Harlen Coben’s, “The Undercover Parent”published March 16th, 2008 in the New York Times, suggests that spyware should be put on kids computers to monitor what they are doing. Coben uses mostly unofficial stories to support his thesis. The authors reason to write the article was probably was probably due to a personal experience or the uproar in internet usage. Also i believe the intended audience is parents of kids who use the internet.
I strongly disagree with Coben’s argument. Being brought up in a strict military family, i understand what it's like to have my online life monitored. Although as i got older and was able to understand the dangers of the internet, my parents slowly took off the website bans and stopped looking at all my online …show more content…
Instead of spying on your kid and then talking to them, trying talking to them first. Spyware should always be a last resort if your child is hiding things from you or doing illegal things. People may say things like, “parents are just trying to help kids” but i think the number one way you can protect your child without spying on them (and maintaining a healthy, trustful relationship) is TALKING to them! Just try asking them what they are up to, its a great conversation starter and your child will most likely be more than happy to converse with you about their favorite websites and social media influencers.
Another argument about spyware may be, “parents can use it as a faster way to know what their kids is doing without having to completely explain the internet” aka “parents are to busy to talk to their kids about this” my response to this statement would be, ‘if parents are not making time to talk to their kids yet stick an Ipad/laptop in their kids hands, then they are basically setting their kid up for very bad danger!!”. You can't just give your child the ability to talk to anyone without at least teaching them about
I strongly disagree with Coben’s argument. Being brought up in a strict military family, i understand what it's like to have my online life monitored. Although as i got older and was able to understand the dangers of the internet, my parents slowly took off the website bans and stopped looking at all my online …show more content…
Instead of spying on your kid and then talking to them, trying talking to them first. Spyware should always be a last resort if your child is hiding things from you or doing illegal things. People may say things like, “parents are just trying to help kids” but i think the number one way you can protect your child without spying on them (and maintaining a healthy, trustful relationship) is TALKING to them! Just try asking them what they are up to, its a great conversation starter and your child will most likely be more than happy to converse with you about their favorite websites and social media influencers.
Another argument about spyware may be, “parents can use it as a faster way to know what their kids is doing without having to completely explain the internet” aka “parents are to busy to talk to their kids about this” my response to this statement would be, ‘if parents are not making time to talk to their kids yet stick an Ipad/laptop in their kids hands, then they are basically setting their kid up for very bad danger!!”. You can't just give your child the ability to talk to anyone without at least teaching them about