Contributing Author: Stephanie Yarnell, MD, PhD and Jacqueline A. Hobbs, MD, PhD, DFAPA
Date Uploaded onto Website: March 18, 2016
Overview: Technology is almost ubiquitous in our society. Children today are growing up surrounded by smartphones, tablets, computers, Kindles, i-readers, television, etc. With this explosion in available technologies, it probably comes as no surprise that printed books and writing by hand are on the decline. With less access to these “old fashioned” devices, children are growing up with primarily on-screen texts. But how does this effect the development of a child’s reading and writing abilities? We present here a Facilitator’s Guide for teaching trainees about our ever-increasing interface with technology, with an emphasis on children’s reading and writing development. Content based learning objectives include that the learner will be able to describe: increasing trends in on-screen media, potential effects of on-screen reading on language development, and potential effects of writing by hand on language development. These objectives are assessed via role-play exercise with direct observation. As with all sessions in the Neuroscience in the Media module, additional learning objectives include that the learner will: appreciate the relevance of neuroscience to the future of psychiatry; be able to serve as an ambassador of neuroscience and psychiatry (by demonstrating the ability to critique media coverage of our field); and have fun learning about neuroscience!
Author Affiliations: Dr. Yarnell is from the Department of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine. Dr. Hobbs is from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Florida College of Medicine. David Ross, MD, PhD, Katherine Blackwell, MD, PhD, and Ashley Walker, MD, are the Contributing Editors for this publication. The National Neuroscience Curriculum Initiative is a collaborative effort with AADPRT and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Council on Medical Education and Lifelong Learning and receives support from the NIH (R25 MH10107602S1) ©National Neuroscience Curriculum Initiative.
