Dear Melissa,
"I feel like we are raising a generation of children who
spend hours upon hours a day living in an altered iPad reality. What are
the recommendations for iPad usage for children with special needs?"
This question is tricky. If
you Google “iPad recommendations for children with special needs,” you are
BOMBARDED with tons of fabulous apps. There are almost no articles
exploring the dangers of being so absorbed in electronics that children forget to interact with the real world. The simple answer is everything in
moderation, but the full answer is much more
complicated than that!
First of all, I always like
to look at the literature. I don’t trust
what someone writes in a blog (except this one of course). I want the hard facts. However, that is precisely
the problem here. There are no hard facts. The iPad is so new that researchers have not yet studied large samples of children with disabilities and measured how they responded to these devices over time. National Public Radio (NPR) recently did a wonderful story on this exact topic. But even they were hard pressed to locate research
studies on more than a dozen kiddos.
So, I guess I am forced to
give my opinion. The American Academy of
Pediatrics (AAP) reports that the average
8-10 year old spends 8 hours per day engaged in various forms of media.
These include TV, phones, video games, and, yes, iPads. This is too much! I
totally agree with the AAP that screen time should be avoided for children
under 2 years of age and limited to less than 2 hours/day for older
children. The AAP has numerous research studies showing correlations between greater amounts of
screen time and the following:
1) increased rates of obesity,
2) decreased attention,
3) increased behavior problems,
4) decreased academic performance and
5) poor sleep.
These findings included samples of “typical” children as well as studies involving children with ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorders.
1) increased rates of obesity,
2) decreased attention,
3) increased behavior problems,
4) decreased academic performance and
5) poor sleep.
These findings included samples of “typical” children as well as studies involving children with ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorders.
But there are exceptions to
every rule, and this is where it gets tricky. The iPad can be a magical device for children with various special needs. It is highly motivating. It can be used to
practice handwriting, increase fine motor speed, practice counting money, improve
typing skills....it slices, it dices…but wait! There’s more! It is used as a communication tool as well! The communication aspect is especially important for a child with Autism, as he needs to have at least SOME form of communication...that is not
screaming! If an iPad does the trick,
then so be it. But it is not magic fairy
dust. Just like the augmentative communication devices of old, it still
requires many hours of education to master as a communication tool.
I also hear parents praising little Johnny for doing all of these splendid
things on the iPad and claiming that he can spend 8 hours/day on it because "they are educational games!” But again,
everything in moderation. We would all
agree that a child reading a book is fabulous and worthwhile, but if he is
reading in his room for 8 hours a day, when is he socializing? When is he outside playing and developing
gross motor skills? When is he learning
to tie his shoes? Same with the iPad. I don’t care if a child can sort the jelly
beans into colored jars on that popular iPad app if he can’t help the family by sorting forks from spoons in the
silverware drawer!
I would love to hear personal
experiences and comments on this topic!
For more information, please
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