A surge in parental concern over the potential harms of social media is leading to a movement delaying smartphone access for children entering secondary school. Parents cite issues like inappropriate content, addictive algorithms, and the pressure to conform as reasons for their decision.
‘I had first-years with a WhatsApp group mainly used for porn sharing’: Why parents are delaying access to smartphones for their kids
‘If the asteroid hits Dublin, everything is gone’: A chastened Kieran Cuddihy hears about the end of the world Eoghan Cleary sees the impact of children’s unfettered internet access among his students on a daily basis. “For guys, it’s all the misogynistic content. All of the narratives that men are being falsely accused of rape; that if you don’t have a father you’re more likely to be a rapist, a criminal and a drug addict – all this comes up in the classroom,” he says.
The impact of all this, he says, is deeply troubling. Cleary has received disclosures of sexual assault from students who were at parties; evidence of students being blackmailed online after sharing sexual images of themselves; reports of self-harm in school bathrooms; worryingly high levels of anxiety and school refusal.
Hilda Hamilton is one of a growing number of parents who has opted to delay giving a smartphone to her child who starts second level in September. Photograph: Nick BradshawA mother of three from Sandymount in Dublin, she is determined to hold off getting a smartphone for her eldest son .
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