I work with special needs children, and I think this is very important to point out how left behind children with passive parents get. I’m talking children with iPads in their face and sitting on a mountain of toys that are never ever challenged to solve problems or be bored. These kids miss out on life skills because their parents don’t want to deal with a meltdown or really any bad mood at all, so they avoid it at all costs. In the classroom this presents as work avoidance and (in the case of children with intellectual disorders) them not being taught to face their own challenges (learning how to communicate or tolet train etc) because they have learned at home that everything will be done for them.
It’s really disappointing to see the passive iPad generation join schooling and not already having the foundational life skills to learn HOW to learn. These children have no interest or drive for any sort of learning because they know that if they bug you enough, eventually you will do whatever task for them and they can go back to their iPad.
The teachers (I’m a TA) around me try so hard to make engaging and fun activities for our students to learn skills though, and the students have little to no response to it, act like we are forcing them to do a 50 page worksheet when really we are doing sensory activity’s that would blow my mind at their age.
All these children want is their iPads, they don’t want to create or play or run around, they want to sit on their iPads and have every need catered to then and there. They don’t want childhood because they don’t know what they r missing, why do that when watching YouTube takes way less effort and releases a addictive amount of dopamine 
God I wish I could shake these parents by the shoulders sometimes, just because your kid appears happy on a device, does not mean they are thriving, you are actively making your child’s life worst
It's really sad! Devices can be a fun passtime in moderation, and they can be disability aids in some cases, but there are far too many parents and caregivers who have completely let go of the idea of screentime in moderation, because it's easier for them to have their kid constantly distracted by a screen, than to actually be a caregiver.
I get that being a caregiver is hard. Sometimes, it's okay to put on a movie or something to distract a kid. But in being a caregiver, you have volunteered to set aside your comfort to some degree. You're going to have to deal with a kid getting messy outside, kids being too loud and rowdy sometimes, kids pushing boundaries.
If you are a parent or caregiver, you cannot simply put a screen in front of a child and call it a day. You need to give your kids books. Take them outside. Go to a park. Give them interesting toys and art tools. Foster creativity and thoughtful development.
Do not have children if you're unwilling to sacrifice some of your comfort.
Neglecting a child's development and conditioning them to rely on screens is child neglect. It is abuse. Children deserve actual life experiences.
[PT: Neglecting a child's development and conditioning them to rely on screens is child neglect. It is abuse. Children deserve actual life experiences. /End PT]
