Noting that in today's urban life, both parents have to work and children spend more time in front of screens (TV, phone, tablet) than before due to the limited areas where children can play, Specialist from NP Etiler Medical Center. Dr. Algun Tüfekçi said the following:
"However, for a child's normal development, they need to learn by experiencing life. Children do this by using their creative powers, that is, through play and imagination. In creative play, children assume that they are someone else, that an object represents something else, or that they belong to a different place and time. Creative play usually emerges around 12 months and creativity around 5-6 years of age. Creativity is the capacity of children to generate many new or unusual ideas, as in drawing or stories. Today's children are less and less likely to participate in activities that provide opportunities for experiential learning, activities that are self-created rather than pre-constructed and ready-made. Research shows that mothers observe that outdoor play makes their children happy (Turkey 75%, world average 55%) and that they know that their children prefer to play outside the house (Turkey 85%, world average 75%)."
THEIR SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS WEAKEN AND THEIR MOBILITY IS RESTRICTED
Tüfekçi stated that children who are restricted from spending time outside the home have less space to move at home, and that children who do not know what to do can only turn to television, computer and phone games. "This situation weakens the social relations that children need to establish with the outside world and restricts the physical mobility they need. For their basic needs such as exploration and curiosity, they need to be outside the house, in the park, garden, street, with other children."
We dream half as much as children in other countries
Drawing attention to the fact that cartoons and video games have started to replace the ability to dream, which is the right of every child, Specialist Dr. Algun Tüfekçi said, "Children have to be content with the imagination of those who design them. Research shows that at most 3 out of every 10 children in our country and 6 out of every 10 children in the world have the opportunity to play outside. In other words, our children have half as much opportunity to dream, play creatively and explore the world as children in other countries."
Stating that the rate of mothers who say that they do not send their children outside due to their own concerns is 45% in the world and 80% in Turkey, Tüfekçi said: "While 60% of mothers in our country think that sending their children outside is difficult and troublesome, this rate is valid for only 20% of mothers in the world. It is not safe outside (Turkey 80%, world average 65%), they might get injured or hurt (Turkey 75%, world average 55%), they might get sick (Turkey 50%, world average 30%). Worrying about the possibility of harm to their children at any time is much higher among mothers in Turkey than in the world. They cannot overcome their anxiety about what might happen if they leave their children outside the home. In other cases, difficulties such as distance and transportation, which they endure for their children without complaint, are magnified in their eyes due to these concerns."
Stating that mothers can take away this fundamental right of children for various reasons, Uzm. Dr. Algun Tüfekçi listed these reasons as follows:
"Being young and inexperienced parents; having twins or triplets; having children one after the other in a very short period of time; frequent and frequent change of caregivers and postpartum depression of the mother."
CAN LEAD TO AUTISM
Stating that these reasons can cause the child to spend long hours in front of TV, tablet and phone in the period between the ages of 2-5, and that this period can sometimes reach up to 6-7 or even 10 hours a day, Specialist Dr. Algun Tüfekçi said, "Mothers may see this as a remedy. However, the consequences of staying in front of the screen for such long hours and cutting off the relationship with the outside world can sometimes be severe. As the hours spent in front of the screen increase, the child's verbal and non-verbal communication (bye-bye, waving, pointing, making eye contact) decreases and the child's development is interrupted. In very severe cases, the symptoms can become similar to autism. Whether unintentionally or out of necessity, this is actually a clear neglect of the child."
PLAYING AND EXPLORING IS A CHILD'S FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT
Uzm. Prof. Dr. Algun Tüfekçi stated that going out of the house, playing in the street, garden, park, exploring, dreaming and making friends are the basic needs of children and said, "Children need to play with other children by dreaming outside in order to develop self-confidence, to learn to love and respect others, to help each other, to learn to act independently. This is their fundamental right. I am sure everyone wants and deserves to live in a society of cooperative, independent, self-confident, loving and respectful people. The only way to achieve this is to ensure that children exercise their right to learn and develop by living and playing."
