Studies show that children of developing nations spend more time online than those from developed nations. Some say it is a welcome development as the Internet is a great source of academic information. However, there are concerns that children being online longer would do more harm than good to them.

· Why is this disparity in the number of online hours?
· How advantageous or disadvantageous is the Net for children?

There is heated discussion on the good and bad of children being online. However, the finding that their numbers are higher in poor nations points to a few factors. I think rising online time of children is obviously useful and harmful.

Looking at the higher figures of time spent by children of poor nations, the most important reason in my opinion is falling figures of family time most parents have in poor nations. As a result, children get a lot of parent-free time. Secondly, computer and its possibilities are rather new in many families, and they take it as sign of their better being. Thirdly, a great majority of children in these nations follow hectic academic schedule which demands them to be much more informed and connected to be successful. Of course, there are other minor reasons, too.

Coming to the Net and its being good or bad for children, I think it is sort of a double edged sword. It all depends on how children make use of this medium. If children are given controlled and responsible access to the Net, it would greatly benefit children by way of academic information. But, on the other hand, if they are given a free hand on the Net, there will be much more problems than prospects, because the Net is as rich with good things as with bad and dangerous things. Obviously, children being immature may get snared in the Net.

To conclude it, the Net is very much part of our life, and the times children of rich and poor nations spend on it may differ on varying factors. However, the responsibility lies with their parents as to find out how well their children exploit this great mine of information.

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