Digital Smarts Blog

National Public Radio recently posted a fascinating article about Artificial Intelligence, or “AI” as it is commonly known, and the future of education. One prediction is that AI, when used as a one-on-one tutoring system, could eliminate the need for standardized tests because the computer software will always know how knowledgeable the student is in the subject matter. It gives new meaning to the term “life long learning companion” compared to what the encyclopedia’s salesperson meant by it back in the 20^th century.

What will this mean for human teachers? Geoff Colvin, an editor for Fortune magazine and the author of a book about human capabilities, wrote in The New York Times: "Advancing technology will profoundly change the nature of high-value human skills and that is threatening, but we aren't doomed. The skills of deep human interaction, the abilities to manage the exchanges that occur only between people, will only become more valuable." So maybe teachers will have a place after all. Want to learn more? See Intelligence Unleashed: An argument for AI in Education, a pamphlet from the world's largest education company, Pearson.

National Public Radio recently posted a fascinating article about Artificial Intelligence, or “AI” as it is commonly known, and the future of education. One prediction is that AI, when used as a one-on-one tutoring system, could eliminate the need for standardized tests because the computer software will always know how knowledgeable the student is in the subject matter. It gives new meaning to the term “life long learning companion” compared to what the encyclopedia’s salesperson meant by it back in the 20^th century.

What will this mean for human teachers? Geoff Colvin, an editor for Fortune magazine and the author of a book about human capabilities, wrote in The New York Times: "Advancing technology will profoundly change the nature of high-value human skills and that is threatening, but we aren't doomed. The skills of deep human interaction, the abilities to manage the exchanges that occur only between people, will only become more valuable." So maybe teachers will have a place after all. Want to learn more? See Intelligence Unleashed: An argument for AI in Education, a pamphlet from the world's largest education company, Pearson.

Want to take stock of where you as a parent stand with media use at your house? Take a look at the “Media History” form on the American Academy of Pediatrics site to see if you might have missed something you should be talking to your kids about. It is also a good reminder of things that you should be discouraging, such as consuming snacks while watching television.

Want to take stock of where you as a parent stand with media use at your house? Take a look at the “Media History” form on the American Academy of Pediatrics site to see if you might have missed something you should be talking to your kids about. It is also a good reminder of things that you should be discouraging, such as consuming snacks while watching television.

You might not want to tell your kids there is a new study from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health with the conclusion that “Time spent playing video games may have positive effects on young children.” While running counter to many stories in the media, and understanding that the study was about European children aged 6 to 11 who are not playing Grand Theft Auto, it reflects the times in which we live. Video game playing is now almost a rite of passage for young children. Katherine Keyes, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia, says “What we’re seeing here is that kids who play a lot of video games are socially integrated, they’re prosocial, they have good school functioning and we don’t see any association with adverse mental health outcomes.” She also added that this does not mean unlimited video game playing is good for anyone’s health, and that she supports the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendation for parents to monitor and limit screen time.

You might not want to tell your kids there is a new study from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health with the conclusion that “Time spent playing video games may have positive effects on young children.” While running counter to many stories in the media, and understanding that the study was about European children aged 6 to 11 who are not playing Grand Theft Auto, it reflects the times in which we live. Video game playing is now almost a rite of passage for young children. Katherine Keyes, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia, says “What we’re seeing here is that kids who play a lot of video games are socially integrated, they’re prosocial, they have good school functioning and we don’t see any association with adverse mental health outcomes.” She also added that this does not mean unlimited video game playing is good for anyone’s health, and that she supports the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendation for parents to monitor and limit screen time.

Researchers at the University of Washington and University of Michigan recently surveyed parents and their children between the ages of 10 and 17 about their household's most important technology rules and expectations. Interestingly, twice as many children as parents expressed concerns about family members oversharing personal information about them on Facebook and other social media without permission. Children also called out parents on issues like not texting while driving or sitting at a traffic light. According to the children surveyed, parents need to practice what they preach when it comes to rules like staying off the internet while at meals and giving them their full attention when talking to them rather than glancing at their phone. Overall, children found it easier to follow household technology rules when families had developed them collectively and when parents lived by them as well. The research also suggests that when parents found that a particular app or social media site was too difficult for their kids to disengage from, the simplest solution (and most respected by kids) was to just make it off-limits.

Researchers at the University of Washington and University of Michigan recently surveyed parents and their children between the ages of 10 and 17 about their household's most important technology rules and expectations. Interestingly, twice as many children as parents expressed concerns about family members oversharing personal information about them on Facebook and other social media without permission. Children also called out parents on issues like not texting while driving or sitting at a traffic light. According to the children surveyed, parents need to practice what they preach when it comes to rules like staying off the internet while at meals and giving them their full attention when talking to them rather than glancing at their phone. Overall, children found it easier to follow household technology rules when families had developed them collectively and when parents lived by them as well. The research also suggests that when parents found that a particular app or social media site was too difficult for their kids to disengage from, the simplest solution (and most respected by kids) was to just make it off-limits.

An interesting opinion piece in The New York Times points out that when it comes to emojis, female presence is lacking. While there are flamenco dancers, brides and princesses, the emojis depicting other professions are all male. While not the most pressing of digital equality issues, symbols do play an important part in how people perceive and communicate about their world. Will we see more women depicted in emojis in the future?

An interesting opinion piece in The New York Times points out that when it comes to emojis, female presence is lacking. While there are flamenco dancers, brides and princesses, the emojis depicting other professions are all male. While not the most pressing of digital equality issues, symbols do play an important part in how people perceive and communicate about their world. Will we see more women depicted in emojis in the future?

Do you ever feel like you spend most of your day checking e-mail and Facebook? Aside from eating up hours of your time, a new study has also found that hyperchecking your email can make you (surprise!) more stressed.  To help combat the stress of a cluttered inbox, check out health.com’s list of email habits that can make you more productive. Some suggestions include prioritizing what is important, setting designated times to reply to emails, and creating folders to categorize and sort emails that you will need later.

Do you ever feel like you spend most of your day checking e-mail and Facebook? Aside from eating up hours of your time, a new study has also found that hyperchecking your email can make you (surprise!) more stressed.  To help combat the stress of a cluttered inbox, check out health.com’s list of email habits that can make you more productive. Some suggestions include prioritizing what is important, setting designated times to reply to emails, and creating folders to categorize and sort emails that you will need later.

Researchers at Kansas State University, Olathe, are developing an emoji ballot that could help assess students' reactions to school meals. "School nutrition professionals are always looking for new ideas to promote healthier choices to students ... to find ways to get more student feedback so they can develop kid-approved menus that are healthy and also appealing to students," said School Nutrition Association spokeswoman Diane Pratt-Heavner. Getting a better idea of what students like can help eliminate food waste and save money as well.

Researchers at Kansas State University, Olathe, are developing an emoji ballot that could help assess students' reactions to school meals. "School nutrition professionals are always looking for new ideas to promote healthier choices to students ... to find ways to get more student feedback so they can develop kid-approved menus that are healthy and also appealing to students," said School Nutrition Association spokeswoman Diane Pratt-Heavner. Getting a better idea of what students like can help eliminate food waste and save money as well.

Sexting is becoming more and more normalized in the media, with the consequences often minimized, but in real life the aftermath is usually far from normal or desirable. How can you get your kids to understand this?  Telling them not to do it doesn't really help them when the culture of social media forces them to face different types of social situations. A new guide on the subject - written for teens, but just as useful to parents - is now available as a free download from Common Sense Media. Entitled “Send me a naked pic? ;) …”“Promise not to share?”  it is definitely worth a look, before or after a sexting incident occurs.

Sexting is becoming more and more normalized in the media, with the consequences often minimized, but in real life the aftermath is usually far from normal or desirable. How can you get your kids to understand this?  Telling them not to do it doesn't really help them when the culture of social media forces them to face different types of social situations. A new guide on the subject - written for teens, but just as useful to parents - is now available as a free download from Common Sense Media. Entitled “Send me a naked pic? ;) …”“Promise not to share?”  it is definitely worth a look, before or after a sexting incident occurs.

The National Day of Unplugging is an annual tradition sponsored by nonprofit organization Reboot, but you don’t have to wait until that one day a year to get the benefits of unwinding, relaxing, reflecting, getting outdoors, and connecting with loved ones, unimpeded by your digital device. Balance is an important goal and setting up a full day every week to unplug can help give your brain time to reset. It could be a sign that you are addicted to technology if it is hard for you to do that.

The National Day of Unplugging is an annual tradition sponsored by nonprofit organization Reboot, but you don’t have to wait until that one day a year to get the benefits of unwinding, relaxing, reflecting, getting outdoors, and connecting with loved ones, unimpeded by your digital device. Balance is an important goal and setting up a full day every week to unplug can help give your brain time to reset. It could be a sign that you are addicted to technology if it is hard for you to do that.

Good news for adults who don’t understand the latest slang kids are using on social media - Facebook will soon be offering a “Social Glossary” that covers the meaning of all the latest terms used on the site. Called neologisms, or bits of language being used by groups of people but aren’t in common use yet, Facebook has patented a software tool that can scan social chatter to find up-and-coming slang terms before they're universally adopted. The system could help improve Facebook's predictive text services, most likely the reason for the glossary, but will also help adults to figure out what the kids are all saying.

Good news for adults who don’t understand the latest slang kids are using on social media - Facebook will soon be offering a “Social Glossary” that covers the meaning of all the latest terms used on the site. Called neologisms, or bits of language being used by groups of people but aren’t in common use yet, Facebook has patented a software tool that can scan social chatter to find up-and-coming slang terms before they're universally adopted. The system could help improve Facebook's predictive text services, most likely the reason for the glossary, but will also help adults to figure out what the kids are all saying.