Osmo Parenting Survey

A new Osmo-commissioned survey of 2,000 U.S. parents of school-age children examines attitudes towards parenting between today’s adults and their parents, while revealing a desire to carry on specific traditions they learned as kids and rejecting punitive practices. A surprising 78% of survey participants with kids ages 5-14+ think they’re better at parenting than their parents/caregivers were. This study conducted by OnePoll reveals a range of attitudes towards how they value time spent with children, including screen time, given how many mobile devices are being used by children and adults today.

Participants admitted learning parenting from a wealth of sources like books, TV, websites, other parents, religion, as well as relying on their own parents and experiences. Yet interestingly, while 77% think they should not expose children to punitive parenting practices (spanking, being sent to your room or finishing dinner before leaving the table, adhering to strict bedtime), five in ten would love to share the experience of playing beloved board games with their children. "This ranks as high as past-times like books, movies, sports and family meals, with 49% saying they will carry on similar traditions with their kids,” says Sharma. “It suggests families still value game time as a very important part of child development.”

When it comes to the role of technology in family life, responses indicate that the majority of parents embrace using technology at home with measured caution by monitoring kids’ usage across devices and setting rules around screen time. Even so, four in five worry to some degree about the quality of content their children consume, however 48% admit they would allow more screen time if the content is educational in some way. While Sharma allows his little ones to freely use iPads, he makes sure their screen time is active. “The case of watching hours of YouTube mindlessly is not part of our family’s parenting practice,” he says.

Respondents also reveal that they may spend anywhere from $10-$50+ monthly on supplemental educational products, and would allocate even more money if they liked the product enough. “This data is compelling because it shows parents are welcoming greater usage of educational products at home, while reinforcing our belief that hands-on games played within a group setting are a highly valuable means of learning,” says Sharma. “It validates Osmo’s mission to create quality programs that are fun for kids, parents and educators, and educational technology will continue to grow.”

The majority of participants (77%) think that parenting is more difficult today. When asked what makes parenting challenging, they identified a range of issues like discipline, setting boundaries and rules, education decisions, scheduling, daily grind, and work/life balance.


I had a chance to interview CEO Pramod Sharma to learn more.

What are factors that make people perceive parenting as being harder today?
It’s easy for kids to slip into activities that aren’t good for them. When it comes to technology usage and parenting, parents have to exercise more discipline and vigilance -- factors which make parenting harder today.

In what ways to today's parents perceive themselves as "better" at parenting?
Parents might perceive themselves as “better” at parenting today because they are more engaged with their kids’ lives. For example, fathers play a greater role in parenting today because of changing perceptions about their roles.

How can technology be useful for parents?
The primary motivation of every parent is to raise kids properly which is a difficult goal. Technology can facilitate the daily duties of parenting and also take away some of the burden--from simple tasks like helping you take notes on the phone, to more complex utilization of technology that increases kids’ motivation to learn educational topics.

What are some ways that parents can use technology in positive ways to engage and educate their kids?
If parents exercise discipline and guide their kids to use technology in an active and social way, not passive, their usage of tech can be highly engaging and educational.


About Osmo

Osmo is building a universe of hands-on play experiences that nourish the minds of children by unleashing the power of imagination. The company brings physical tools into the digital world through augmented reality and its proprietary reflective artificial intelligence.

Founded in 2013 by ex-Google engineers Pramod Sharma and Jerome Scholler, the Osmo Play System fuses digital gameplay and physical interaction to create fun and nutritious play experiences designed for all kids. Its universe spans twelve titles, including Super Studio, Coding Awbie, and Masterpiece, which respectively teach creativity, computer science, and drawing. Osmo is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. Join in on the fun at PlayOsmo.com. Osmo is part of BYJU’S - The Learning App.