BANGKOK, 2nd July 2013 A survey on the Government’s one Tablet per child policy has indicated that the device has a motivational effect on children; however, health effects such as eye sight problems and insufficient exercise have also been noted, according to the National Statistical Office of Thailand.
The Office recommended that more useful content and exercises be added to application programs. Statistics showed that over 92% of teachers and principals were satisfied with the policy of one tablet per child for 1st year primary students.
Many teachers agreed that the tablet served as modern medium for education. It helped motivate students to pay more attention to their lessons, by up to 93.1%. The tablet also improved children’s basic computer skills and kept them updated no matter where and when, the survey indicated.
However, the policy also has its downsides. The tablet may lead to health problems such as poor eye sight and insufficient exercise. Doubts have been raised whether year 1 primary students are too young to use the device, given it will cause their writing skills to drop and they will be too attached to the cyber world.
