Internet gaming is one of the latest fads among today’s young generation. Wherever you go and whenever you see, children are addicted to some or the other form of the internet game. It is reported that nearly 64 percent of kids aged 2 to 17 years are the ones using mobile phones and PCs for internet gaming. This is a clear case of misuse of a technology that is as resourceful as the internet.
Internet gaming and students’ addiction to them
Many software development companies have come up with games that are packed with eye-catching features which lure children towards playing them on a frequent basis. These games are designed in a very realistic way, starting from the backgrounds, locations, characters, sounds, etc. all of which makes it very hard for children to stay away from them.
Children have become such huge internet video game addicts, that nowadays most of them find it difficult to concentrate on their academics. This results in their scoring less in their examinations because of the diversion of their concentration levels from studying to playing games on the internet.
In order to protect children from the perils of unknown and malicious internet games, the following precautions need to be taken –
- Look into your kids’ purpose of using mobiles
Firstly, parents need to look into the reason as to why their children who might be aged 2 – 17 years need a mobile phone. If it’s for productive purposes like for using a school management software mobile app, then it would be a good idea to give out phones to your children. But if it’s for unproductive purposes like for internet gaming, handing over a phone to your child might not be a feasible option.
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Track your kids’ mobile phone usage
In case if your children do get access to mobile phones, make sure that they do not spend their maximum time doing internet gaming. This is because playing games for too long will ultimately result in children getting addicted to them and also in spoiling their health.
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Be informed of the dangers of internet games
Before information is given to children about the dangers of playing internet games, parents themselves should be aware of the facts relating to it. The reason for this is very simple, as giving out information about the dangers of internet gaming, without having proper knowledge about the same will not help in convincing children to stay away from them.
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Talk to your children
Parents should not just blatantly stop their child from internet gaming. Instead, they should gradually and in a very subtle manner tell their child that too much is not too good and the same rule applies to internet gaming addiction. Parents can also encourage children to invest their time and effort in engaging themselves with interactive videos, games, discussions, etc. which happen on their school management software portals.
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Ask your kids not to give out personal information
One of the most important precautions to be taken by kids on internet gaming portals involves not giving out any sort of personal information like name, bank account details, etc. This message has to be conveyed to kids because most of the time they have the tendency to leak out sensitive information due to lack of prior knowledge as well as eagerness and excitement.
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Tell your kids to maintain an equilibrium between studies and internet gaming
Parents should make sure that their children maintain an equilibrium that is a perfect balance between internet gaming and doing well in their academics. When a balance like this is maintained, children might not be as addicted to internet gaming as they previously would have been.
Schools can also make an effort in bringing down the level of internet gaming addiction among students. This can be done by bringing aboard school management software, which helps in building interactive and fun methods for learning and discussing concepts taught in class by the teachers, on an everyday basis.
Internet gaming has its own pros and cons. It all depends on how well children use it. For instance, some school management software offers a platform for developing interactive internet games relating to the subjects taught in the school. This helps students in learning more about the basic fundamentals of subjects taught, which in turn leads to productive use of internet gaming.