Abdullah is only two, yet he keeps pestering his mother and elder brother, crying because he wants to play computer games with the elder brother. "My son Abdullah adores cars and 3D games, although he's so small," says his mother, Safaa Fawzi, 36, with a smile. Safaa's son is very intelligent and she wants to boost his technological skills. But everything has its pros and cons and Abdullah's mother is afraid that imaginary characters like Batman and Superman might have a big impact on her child. "Abdullah sometimes imitates Superman. He stands on the bed convinced he can fly, then ends up falling on the floor and getting hurt," she adds. "I prefer other characters for children like ‘Bakar' and ‘Sesem', because they teach them good behaviour and how to deal with their friends in different social situations." It's the media role to teach children what's worth watching and what's not, Safaa believes, referring to the ‘Children's Cinema' programme, which is good for children to watch, as it teaches them to evaluate films. Parents should not live in a separate environment and compare their childhood with those of their children, but they should be closer to the new technology and lessen the gap between both generations. "These days, the idea is for the younger generation to be different, using their brains and innovation, making the most of their senses and being more creative," Essam Abdullah, a professor of philosophy, told the Egyptian Mail in an interview. "Computers enable children and teenagers to connect with the whole world, so they can become ‘scientific human beings' who are not isolated from what's happening globally." "I spend two hours a day playing computer games. I try playing different games like football matches and auto races, so I don't get bored with only one game," says Abdel-Rahman Ezzedin, a 12-year-old primary school pupil. "I only play for two hours a day, as I also like playing with my friends, which gives me a lot of exercise." "Spending long hours playing videogames has a bad impact on a three-year-old's ability to improve his verbal skills by talking with other children of the same age," says Zeinab Beishri, a professor of psychology at Ain Shams University. "The family should make sure their children don't play computer games for too long, as this will affect them in the early stages of learning in school. If they go to bed too late, they'll struggle to get out of bed in the morning." "Parents should not stop their children playing video games altogether, but rather encourage them to play with other children, do some sport and get out of the house," Zeinab adds. "Parents should control their playing hours without resorting to violence," says Professor of Psychology Aida Seif. "The big mistake is to treat your child as if he or she has no brain, especially in their early ages, when you need to convince them about what is right and what is wrong."
