Abstract:

The article investigates the relationships of children from 8 to 12 years old with digital media, in order to understand how and under what circumstances they access and use these media, and finally to propose mechanisms and strategies for child protection and safety through a guidance to the parents. The following question outlined the course of the research: How is the access and use of digital media by children aged 8 to 12 years, making it possible for them to interact, access knowledge and, above all, ensure their safety? Much is being studied about the skills of the 21st century, developed through digital media, but prevention and security are very important aspects to consider. Through descriptive exploratory qualitative research, we analyzed the data obtained from a questionnaire with semi-structured questions applied to children aged 8 to 12 years, trying to understand the possibilities and limits of the use of digital media for integral development of the child. The content of an interview with an authority on public safety and considerations of health, safety and education experts regarding the parent's guide was also analyzed. The data and guide information has been validated by data sampling and saturation. The result was the production of an instructional didactic material as a technological educational product, which is the guide to parents' guidance on the access and use of digital media by children. The study is based on Abreu (2013), Moran (2015), Garcia (2018), Kilbey (2018), Tono (2017), and other reference documents. The results of the research pointed to the care when identifying possibilities, risks and damages that digital technologies can bring to children. Evidence has shown that children's access to digital media needs to be done with protective factors, parental control and guidance, in order to guarantee and respect their rights of access and use in a safe and emancipatory way. The five indicators for the safe use of digital media by the child are presented. They represent alternative ways of following up and orienting parents, such as: children's protagonism, the exercise of affectivity, dialogue, parental monitoring and control, and orientations about limits and possibilities. These are characterized in a dialogical process, with stimulus to the maturity and discernment of the child, within the limits of its protection, for the appropriation of knowledge.

References:
[1] ABREU, Cristiano Nabuco; EISENSTEIN, Evelyn; ESTEFENON, Susana Graciela Bruno (Org.). Vivendo esse mundo digital: impactos na saúde, na educação e nos comportamentos sociais. Porto Alegre: Artmed, 2013.
[2] GARCIA, Marilene Santana dos Santos. Mobilidade tecnológica e planejamento didático. São Paulo: Editora Senac São Paulo, 2018.
[3] KILBEY, Elizabeth. Unplugged Parenting: How to Raise Happy, Healthy Children in the Digital Age. Hachette UK, 2017.
[4] MORAN, José Manuel. A educação que desejamos. Novos desafios e como chegar lá. Campinas: Papirus, 2015.
[5] TONO, Cineiva Campoli Paulino. Tecnologia e dignidade humana. Curitiba: Juruá, 2017.

Keywords:

Child and Digital Media, Interactions in Childhood, Monitoring and Parental Control, Guidance to parents, Indicators of safety and protection to the child.