You ain't seen anything yet…Digital children and the future of disruptive innovation
Norman LewisWGCMobilecampLondon Saturday 29 September2007
Insane moments…
The definition of insanity is to do
the same thing over and over
again …
and expect different results !
Albert Einstein
Digital Children
An important motif of the process of the internalisation of digital technology into childhood is tension between the agenda of adults and those of young people
A clash of cultures?
Parents regard new technology as an
educational tool while children regard it as a
medium of entertainment and connectivity;
Parents approach to the new media is
underwritten by the imperative of risk
minimisation while children use it in part to
gain a measure of freedom from adult
supervision.
The evasion of the adult
gaze
The changing character of childhood – particularly the shift from outdoors to indoors - means children want digital applications that are under their control, help them to pass time, provide entertainment, connect with peers and evade adult supervision
Self-expression as a state of
being
Young people are facing not so much a problem of communication but that of self-expression
Identity and reputation
Creativity and sharing
The search for acknowledgment is the key to online activity
self-expression
as itself
a form of
communication
Communication
has become modified
Yesterday
Today
the communication of
content
has become less significant than the
network of
communication
Collage culture
and digital expertise Young people are drawn to technologies
that
are readily personalised and which can be
used individually;
Maintaining one’s social status depends on
the ability to personalise new technology;
Skills are acquired incidentally while
popular culture becomes a palette with
which to paint the self.
Myths
Children are not naturally good with technology
Enormous creative potential