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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 29, 2018)
SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2018 | 9A said, “The worst thing a parent Multiple studies have shown can really leave some lasting that, “You really do have a big can do is hand over a smart- how games, with their bright scars.” impact on what your family a day gaming. Her daughter, a phone and hope for the best. But colors, sounds and in-game re- Cyberbullying has grown as a and teen engage in. Be that role tween, begged her for a smart- parents often feel like model and the person phone with a data plan so she trying to set limits is can come to if “Something that is often misunderstood is that parents they could use social media with her pointless, that the cat they have an issue.” friends. is out of the bag, tech do have a lot of influence over their teens’ behavior. We For Bob Teter, ex- “Everyone has one,” she said. is everywhere. I hear know from studies that teens are less likely to engage in ecutive director of Ruston thought that couldn’t all kinds of excuses. Siuslaw Outreach be the case, but “Screenagers,” But kids’ brains aren’t the behavior if they know that their guardians, parents or Services (SOS) and the culmination of research, in- wired to self-regu- trusted adults in their lives disapprove of that behavior.” vice chairman of the terviews and her own family’s late. They can’t do it — Abbie Lee, Lane County Community Health Analyst, Healthy Directions experiences, shows how tech- without you, and they Coalition, he sees & Healthy Directions Coalition coordinator many examples of the nology has saturated every facet shouldn’t have to. So of many people’s lives. you have set guide- way technology can “The desire to have these lines.” wards, can target the feel-good trend since the internet allows affect a home. things is deep,” Marohl said. The film shows the idea of a centers of the brain. people to hide behind user- “I have seen over the years a He talked about his 8-year- contract several times, starting “Those flashing lights and the names, profile avatars, photo kind of parallel with what the old son, who plays some games with the 2013 viral news sto- sounds are hitting those reward filters and voice modulators. kids are being exposed to and and also uses apps like Scratch ry of Janell Burley Hofmann, centers in the brain,” Marohl While these tools used in the the increase in domestic vio- and Code Academy to learn a mother who decided to give said. “That rush of dopamine is right way can be fun, they take lence, because kids aren’t learn- how to code. her 13-year-old son a contract intense for people.” away the accountability. ing consequences,” he said. “He goes to school and he along with his first iPhone. “Screenagers” shows how “These are not things that “If you have a disagreement, rides the bus and he comes When Ruston replicated the dopamine is especially potent a kid would stand face to face you don’t work it out; you shut home and says, ‘Dad, I should idea, however, her daughter was in teens and tweens — “There and say to another child. There them off, or you retaliate. That’s get to play “Fortnite” (a video not happy. It wasn’t until the is no other time in life when is no way that they would have carried over into adults. … So game) and I should get to play family sat down together that you’re as susceptible to that the guts to stand there and say they’re having problems. ‘I this or that.’ The pressures to the contract actually worked for pleasure-producing chemical that, but you hide behind your can’t deal with you, I can’t work play those video games and everyone. than in adolescence,” Ruston screen and you put this out things out, so I’m going to re- be on those websites and have “It’s best to create a contract said. there,” Marohl said. “Even some taliate.’” these devices are really power- with your kids’ input,” Ruston According to Lee, “Teens are of our best kids get caught up But screen time is also related ful,” Marohl said. said. learning and growing, and like in this, and then they get em- to depression and feeling un- The parents in attendance Lane County Public Health the documentary said, espe- barrassed about what they’ve happy with life. spoke about the “everybody Community Health Analyst cially the part that controls the done and don’t want to come According to Jean M. Twenge, does it” mentality, especially Abbie Lee, coordinator for impulses and decision-mak- forward, ever.” in The Atlantic’s September when they as parents know of Healthy Directions Coalition, ing is still developing in teens Cyberbullying can also be the 2017 edition, “The more time other families who also want to said the coalition focuses on up through adolescence and spreading of rumors, informa- teens spend looking at screens, restrict screen time. preventing underage drinking, through adulthood as well. The tion or private photos. “Screen- the more likely they are to re- “There is strength in num- but it also looks at environmen- brain is still developing through agers” showed the example of a port symptoms of depression. bers,” one dad said about sev- tal factors affecting youth and the age of 25.” tween who thought she sent her Eighth-graders who are heavy eral families using similar families. And just what are teens do- boyfriend a private photo just users of social media increase methods to allow technology in “We’re concerned with the ing with all that screen time? for him — and the next day it their risk of depression by 27 restricted times. health side of this new age of Social media on platforms such was all over school. percent, while those who play One boy identified himself as technology and how it’s affect- as Snapchat, Instagram and “When kids send things out sports, go to religious services, an eighth-grader and said his ing other risky behaviors,” she Facebook allow people to post or share them, a lot of them or even do homework more parents only let him use a Kin- said. videos and comments. Phone don’t realize how quickly that than the average teen cut their dle. His mom said she some- She presented “Teen-Proof- games like “Candy Crush” often can spread. You can’t just back- risk significantly.” times takes away the password ing Your Home,” a Prevention have unlimited settings, so peo- track something. It’s not like As a professor of psychology so he doesn’t always have ac- Lane program with tips for par- ple can play for extended peri- passing a note in class that can at San Diego State University cess. ents and families for “keeping ods of time, sometimes not no- be ripped up, shredded and and the author of “Generation “Even a Kindle has got that teens and tweens safe.” ticing the passage of time. Video thrown away. It’s images and Me” and “iGen: Why Today’s internet accessibility, access to Not only are kids these days games can be played single- or language that are out there for- Super-Connected Kids Are social media and interactive faced with the dangers of de- multi-player. While some are ever,” Marohl said. Growing Up Less Rebellious, games that are out there,” Ma- pression, alcohol, drugs — es- story-based, problem-solving Lee agreed. More Tolerant, Less Happy — rohl said. “If moderated, you’ve pecially with the recent legal- or have positive prosocial mes- “When you put something and Completely Unprepared got a good parent that’s paying ization of marijuana — and sages, many widely popular out there, and even if you your- for Adulthood — and What attention to what you’re doing.” unsecured firearms, technology games feature violence or dan- self have privacy settings on That Means for the Rest of Us,” Marohl and “Screenagers” is changing the face of addic- gerous activities. your social media accounts, Twenge spoke with her students both advocate for some technol- tion. In those, it has become com- your friends and family who are and conducted several surveys ogy use — but moderated and In a PBS Newshour special mon to say, hear or be the target able to see that can now take a for her research. restricted. A contract, agreed on “Screenagers,” Ruston and of derogatory comments. picture or a snapshot of that — “All screen activities are upon by both the child and the the anchors discussed a May This can lead to cyberbul- and that can spread elsewhere,” linked to less happiness, and all parent, might be the best way to 2016 report issued by Common lying, a form of bullying or she said. “It’s just a good tip to nonscreen activities are linked curb harmful behaviors. This Sense Media, which found that harassment using electronic remind your young people and to more happiness,” she wrote. could be for setting set hours, “half of all young people feel means, across multiple plat- your family that everything you “Eighth-graders who spend 10 not using the phone during they are addicted to their devic- forms. put out there — comments, or more hours a week on social meals or even keeping device es. Almost 60 percent of adults “The effects of cyberbullying photos, posts of things — it’s media are 56 percent more like- screens open to the rest of the think their kids are addicted are really impactful,” Marohl going to be out there forever.” ly to say they’re unhappy than room. too. And a third of parents and said. “They are impactful at A common phrase is that those who devote less time to In a follow-up interview with teens say that they argue daily home, impactful socially, im- the “internet is forever.” Peo- social media.” The New York Post, Ruston about screen time.” pactful emotionally and they ple running for office or in the For students at the Boys and limelight lately have been re- Girls Club of Western Lane minded of past faux pas, be it in County, one young girl report- long-buried Tweets, a comment ed, they have to complete all The Siuslaw News, Florence Events Center and the Florence Wiener Dog Races or joke that could be construed homework before they can go as sexist or racist or even more to the technology. of those private photos that Once there, her dad said were never meant to be shared. she likes to play “Just Dance,” “It’s a really complex world a dancing game where partic- that we need to teach our kids,” ipants mimic the dancer on Marohl said. the screen. It is often played in One attendee echoed this, groups, providing both a phys- saying that parents modeling ical and prosocial component. correct screen-time behavior Marohl said it was a positive should help all members of a that it was both interactive and family. She talked about her social for her peers, saying it kids’ sports games and practic- was possibly for screen time to es, and how many of the adults provide those benefits. are constantly checking their However, Teter warned that Home of the Florence Wiener Dog Races devices while their kids play. while people use social media “Maybe as a community, we ostensibly to connect to other could model that better. It’s people, a 15-year-long Harvard hard, though,” she said. study found the opposite to be Lee reminded the parents true. SCREEN from page 1A PRESENTS 2018 Okto-Fur-Fest Come for the wiener dog races and stay for the food, beer, music and games. SATURDAY OCTOBER 13 11:30-3PM RACES START AT 1PM JOIN US FOR GREAT FOOD & FAMILY FUN AT THE FLORENCE EVENTS CENTER “What they saw over 15 years as the access to social media and the internet world increas- es, so did suicide, attempted suicide and kids feeling less connected. It was just paralleled with that. … It’s actually more disconnecting than anything else,” he said. “As the middle school prin- cipal, I do see this as an issue that we need to address, not just with schools but with families in the community as well,” Ma- rohl said. “I think getting the conversations going and keep- ing them going in our homes is good.” The schools, too, are doing their part. This school year, new art teacher Lauren Suveges was hired in part due to her exper- tise in digital citizenship, the skill of navigating the internet safely and perceptively. According to Marohl, she will be covering such topics as who a person is, who they are on- line, how they act and behave, as well as the consequence. “Every sixth-grader should get that this year, and I’m hop- ing to continue that and even expand it as we can,” he said. Siuslaw is also incorporating new policies to deal with hand- held technology use. “There are two conditions that need to be met to use a cell phone in a classroom,” Marohl said. “One of them is that it is express teacher permission and the second thing is that it is for an educational purpose. If it doesn’t meet those two prongs, it shouldn’t be used.” The middle school has also removed students’ access to Wi- Fi from their personal devices. However, “They can access (the internet) from any school device, any of the Chrome- books, laptops or computer workstations,” Marohl added. “I feel obligated to provide their education, not their entertain- ment.” He also reiterated the idea of a family contract decided on to- gether. “Know that you are the No. 1 influence,” Lee said in her presentation. “Something that is often misunderstood is that parents do have a lot of influ- ence over their teens’ behav- ior. We know from studies that teens are less likely to engage in the behavior if they know that their guardians, parents or trusted adults in their lives dis- approve of that behavior.” Marohl referred people to www.screenagersmovie.com and its many resources: for dis- cussion, parent-child contract ideas and Ruston’s blog, “Tech Talk Tuesdays.” “Again, I just want to empha- size that it is about trust,” Lee said. “You’re the parent. It’s not about being their best friend. Set the rules and communi- cate. I think communication, which we try to emphasize in our coalition, is the best thing you can do to prevent risky behaviors. Although you can’t really ‘teen-proof ’ your teen, you can do things in the en- vironment and in your home that keeps them safe.” DACHSHUND* CATEG ••• ORIES PUPPY • 6 MONTHS - 23 MONTHS YOUTH • 2-5 YEARS ADULT • 6 YEARS AND UP ••• Awards for First and Second Place! registrations begins at 11:30 am $2 $5 extra General Admission for limited premium seating for the race Kids 5 & under FREE Proceeds go to Florence Van Fans ual n n A 3rd BRAS FOR A • NEW THIS YEAR • small mixed breed dogs under 15 pounds, no age category $10 to enter your Dachshund Please call Jeanna Petersen for registration 541.902.3529 *Purebred Dachshunds Only FOR A CAUSE Soroptimist of Florence Fundraiser CAU S E O NE M ISSION ... ... C OUNTLESS D REAMS $ 50 Come and join us for an evening of FUN! 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