For me i will say it is right as somebody mentioned above(sch,lectures, etc).I bought a phone for my nice, she is 9 yrs old. The level of insecurity and the nature of my work(time) made me to buy it.

Well, it all depend on you sha.

Polalowo: Some people will not see anything bad for under age children to be given phone, for what?. What emergency?. Which emergency?. Once they fail in school the blame goes to the teachers and government. Civilisation is killing the tradition.

the only emergency a child of that age can go through is when an adult who is charge of looking after that 10yr old collapses etc then thats when the child can take the phone from the collapsed adult and phone emergency numbers

but we shouldnt mixed it up from the question asked would buy a phone for a 10 yrs for emergency, my scenario above the child is not the one who needs the emergency attention but the adult so dont get confused

fesse: For me i will say it is right as somebody mentioned above(sch,lectures, etc).I bought a phone for my nice, she is 9 yrs old. The level of insecurity and the nature of my work(time) made me to buy it.

Well, it all depend on you sha.

is your child always alone

MRbrownJAY:

if they are often away from home, and/or on their own, then i think it is safe to have a mobile for emergency and peace of mind (knowing that you can contact them whenever you need to)
as hard as it may be, these days a 10yr old having a mobile is "kinda" the norm. the catch is to give them a shiitty one, and not an Iphone4S or the latest Galaxy!

How can a child be often away from home.

Dem pikins dey go on business trips nowadays?

MRbrownJAY: ^^^football practice, field trips, music classes, after class studies, private tutor etc the list is long. yes, some may have a driver that take their kids to school and back home, but many live in a world where their kids are out there in the real world.

anyone who has a kid in the west would certainly understand that.

You will desparately need to call you child during the 1 hour 30 mins of going to play football?

Funnily enough, the only kids that can logically need a mobile based on your logic are probably the 6 year old street hawkers. Since they are the typ not to have anyone looking over them while they are away on business.

Rotmyt: I don't think it is a bad idea, it depends on the purpose it serves.My kid sister got her first phone @ age 10. My mum neither takes her to school nor brings her home. So, all my sister does with the mobile phone is to inform my mum that she's on the bus to school, has gotten to school, at the bus station and on the bus back home.

Why does she need that much information?

chardino: to my own mind i actually dn't see any thing wrong with a 8 or 10yr old kid to have a phone for emergency sake.
that if they stay away from their parents.......
is a free world them having a phone will cause to harm to them my dear...

You mean like in an orphanage?

ZIM DRILL:

why not phone whoever will be in charge of thw football practice and those field trips etc and besides they should have your number as the parent or guardian not the child of that age

ZIM DRILL:

what emergency can happen to him/her at that age of 10 that no one wont be around except him/her ?

its not about about him/her having a phone at that age but whoever will be looking after them must have your number to contact you

who would have left a 10yr old in charge of anything that if it goes bad s/he will call you

Thank you

toluxa1: It actually depends. For example, my younger brother is 15 and my mum bought him a Nokia X2. Up till tomorrow I made it clear to them that its a bad idea. Immediately he comes back from school, first place is to his phone, 2go, chatting. Sometimes I see him online at 12am. The truth is these things are a serious deterrent to the seriousness of our young ones. Many kids failing WAEC and NECO, fail because they are distracted by 2go, whatsapp, facebook, etc.

But if its a touch light for for example just for the purpose of communication, they its allowed.

PS: infact am going to seize that his phone, I don vex.

So fcking well said!

MRbrownJAY:


@Toluxa1
the important question to ask IS: why did your mum buy the phone for exactly? was there even a need to contact the child, if he is either at school or directly home?

Just because he was disturbing her that he wants a phone o, nothing more!

MRbrownJAY:

your kid is at home after school, and will meet the others of that said group in a meeting place, so each of these kids will be for a short period of time ALONE. no matter how you look at it.



here is a clue: the bus is late, or dont show up while your kid is out there waiting for the bus.....or better yet, the driver is too busy calling other parents. i wont even talk about driving while on the phone with parents, lol!



yes it is their duty but it surely wouldnt solve the problem of KNOWING where your child is at all times. how would that solve the problem, if the coach call you to tell you that your kid is absent?!
if your kid is at any time alone outside, (like many are) then a cellphone is a great way of being able to contact them....unless you have any other way of contacting them in such instance?

do you think s/he will switch on her phone when s/her knows that she has broken the rules ?

remember lets not forget that we are talking of a 10yr old here not those above 15

MRbrownJAY:

your kid is at home after school, and will meet the others of that said group in a meeting place, so each of these kids will be for a short period of time ALONE. no matter how you look at it.



here is a clue: the bus is late, or dont show up while your kid is out there waiting for the bus.....or better yet, the driver is too busy calling other parents. i wont even talk about driving while on the phone with parents, lol!



yes it is their duty but it surely wouldnt solve the problem of KNOWING where your child is at all times. how would that solve the problem, if the coach call you to tell you that your kid is absent?!
if your kid is at any time alone outside, (like many are) then a cellphone is a great way of being able to contact them....unless you have any other way of contacting them in such instance?

do you think s/he will switch on her phone when s/her knows that she has broken the rules ?

remember lets not forget that we are talking of a 10yr old here not those above 15

MRbrownJAY:


yes it is their duty but it surely wouldnt solve the problem of KNOWING where your child is at all times. how would that solve the problem, if the coach call you to tell you that your kid is absent?!
if your kid is at any time alone outside, (like many are) then a cellphone is a great way of being able to contact them....unless you have any other way of contacting them in such instance?

do you think s/he will switch on her phone when s/her knows that she has broken the rules ?

remember lets not forget that we are talking of a 10yr old here not those above 15

toluxa1: It actually depends. For example, my younger brother is 15 and my mum bought him a Nokia X2. Up till tomorrow I made it clear to them that its a bad idea. Immediately he comes back from school, first place is to his phone, 2go, chatting. Sometimes I see him online at 12am. The truth is these things are a serious deterrent to the seriousness of our young ones. Many kids failing WAEC and NECO, fail because they are distracted by 2go, whatsapp, facebook, etc.

But if its a touch light for for example just for the purpose of communication, they its allowed.

PS: infact am going to seize that his phone, I don vex.

15 yrs is another story

the age mentioned is 10yr old lets focus on that age nothing else

ZIM DRILL:

the only emergency a child of that age can go through is when an adult who is charge of looking after that 10yr old collapses etc then thats when the child can take the phone from the collapsed adult and phone emergency numbers

but we shouldnt mixed it up from the question asked would buy a phone for a 10 yrs for emergency, my scenario above the child is not the one who needs the emergency attention but the adult so dont get confused

It is what psychologists have tagged "fear consumerism".

toluxa1:
Just because he was disturbing her that he wants a phone o, nothing more!

that surely isnt a wise reason to buy someone a phone..... and we surely can understand why the only use he has for it is to contact his buddies.

Sagamite:
How can a child be often away from home.
Dem pikins dey go on business trips nowadays?
You will desparately need to call you child during the 1 hour 30 mins of going to play football?

lol, abi they dont do field trips for your area?
i dont know about you but some kids have a lot to do after school. from tutors to music classes, to sport etc. so YES they may spend a lot of time on their own outside....unless you have someone that will follow EACH AND EVERY kids from school, all the way to their front door safely.

if that child spends even 1min away from home on their own, then you should have a way to contact them (in case of emergency).
you probably wont have to contact them BUT, IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, that phone will probably be the difference between life and death.

ZIM DRILL:
do you think s/he will switch on her phone when s/her knows that she has broken the rules ?
remember lets not forget that we are talking of a 10yr old here not those above 15

what rules are you talking about?! i dont follow you.

fesse: For me i will say it is right as somebody mentioned above(sch,lectures, etc).I bought a phone for my nice, she is 9 yrs old. The level of insecurity and the nature of my work(time) made me to buy it.

Well, it all depend on you sha.

a child should own a fone by age 5/6!
when he/she is at school, church or away from home, the fone can
be reached to see how he's doing. the fone should have no internet
access or any techie gimmick. nokia 3310 is the best option.
call/receive and send/recieve text messages!

coogar:
a child should own a fone by age 5/6!
when he/she is at school, church or away from home, the fone can
be reached to see how he's doing. the fone should have no internet
access or any techie gimmick. nokia 3310 is the best option.
call/receive and send/recieve text messages!

kai, Nokia 3310!!!!! you want that child to be the joke of the whole school/neighborhood?! you can get a BS cheap looking nonsense phone for free, and they would look 100times better than a 3310, lol!

MRbrownJAY:

that surely isnt a wise reason to buy someone a phone..... and we surely can understand why the only use he has for it is to contact his buddies.

lol, abi they dont do field trips for your area?
i dont know about you but some kids have a lot to do after school. from tutors to music classes, to sport etc. so YES they may spend a lot of time on their own outside....unless you have someone that will follow EACH AND EVERY kids from school, all the way to their front door safely.

if that child spends even 1min away from home on their own, then you should have a way to contact them (in case of emergency).
you probably wont have to contact them BUT, IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, that phone will probably be the difference between life and death.

Why will I need to desperately contact my 10 year old during school trips, music classes or football?

Why can't I wait till they get home?

I grew up going to school on my own, so did my generation. There is no need for a mobile for life and death emergency. Virtually all are still alive today.

That life and death philosophy is just fear consumerism. Why not buy them a bullet proof vest just in case of stray bullet. Or you think a modile phone would stop the bullet or even a knife stab?

MRbrownJAY:

kai, Nokia 3310!!!!! you want that child to be the joke of the whole school/neighborhood?! you can get a BS cheap looking nonsense phone for free, and they would look 100times better than a 3310, lol!

let him be the joke of the school. better safe than sorry.
the moment the phone comes armed with camera or the internet, then
it becomes an addiction. pornsites, happy slapping and many vices
become the order of the day.

nokia 3310 is a cute supersexy fone for any kid under 10.
if he doesn't like it, i would take him to nigeria to see
what kids of his age cope with. i believe that should
knock some common sense into his greasy head.

phone good but...he must be reading one book a week.

coogar:

a child should own a fone by age 5/6!
when he/she is at school, church or away from home, the fone can
be reached to see how he's doing. the fone should have no internet
access or any techie gimmick. nokia 3310 is the best option.
call/receive and send/recieve text messages!

You intend to send them to church or school on their own when they are 5/6?

@op: when d parent or guardian start 2 care about his/her whereabout.

^^
You know, he's probably talking out of personal angst. His parents prolly still haven't gotten him one

Sagamite:

Why will I need to desperately contact my 10 year old during school trips, music classes or football?

NOT during, but before and after, when that child is on its way there (you know on its own).

Why can't I wait till they get home?

what if they dont? what if they are late? what if they met a friend and are wasting time out there?

I grew up going to school on my own, so did my generation. There is no need for a mobile for life and death emergency. Virtually all are still alive today.

i did too, and guess what, i never even needed to be contacted at all time of the day...but sadly i own a cell phone now. if WE adults have evolved, why would you want chidren NOT TO?!
unless you dont own a cellphone, your point make no sense.

That life and death philosophy is jus fear consumerism. Why not buy them a bullet proof vest just in case of stray bullet. Or you think a modile phone would stop the bullet or even a knife stab?

its called PEACE OF MIND. i want to know where my kid is at all time, and know that they are SAFE....and yes, if i was living in an area where there is shooting all around, then i would buy them a bullet proof vest. a mobile phone is just a device to be a able to contact your child, if that child spends a great deal of time out there by themselves......but hey, if you'd rather wait in suspense biting your nail, then fair enough!

if a mobile phone has ever saved ONE CHILD from being abducted/lost/injured then it can only be RIGHT. if you dont believe that, go ask the parents of children who were found/saved/rescued thanks to their mobile phone.

coogar:
let him be the joke of the school. better safe than sorry.
the moment the phone comes armed with camera or the internet, then
it becomes an addiction. pornsites, happy slapping and many vices
become the order of the day.

nokia 3310 is a cute supersexy fone for any kid under 10.
if he doesn't like it, i would take him to nigeria to see
what kids of his age cope with. i believe that should
knock some common sense into his greasy head.

fair enough but how you go add to possible bullying at school with such hideous phone? there are many phones that you can physically block from internet access, who dont have cam and that look hip.

Sagamite:

You intend to send them to church or school on their own when they are 5/6?

yes! i am a businessman, i can't be around my child at all times.
while a child minder picks him up from school or takes him to school,
it's important i know how he's doing myself - from the horse's mouth!

mobile phones are here to stay. much so these days when you have
idiotic kids bringing guns to school to maim their mates.
i'd be raving mad to be kept in the dark when a cheap mobile phone
would at least assure me of my child's safety.

Children under 13 years have no business owning a mobile phone. Parents today are over-indulging their kids all under the name of progress, and as with everything in life, these excesses will certainly affect negatively the growing up process of the children.

I personally know a couple of 9 year olds who have blackberrys with active BIS subscriptions! From the danger that their writing/spelling skills will be compromised especially with all the text-speak that is widespread these days to the fact they will most likely come across media content or subjects that are not suitable for their ages to the distraction these devices pose in themselves, it is easy to see why these phones will do more harm than good to the children.

MRbrownJAY:

fair enough but how you go add to possible bullying at school with such hideous phone? there are many phones that you can physically block from internet access, who dont have cam and that look hip.

bullying at school is part of growing up.
with time, he would grow up to have kids to bully as well.

I wonder why phone makers aren't investing in kid-phones with limited functionality. Seen a few prototypes in the past, but nobody has taken it to market.

Interesting debate but you guys aren't putting into account LOCATION.

I have a niece in Nigeria and even though she has a cell phone (one akapala phone she begged her momma to buy sim card for), she never uses it. She gets dropped off in school by the driver and 30 mins before school is over, he is there waiting for her. She has some after school programs she attends, so he drops her off there and she comes home with a Neighbor whose kid also attends the same program. If they are gonna be running late for whatever reason, the neighbor calls my sister ahead of time. This is pretty much her schedule for the week. Weekend, she is always with her parents and her grandma. . .who does she need to call then? Nobody, that's who.

Now I have another neice in the US. . .she is just a couple of months older than the Naija niece and the thought of her not having a cell phone sends shivers down my spine. A typical day for her goes like this - Morning, her parents are up at six, they get her ready for school but since she has to wait for the school bus. . .more often than not, they have to leave her home alone for a 30 to 45 mins period. School bus get there at 7:20 or something like that and parents who have to fight morning traffic to get to work by 8, can't wait until the school bus comes to leave for work. So they are constantly on the line with her until she enters the bus. Of course at school, they tell them to switch off the phones. . . .so that's good. After school, she gets a phone call from either her mom or dad. . .they wanna synchronize her after school activities to the last sec. The after school program she attends sends a bus to pick the kids up, even though they try to get there on time, sometime shite happens so it can happen that it is only a handful of kids left at school when the bus finally gets there. . .guess what happens in the interim, the poor girl is on the phone with one of the parents until the bus gets there. After school activity is until six and one of the 'rents picks her up and until the very moment they lay their eyes on her, they are on the phone with her.

Even though both girls are closely monitored, the method of monitoring differs because of their location. In Nigeria, the whole village bringing up a child thingy still works. Parents are still each other's eyes and there are certain luxuries like a live in driver and housemaid that aren't available abroad (The Nigerian Bill gates in the house pardon me oh, y'all are not in the equation here, I won't even dare to offend y'all like that ) so parents abroad have to look for alternative.

coogar:

bullying at school is part of growing up.
with time, he would grow up to have kids to bully as well.

are you saying that you would still get a Nokia3310, even though you could get a nice looking one with no cam and internet access, for the same price or cheaper?!

MRbrownJAY:

are you saying that you would still get a Nokia3310, even though you could get a nice looking one with no cam and internet access, for the same price or cheaper?!

i just love the cuteness of nokia 3310. jeez, it's very reliable, durable
and user friendly. it doesn't matter how many times he drops it on the floor,
the phone still works. it's even a turn-off to pickpockets and
robbers which means i don't have to change his phone 12 times a month.

mrbrownjay, way to go........

coogar:

i just love the cuteness of nokia 3310. jeez, it's very reliable, durable
and user friendly. it doesn't matter how many times he drops it on the floor,
the phone still works. it's even a turn-off to pickpockets and
robbers which means i don't have to change his phone 12 times a month.

mrbrownjay, way to go........

it is also as heavy as a brick, lol....while you can get a cool looking light phone with a GPS on it.
kids of today are very conscious of such items and therefore some would rather go out without the phone,rather than be seen with such prehistoric looking phone.

MRbrownJAY:

NOT during, but before and after, when that child is on its way there (you know on its own).

Why?

They are going to go maximum 3 times a week. They will spend 15/30 mins to get there, play for an hour and spend 15/30 minutes to get back home. Sometimes dropped off or picked up buy you or your wife?

Why do you urgently need to contact them?

MRbrownJAY:
what if they dont? what if they are late? what if they met a friend and are wasting time out there?

I would expect a child to be disciplined enough to know when they are expected back home at the age of 10.

MRbrownJAY:
i did too, and guess what, i never even needed to be contacted at all time of the day...but sadly i own a cell phone now. if WE adults have evolved, why would you want chidren NOT TO?!
unless you dont own a cellphone, your point make no sense.

I don't know since when what I want entitles a child to also want the same.

I want to bone Kim Kardasian senseless and would if she gave it up, does not mean a child is entitled to bone whoever he wants as well.

When he gets older, he can have what he wants.

MRbrownJAY:
its called PEACE OF MIND. i want to know where my kid is at all time, and know that they are SAFE....and yes, if i was living in an area where there is shooting all around, then i would buy them a bullet proof vest. a mobile phone is just a device to be a able to contact your child, if that child spends a great deal of time out there by themselves......but hey, if you'd rather wait in suspense biting your nail, then fair enough!

if a mobile phone has ever saved ONE CHILD from being abducted/lost/injured then it can only be RIGHT. if you dont believe that, go ask the parents of children who were found/saved/rescued thanks to their mobile phone.

No, that is just paranoia.

Train them well, and you will have a clue where they are most of the time and know they will do their best to stay out of trouble. You don't need to know where they are all the time.

Secondly, from my experience, that statement of "i want to know where my kid is at all time" is just some funky mentality of thinking it shows "I love my kids like mad". It is the typical "I am the one that loves his/her kids the most". Come on. Most people love their kids as much as you do.

A 10 year old child should not be in a position to be abducted/lost/injured. And if that should happen, I doubt the mobile would save them.

MRbrownJAY:

it is also as heavy as a brick, lol....while you can get a cool looking light phone with a GPS on it.
kids of today are very conscious of such items and therefore some would rather go out without the phone,rather than be seen with such prehistoric looking phone.

i don't need the gps. if i need to know where he's @, i
call him or send a text message. a kid of 5/6 just wants
to play brick-breaker or tetris on his phone.

coogar:

yes! i am a businessman, i can't be around my child at all times.
while a child minder picks him up from school or takes him to school,
it's important i know how he's doing myself - from the horse's mouth!

mobile phones are here to stay. much so these days when you have
idiotic kids bringing guns to school to maim their mates.
i'd be raving mad to be kept in the dark when a cheap mobile phone
would at least assure me of my child's safety.

My father was not around me all the time, the same for everyone around my age.

We did not even have drivers to take us to school, except you are mistaking the danfo driver as some kind of personal driver.

You can't speak to them through the driver's phone?

Sagamite:

My father was not around me all the time, the same for everyone around my age.

We did not even have drivers to take us to school, except you are mistaking the danfo driver as some kind of personal driver.

You can't speak to them through the driver's phone?

and you would agree there are more depraved criminals around now
than the way it was in the 80s when you went to school. nobody
was bringing assault rifles in the 80s but these days, anything
can happen in the school. mobile phones just give an extra sense
of security to the parents.