Why Parent Tech Matters

When we say "technology," it’s easy to think of screens—now touch-enabled, portable, and always within reach. But screens are just the latest chapter in a much longer story. Books, movies, radios, even clocks are technologies too. Each of these inventions reshaped society in their time, just as phones and tablets reshape ours today.

When I think about technology, I also think about shovels and pencils—tools that help us dig holes or write thoughts. At its core, technology has always been about helping us achieve essential tasks or make more meaning in life whether through inspiration, connection, or simply joy.

The challenge is teaching kids to see technology in that way: as a tool to be used thoughtfully and intentionally. It’s not about screens controlling their time but about showing kids how to use tools to create, learn, and connect.

Now, parents are swimming in a sea of tech options—screen time debates, gadgets that track your kid’s every move, and AI parenting coaches. It can feel like too much.

That’s why I started Parent Tech—not to cram technology into every corner of our lives, but to ask thoughtful questions that help guide its role in our families. What are we trying to achieve? Can technology help us get there? And what can we learn from other parents about what works—and what doesn’t?

From Clocks to Screens: Technology Always Changes Us

Before the clock, you couldn’t monetize time because you couldn’t measure it accurately. After the clock? Suddenly, time was something you could track and sell. As Lewis Mumford wrote in the 1934 book Technics and Civilization, “We effectively became “time-keepers, and then time-savers, and now time-servers” with the invention of the clock.”

That same pattern repeats itself with many new technologies: it’s discovered, it’s adopted, and if successful it changes us, society, and parenting in good and bad ways. 

Electricity sparked fears that we’d stay up too late or lose our eyesight. Radio shifted storytelling from active reading to passive listening, allowing stories to reach larger audiences—but also raising concerns about the loss of active engagement. Television shifted family routines and raised concerns about kids glued to Saturday morning cartoons. And now phones and tablets, with their personal, immersive, and portable nature, lead the way in reshaping parenting once again. 

Each new wave of tech brings both friction and opportunity. Sure, the portability of screens makes them harder to monitor than a TV mounted to the wall, but it also means you can use them in creative ways. My daughter and I once had an extended conversation about dung beetles—yes, dung beetles—because a quick video search helped me prove they really do roll animal dung around. That one clip turned into days of bedtime stories, questions, and imaginative play.

To me, the question isn’t “How do we stop ourselves from changing?” It’s “How do we guide that change to make our lives better?”

Helping Kids And Parents Use Technology

The way I think about technology with my kids is simple: it’s a tool. Just like a pencil helps you write or a flute helps you make music, screens and apps can help you do specific things—learn something, connect with someone, or explore an idea.

One of my favorite memories involves Total Annihilation, a game I used to play with my brother. I remember looking up strategies online to try things like the “octopus strategy,” where you spread resources across the map for attacks behind enemy lines. For me, that wasn’t just a game—it was a way to connect with my brother and his friends and I wanted to play it in an effective and clever way.

That’s what I want for my kids: to use technology to accomplish their goals or create meaning. Not just to scroll endlessly or zone out. 

And for parents, technology offers ways to help us entertain or teach ourselves and our kids, gives us time to recharge, or amplifies our parental capabilities so we can do things like help our kids remember something important for school.

The Pros and Cons of Technology

Of course, it’s not always smooth sailing. Like any tool, screens can be used in ways that aren’t helpful. Sometimes, we let our daughter watch for too long or play an overly stimulating game, and we end up with a meltdown when it’s time to stop.

The question is even more pressing for parents with older kids who have smartphones or face pressure from peers to get one. Kids who receive hundreds of messages a day from friends and experience a social life woven through social networks or online games.

We try to be intentional and ask ourselves, “What are we trying to accomplish here?” For example, making time to draw together because Instacart saved us a trip to the store, or using an AI tool like Suno to write goofy bedtime songs. Like many, our household enjoys video calls with grandparents and currently we’re evaluating the Nintendo Switch as a way to create family time with co-op games. We try to make technology work for us, not the other way around.

For a parent with an older kid, basic communication for after school pickups might be the goal and the hope is to avoid the other distractions that come with device access.

Parent Tech: Finding the Right Fit for Your Family

Every family is different. What works for one might be a disaster for another. But I believe that by sharing ideas, experimenting, and staying intentional, we can help our kids see technology for what it is: a tool.

That’s where I hope Parent Tech interviews and writing comes in. It’s my way of digging deeper—researching, analyzing, and sharing ideas about how families can navigate this tech-heavy world. I’m not going to pretend I have all the answers, but I hope to spark conversations about what’s working, what’s not, and how we can make technology into tools that truly serve our families, instead of the other way around.

Because as much as I marvel at my kids’ ability to master technology, I don’t want them to grow up as servants to their devices. I want them to use tech to make their lives—and the lives of others—better. And, as a parent, I don’t want to make a misstep or overlook an opportunity to do something really great because I just didn’t know enough.

So, let’s figure this out together. My guests and I will bring the research, real world experiences, and maybe even a 90-year-old quote or two. I hope you’ll send me questions and your own perspectives. Let’s turn technology into something that enriches family life instead of complicating it.

I’d love to hear from you—what’s working in your home? What’s not? Send me your questions and perspectives, and let’s figure this out together.