ARE we finally witnessing the tide turning against kids’ use of smartphones?
Head teachers are now calling for a limit on children’s screen time and the government is considering an “app curfew.”
The government’s Technology Secretary Peter Kyle has said he wants to “break some of the addictive behaviour” of the online world.
Okay B+ for effort Peter but could try harder. ‘Some’ was your downfall.
There’s no such thing as temperance when it comes to smartphones. They’re unputdownable.
A two-hour cap on each app is better than nothing but with Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok being just three of children’s favourite brain-melters this is already six hours of social media before they’ve even got out their homework.
The idea of a curfew with a 10pm cut-off point is also a good one but come on, go tougher on the app limits – make it a two-hour total – or, grow a pair and illegalise social media for the Under 16s.
None of them would miss it and they might actually meet up with a friend, kick a football around or read a book.
The ‘nanny state’ has a bad rap as a concept, and quite rightly when it comes to adults – let us do what we want please.
But when children are malfunctioning this seriously a nanny state is exactly what we need.
We parents are doing our best, but we just can’t do it alone.
Peer pressure is immense. What parent hasn’t felt cruel denying their child a phone to “keep up with friends” and ended up surrendering?
But smartphones are turning fun-loving and inquisitive children into hollow addicts the minute they get hold of them.
The premise that smartphones are “connecting” our children in a positive fashion is false.
Because rather than playing with their friends or family they are alone in the rooms with their phones.
The Sun’s revelation last week that a Year 6 primary school student received 9,000 messages on Whatsapp over a 15 hour period reveals exactly what we are up against.
The stats are truly horrific.
More than a million British children per year are referred to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Services, the vast majority suffering from severe depression, anxiety, self-harm, eating disorders and suicidal behaviour.
Conspiracy theories
It is not surprising when they are subject to graphic images of real murders, massacres and terrifyingly violent porn, algorithms feeding on their insecurities and sending them more and more damaging content.
Children are encouraged to take part in potentially lethal games and challenges, resulting in many accidental deaths.
Girls are told that anorexia is empowering then sent starvation tips and ‘how to make mum think you’ve eaten your dinner’ pointers.
Children are fed conspiracy theories, radicalising their eager young minds, they’re connected to gang members in their area, they’re groomed, sextorted, preyed on and they’re even told how to kill themselves.
While government action is welcome, none of the restrictions suggested go nearly far enough.
Why can’t we get tough like Australia and New Zealand and ban social media for the Under 16s?
Why can’t we get tough like Australia and New Zealand and ban social media for the Under 16s?
Or the 16 US states which have done the same thing? Or France – where all pornography users now have to verify their age using government ID or a credit card.
Britain was meant to lead the way in child safety with the Online Safety Act.
But Ofcom, responsible for implementing the legislation, is just not as tough as many international regulators.
Or why can’t we ban smartphones for the Under 16s and come up with a brand new product – a child-appropriate, safe phone with limited app functionality for things like banking and travel, simple calls and texts?
Also UK, just STOP IT with the EdTech (educational technology)!!! We don’t want our kids drowning in screen time during class and for their homework!!
Sure, teach them how to use AI judiciously in senior school but no more of these silly apps masquerading as educational PLEASE.
Doctors advise that children up to 17 should not be spending more than 1-2 hours a day on any form of screen
Doctors advise that children up to 17 should not be spending more than 1-2 hours a day on any form of screen.
Schools have a responsibility to heed this advice.
Not only is too much screen time bad for children’s eyesight but it damages their sleep rhythms, their hormones, their spinal health and their attention spans.
Bill Gates himself has admitted that ‘devices have a lousy record in the classroom’.
Steve Jobs didn’t let his own kids have iPads.
UNESCO found that children who used computers frequently in the classroom did a ‘lot worse’ academically than their book-based peers.
A massive study by educational researcher John Jerrim showed that students who revised for academic tests by reading books and handwriting outperformed their computer-based counterparts twenty times over – the equivalent of six months of extra school!!
Sweden has kicked screens out of the classroom, reverting to books, pen and paper. They called EdTech a ‘failed experiment’
Sweden has kicked screens out of the classroom, reverting to books, pen and paper.
They called EdTech a ‘failed experiment’.
Many Big Tech employees in the US send their children to low or no-tech schools such as the Waldorf School of the Peninsula in California.
So why does our government continue to listen to social media and EdTech firms when they argue that their products are good for our children?
Where is the clinical evidence?
Because few children or parents believe it.
I have spoken to countless teens around the country and they all say that they’re only on social media ‘because everyone else is’.
Most would love to be liberated from it all and free to learn, relax, have fun and sleep well
Most would love to be liberated from it all and free to learn, relax, have fun and sleep well.
A survey last year found that 77 percent of parents wanted a smartphone ban for under 16s.
Saving our youngest, most vulnerable minds from these corrosive devices is a vote-winner.
Come on, Peter Kyle. Must do better.
Teachers want it, parents want it and children want it.
It’s time the government wanted it too.
- Sophie Winkleman is an actress and campaigner
