A new digital divide: Young people who can’t use keyboards
Do your children a favor and get them a &quot;real&quot; computer with keyboard and mouse, instead of a tablet.<p>I&#x27;ve found it helps with several things. For one, I&#x27;ve seen children accustomed to using touch interfaces blurring the line between physical and virtual, i.e swiping at physical objects like books, photos, even walls. I&#x27;ve not seen this behavior with those used to non touch interfaces.<p>Also, learning to use a keyboard while learning the alphabet seems like a virtuous cycle, at least in my personal experiences.<p>And it may sound old fashioned, but making things too easy for kids makes them less independent and less willing to put in the effort required for learning.<p>Compare for example searching for animal pictures using voice search versus going to the search engine, typing out the term, clicking on &quot;images&quot;... The first is much easier and teaches instant gratification, while the second teaches perseverance and comes with a greater sense of accomplishment.<p>Disclaimer: purely anecdotal, take the preceding with a salt shaker...