It's a myth that kids prefer video games, says rights group planning a challenging alternative
SAMUEL CHANsamuel.chan@scmp.com
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 09 September, 2015, 12:01am
UPDATED : Wednesday, 09 September, 2015, 12:01am
The study found that playgrounds, though satisfactory, discouraged the inborn urge of children to test themselves and interact with others. Photo: Sam Tsang
Hong Kong's playgrounds are too boring for kids, a children's rights group has concluded after finding they were empty a quarter of the time during the summer.
Some youngsters found the entertainment on offer so dull they sought ways to liven things up, such as climbing up slides, or even playing in the flowerbed.
The Playright Children's Play Association, in a joint project with Unicef, recorded 10 hours of video footage at five typical playgrounds across the city from 4pm to 6pm during the summer school break to gauge the usage.
Chris Yuen Hon-cheong, playground environment consultant with the group, said most playgrounds, though safe and with satisfactory access for children with disabilities, lacked diversity and discouraged the inborn urge of children to take on challenges and interact.
"Safety is basic to a good playground, but a better playground requires more," said Yuen, who is a US-certified playground safety inspector and government consultant on playground design.
"It should enable children of different ages and abilities to play freely without any difficulty, and provide them with physical, sensory and social play experience, so that they can accept challenges just right for their ages and interact with each other."
A good playground facility, he said, should offer various levels of challenge to children of different ages and allow social interaction with other children, as well as parents or elderly people when possible.
Kathy Wong Kin-ho, executive director of Playright, said kids might appear to prefer video games or their smartphones to playing outdoors, but this is because they often have no options.
"And parents too need to leave their phone behind when they are at the playground with their kids."
The two groups are now working with various government departments including the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and Housing Department, as well as the Hong Kong Institute of Landscape Architects, to make "better playgrounds" happen. Tuen Mun Town Park has been picked as the testing ground where their vision may be realised, subject to approval of a government feasibility study.
At a Chai Wan Park playground described as representative of such facilities in the city, technician Hugo Cheung was playing yesterday with his three-year-old daughter, Sophie, under the scorching sun.
"It's boring. There's not even a swing here," he said when asked for his view on the playground. "There is no canopy to block the sun during daytime and no light at night."
Asked if he felt playgrounds offering a greater challenge would be a welcome change, he replied: "That would be nice but I don't think the officials have such courage."
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1856494/childrens-rights-group-wages-war-hong-kongs
