1st Edition

Screenwise Helping Kids Thrive (and Survive) in Their Digital World

By Devorah Heitner Copyright 2016
    256 Pages
    by Routledge

    256 Pages
    by Routledge

    Screenwise offers a realistic and optimistic perspective on how to thoughtfully guide kids in the digital age. Many parents feel that their kids are addicted, detached, or distracted because of their digital devices. Media expert Devorah Heitner, however, believes that technology offers huge potential to our children-if parents help them. Using the foundation of their own values and experiences, parents and educators can learn about the digital world to help set kids up for a lifetime of success in a world fueled by technology.  Screenwise is a guide to understanding more about what it is like for children to grow up with technology, and to recognizing the special challenges-and advantages-that contemporary kids and teens experience thanks to this level of connection. In it, Heitner presents practical parenting "hacks": quick ideas that you can implement today that will help you understand and relate to your digital native. The book will empower parents to recognize that the wisdom that they have gained throughout their lives is a relevant and urgently needed supplement to their kid's digital savvy, and help them develop skills for managing the new challenges of parenting. Based on real-life stories from other parents and Heitner's wealth of knowledge on the subject, Screenwise teaches parents what they need to know in order to raise responsible digital citizens.

    Introduction

    Chapter 1: Raising Digital Natives

    Chapter 2: The Kids Are Alright

    Chapter 3: Assessing Your Own Digital Literacy

    Chapter 4: Becoming a Tech-Positive Parent

    Chapter 5: Empathy Is the App

    Chapter 6: Family Life in the Digital Age

    Chapter 7: Friendship and Dating in the Digital Age

    Chapter 8: School Life in the Digital Age

    Chapter 9: Growing Up in Public

    Conclusion: Digital Citizenship for the Next Generation

    Acknowledgements

    Notes

    Biography

    Devorah founded Raising Digital Natives for parents and educators seeking advice on how to help children thrive in a world of digital connectedness.

    Devorah is an experienced speaker, workshop leader, and consultant, and a professional development resource for organizations wishing to cultivate a culture of responsible digital citizenship.

    Since earning her Ph.D. in Media/Technology and Society from Northwestern University, she has been working with excellent public and independent schools across the United States and beyond.

    She is delighted to be raising her own digital native.

    "The book is largely practical advice that focuses as much on parent-child relationships as it does on technology... She walks through numerous dangers that children can encounter -- not just pornography, but privacy, data-slurping, and plagiarism -- and provides common-sense suggestions for dealing with the consequences."— Wendy M Grossman, ZDNet UK Book Reviews