Poorer Kids Spending More Time Using Technology, Parents Blamed

Gov't seeks to fix with "digital literacy trainers"

Children from poorer families are spending more time using technology than their "well-off" counterparts, according to the NY Times.

Studies show that they more frequently use their television and gadgets to watch shows and videos, play games and connect on social networking sites.

But the government wants to fix that, as policy makers and researchers believe the change shows parents' lack of ability to monitor and limit how children use technology.

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The "digital divide" emerged in the 1990s when low-income families made efforts to get their hands on the latest computing tools, too.

But now the Federal Communications Commission is concerned, and is considering a proposal to spend $200 million to create a digital literacy corps in which trainers would go to schools and libraries to teach productive uses of computers for parents, students and job seekers. 

The digital literacy trainers would also be sent to the Boys and Girls Club, the League of United Latin American Citizens, and the NAACP.

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