usage may not hold true.