Assignment 13: Foursquare Response

Parental monitoring of children is necessary, obviously. In the past, parents have tried their best to monitor their children with whatever technology was available at the time: from baby monitors to providing children with cell phones at a certain age when the parents may feel it is necessary as a form of communication/tracking as children gain independence. Child surveillance is important, but at a certain age (probably early teenage years) children start to resent their parents if they feel like their mom or dad is encroaching on their personal information. Although it would create a safer environment and parents technically have the right to do whatever they think is in their child's best interest until they reach the age of 18, too much intrusive surveillance may be more destructive to the parent/child relationship than beneficial. In early years, children probably won't understand or mind the fact that their parents are tracking them- it would improve kidnapping situations by possibly deterring kidnappers or being able to locate children if they do get kidnapped. So- to wrap this idea up, maybe this intense technological surveillance is necessary, but only until a certain age like 13 or so.. after that the monitoring can be turned over to the police or some other confidential, outside monitoring party only to be used if a child goes missing. There needs to be a balance between a child's best interest and their privacy growing up. Teens are rebellious and may not always make the right decisions, but it is a part of growing up that should not be taken away from them.