May 20, 1999
LIBRARY / SOCIAL SKILLS SOFTWARE
Helping Children to Navigate Their World
By MARGOT SLADE
ducators think of them as
social skills and generally try
to build them into what they
call the ""early childhood learning experience."" Parents think of them collectively -- if at all -- as the ability to
get along with others. Such issues
are generally confronted on a crisis-management basis: dealing with the
playground bully, with being the new
student in school, with sharing, intolerance, an argument with a friend.
The computer seems to figure into
neither calculation. Since you can't
be social with a machine, it seems
odd to build social skills by using one.
But in fact, the computer is a good
tool for youngsters to try out and try
on a range of responses to real-world
social situations.
""The computer is nonthreatening,"" said Arthur Pober, an educational psychologist and child and
family counselor who is executive director of the Entertainment Software Rating Board. ""It is not another child on the block who can
physically confront your kid. It is not
a parental figure, who mandates certain conduct. It can be neutral.""
And with the right kind of software, the computer can present scenarios and characters that allow
children to place themselves in a predicament and then experiment with
what might be appropriate responses.
But of course they will not actually experience the consequences of
even the most outrageous behavior.
Educators and psychologists note
that in social skills software, parents
are essentially looking for story-telling programs with a twist: the
program should provide at least two
or three opportunities for children to
choose among different courses of
action and to see how those choices
play out for themselves and others.
Children delight in being able to rewrite the scripts, trying on different
behaviors, as was discovered by four
youngsters who tested the programs
reviewed here.
The most appropriate programs
should identify the kinds of situations
children are experiencing or are
most likely to experience: making
new friends, for example, adjusting
to a new sibling, resolving a playground conflict. At the least, the
packaging should indicate the social
skills that the software explores; at
most, it will outline the actual scenarios used. Check the visuals, too:
settings should be attractive, while
characters should look inviting.
The language should be appropriate for a child's age. Alternatives
should be presented in written
words, spoken words and illustrations. Many programs on the market
-- and all the products reviewed here
-- offer children the opportunity to
have their stories read back.
The best software provides support material for parents: suggestions for exploring the scenario, with
and without the computer, and the
consequences of decisions.
""The idea is that parents can act
as their children's counselors,"" Dr.
Pober said, ""which in these sticky
situations is precisely what they are
supposed to be.""