Technology is really improving at a scary speed. But is it really an improvement?

Let’s leave that thought for later.

There’s a digital watch that aims to teach children how to manage their money.

And POSB has officially launched the watch in 19 Primary Schools on Wednesday, August 16.

 

Where were all this stuff back when I was in Primary School? I was busy piecing together 10 cent coins for a simple plate of fried rice.

These kids will never understand the pain again.

How does it work?

Launched under the POSB Smart Buddy programme, the watch assist the students in keeping track of their savings and spending habits.

Students can utilise the watches to purchase stuff at school canteens and bookstores where digital terminals for payment have been established.

The watch can also be used to pay at all merchants with NETS contactless terminals.

It’s really parent-friendly

Parents could connect their savings account to an accompanying mobile app and place a daily allowance limit. They can also monitor the spending, savings, eating habits and level of activity.

Should their child need extra money, they can even opt to send ’emergency’ money.

Well, I don’t know how children spend nowadays, but if I’m attending Primary School right now, I better have at least S$2 in my account or I would be asking for ’emergency’ funds every day.

Stockpiled savings can be automatically sent to the child’s POSB account, and if the watch is lost, parents can remotely shut off the device.

Remember those kiosks in Kopitiams? Or those in arcade shops, where you can check the remaining value in your card?

Well, POSB have set up such kiosks in the school too, where students are able to scan their watches to check on the remaining allowance.

Is your Primary School one of the participants of the programme?

So far, the 19 participating are: Admiralty, Alexandra, Anchor Green, Bedok Green, CHIJ (Our Lady Queen of Peace), Concord, Fuhua, Haig Girls, Henry Park, Jurong West, Keming, Pei Chun, Raffles Girls, Shu Qun, Townsville, West Spring, West View, Woodlands Ring and Zhangde.

Is your school one of them?

Students are going to be fit and ready

It looks like POSB have been considering the health factor too.

The watch can serve as a fitness tracker that can track students’ daily steps, distance travelled and calories burnt.

It looks like the next generation are going to be a group of fit kids huh? But again, my colleague Boon Hun has one of those tracking watches and he isn’t slimming down anyway.

There will be updates

Aside from an in-school locator that will allow parents to monitor their child’s whereabouts, there is also a school bus locator that allows parents to track the real-time location of the bus.

The function for parents to be informed when their child gets on or off the school bus is also in the works.

Apparently, there are also plans to introduce a biometric payment solution too.

Now, this sounds a bit invasive. It’s like the freedom of the child is entirely taken away. But parents will probably cheer.

The POSB Smart Buddy programme

The pilot commenced a year ago, and since then 6,000 POSB Smart Buddy watches have been supplied to students, with 2,000 issued in the last two months alone.

The programme is fully subsidised by the bank.

According to Mr Jeremy Soo, DBS’ managing director and head of consumer banking, the programme allow students to keep track of time and learn to utilize digital payments.

In his own words, I quote: “It transforms the age-old pocket money tradition, teaches students how to manage their expenses and save wisely, and provides small business owners in schools greater incentive to adopt digital payments.”

What are the netizens’ reactions to the programme?

The debate, if there is even one, seems pretty one-sided so far.

A multitude of netizens felt that this is not only ineffective but could even compromise on the children’s’ ability to count their own money.

There were also concerns that children would compare watch wallets with each other.

But there is also a minority thinks this might be a good idea.

You don’t have to take my word for it either; here’s the Facebook post if you want to see for yourself.

And then there was one that came up with a conspiracy theory.

So is it a good or bad idea?

I guess we won’t know for now since only time will tell.

And I do have nitpicks with it myself too.

Firstly, by allowing technology to dictate payment, the children are missing out on the counting, receiving and payment. In a sense, it’s having their independence taken away.

Are they always going to have a watch to pay for them? What if they eat at a hawker centre? There aren’t any machines there to do their counting.

Secondly, isn’t this like a preemptive version of a credit card? Essentially, the parents’ emergency funds are ‘credit funds’.

When the children need additional money, they would just ask for it. Parents can, of course, deny the request, but would every single parent do the same thing?

If the child gets used to having their ’emergency’ funds approved, what happens in the future? They’ll use a credit card freely, only to realise they would actually have to pay it back, and not receive everything for ‘free’.

Thirdly, by giving parents the option of monitoring their child’s whereabouts, isn’t it a tad bit invasive? Like sure, it would be useful to know when your child’s coming home so that you can prepare, but the whole duration?

And think about it. The children would get used to being monitored. They will learn how to deal with it. But what happens in the future? Would they still be monitored? Would they continue acting like they are being monitored?

All in all, this idea isn’t exactly the healthiest, when you consider the potential growth and mindsets of the future generation. But that’s just what I feel! What about you?

Always bored during your commute to and fro work or school? Here’s the best solution: download our app for new articles, Facebook videos and YouTube videos that are updated daily…and most importantly, exclusive contents that are only available in our app! It’s your perfect companion for your daily commute!

Click Here to Download the App! 

Do you love writing? Do you want a platform to showcase your works? Goody Feed is looking for part-time writers to join the team! Click here to find out more! 

Like this article? Here are other going-on in Singapore:

• Investigation of Tragic Accident At Fajar LRT Station Revealed: Here Are The Details
• 10 Facts about Century Square’s Upcoming S$60m Upgrade That Even Jurong-ers Should Know

Feature Image: DBS

This article was first published on goodyfeed.com