Young People and Computer Use

According to a report by the U.S. Department of Education, in that country “about 90% of people ages 5 to 17 use computers and 59% of them use the Internet—rates that are, in both cases, higher than those of adults". Computer use begins early. “About three quarters of children already use computers by the age of five, and a majority use the Internet by the age of nine,” the report shows. While more than half of young people go on-line to communicate with friends or play games, “almost three in four use the Internet for help with school assignments." “Girls, who not long ago used computers and the Internet at lower rates than boys, have essentially eliminated that difference.”