Internet Addiction among Primary School Children as a Civilisational Challenge
Internet Addiction among Primary School Children as a Civilisational Challenge

Summary/Abstract: RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The aim of the article is to present the results of own research on the attitudes of year 1 to year 6 students of Polish primary schools in rural areas and in urban areas towards the use of the Internet and its purpose, as well as their attitudes to and the level of under standing of online dangers. THE RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODS: The main problem of the publication is to deter mine the degree of risk resulting from the use of new technologies by children. For the purpose of presentation of the results of own research, mathematical analysis tools were used to determine the size of the population and the respective shares related to threats and addiction in relation to the subject matter of the research. THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION: The argumentation is divided into two parts: theoretical part – based on a review of the literature on the subject of addiction, and empirical part – presenting the results of own research, which compared the attitudes and behaviours of primary school students in rural areas and in urban areas. RESEARCH RESULTS: Innovations such as the Internet, and all devices through which it can be accessed, keep developing. Laptop hard drive space is no longer measured in gigabytes, but in terabytes, which well surpasses the capabilities of the average human brain. Searching for in formation, keeping up with latest news, and learning about new technologies – it all boils down to spending hours on the computer. Children, who are only at the beginning of their intellectual development, constitute a group that is particularly vulnerable to the associated risks. The results of the research indicate that they have some awareness in this respect. The question is, however, whether they are aware enough. CONCLUSIONS, INNOVATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS: A question arises whether the current education system is conducive to conscious shaping of the skill of objective recognition by children of both the advantages and disadvantages associated with the use of new technologies and the Internet.

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