Jakarta, IO – Gadgets are no longer complementary to a modern lifestyle. They have in fact become an absolute necessity in the current way of life. In February 2022, We Are Social reported that Indonesian internet user numbers had reached 204.7 million, or 73.7 percent of the total population; 96 percent of internet users also use smartphones.
With its various features, gadgets offer both bountiful benefits as well as ambient dangers for excessive dependence. A Ministry of Communication and Information report in 2018 stated that 65.34 percent of the public aged 9 to 19 used the internet, primarily (93.52 percent) for social media, YouTube and online games – at least for this particular age range.
The Satkaara Berbagi Teacher Community (KGSB) in collaboration with Rumah Guru BK (RGBK)—A teachers’ community focusing on students counseling— held a KGSB “Youth and Devices” Webinar on Saturday, May 14, 2022. The webinar aimed to provide insights for teachers on educating students about the appropriate use of gadgets.
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Attended by hundreds of teachers and lecturers from PAUD (YL teachers) to Universities in Indonesia and Timor Leste, the webinar presented two experts in psychology and education, the Secretary of the Psychology Undergraduate Study Program/Clinical Psychologist, Faculty of Psychology UNIKA Atma Jaya, Nanda Rosalia, M. Psi and Founder of the BK Teacher’s House and Widyaiswara Kemendikbud, Research and Technology RI, Ana Susanti, M.Pd. CEP, CHt.
Ruth Andriani, the founder of KGSB, said that it is impossible to remove gadgets from young people, as gadgets and the internet are in fact irresistible social changes.