luna’s Post

Smartphones can be dangerous, toxic and addictive. BUT a blanket ban for kids is not the answer. Seeing EE taking the potential of phone overuse seriously and making recommendations that aren't just motivated by profits is refreshing. But some of the debate is missing the positive things that smartphones can bring to young people. In my role as a Founder of a teen health app over the last 3 years, I understand what life as a teen is like today. Information is power; smartphones put that power in the fingertips of young people. That means the ability to: 👉 Supplement their classroom learning with dynamic online tools (e.g., revision platforms) 👉 Understand their finances (often not taught in schools) in a responsible way with apps (e.g., GoHenry) 👉 Access to confidential support (almost 3/4 of Childline's counselling sessions take place online) 👉 Learn from resources in relation to their health and wellbeing in a way that works for them (e.g., luna) I understand and agree with the reasoning for no phones in school. I completely believe that protecting youth online (especially primary school kids) is incredibly important. I worry deeply about the amount of misinformation on social media (the reason for starting luna) But I don't believe that a blanket ban is the way forward. Proportionate safeguards, staggered by age bracket are the way forward. We need parents, schools, tech companies, and government to be pulling in the same direction. I'd love to hear your thoughts below 👇 ******************* ♻️ Repost if you agree 👉 Follow Jas Schembri-Stothart for my views on Gen Zalpha

Mobile phones good for children ? Abstract How smartphone usage affects well-being and learning among children and adolescents is a concern for schools, parents, and policymakers. Combining detailed administrative data with survey data on middle schools’ smartphone policies, together with an event-study design, I show that banning smartphones significantly decreases the health care take-up for psychological symptoms and diseases among girls. Post-ban bullying among both genders decreases. Additionally, girls’ GPA improves, and their likelihood of attending an academic high school track increases. These effects are larger for girls from low socio-economic backgrounds. Hence, banning smartphones from school could be a low-cost policy tool to improve student outcomes. #research #science #facts #children #mobilephones #psychological https://lnkd.in/ddsduFf9

I stumbled across a website called Smart Phone Free Childhood and the research and statements provided alarmed me to the point of motivating me to explore the impact smart phones and specifically social media may have upon my children. My kids are only young and yes at some point in their future they'll have a smart phone and have access to social media platforms. Yet the question is when and why. Will they ask through need or demand access to fit in, follow the crowd and keep up with the norm? Research shows that between 2012 and 2020 their was a growing crisis occurring in our children, particularly teenage girls. Many compare the crisis teenagers in the modern western world face to that faced by our parents during their adolescence in relation to the advertisement and promotion of cigarettes. Only decades later would the truth about smoking come out and Tabaco lobbyists finally step back. There are clear correlations in teenagers between the number of hours spent engaging with social media and depression, loneliness and anxiety. It's alarming to even link such emotive words to children during a time in which they should be exploring life without hesitation, fear or worry. But it's clear to many that smart phones and social media are far from tools which allow us to be more social, far from it in fact. So as parents what could we do? One suggestion endorsed by Smartphone Free Childhood is to engage with primary schools to help to begin to educate children around the dangers of social media. The other suggestion is to also discuss this issue with the parents of your children's friends and of course you can begin the conversation with your children too. My kids (4 and 7) have already heard about YouTube for example. If a set group of parents can agree not to give their children smart phones until their children are at a specific age, then this may help to negate the want and uncontrollable need for a smart phone with a larger cohort/ friendship group of children. It's suggested that only after puberty have children developed the reflective, deep thinking and emotional skills including being emotionally robust enough to truly cope with social media platforms. This is a really emotive topic in which generational, social - economic and gender stereotypes and biases have all been drawn into the debate. However, there's no denying the fact that social media is harming some of our children and we simply have not provided them with the education, training and support to help many teenagers cope with a trillion pound industrial juggernaut who's intention we must question. Resources: Smartphone Free Childhood - link below Video: Cal Newport on Kids and Smartphones Ted Talk Book: The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt #jnj #jnjmedtech #smartphones #smartphonesforkids #socialmedia #teenageanxiety #teenagedepression #standuptosocialmedia

Change is underway. It seems elite schools are leading the way, with Eton swapping smartphones for text/call based mobile phones, after Silicon Valley heavyweights have been sending their children to low-tech schools for decades. Studies show that children from families of lower socioeconomic status have more screen time than those from families of high SES, which is associated with poorer mental and physical health outcomes. A recent study showed that they even experience more online abuse than those of higher SES, possibly because of lack of parental supervision of various apps and time spent online. Now one doesn’t have to go to an elite school to be able to get protection from the hugely negative effects of a phone based childhood. Parents can just stop allowing smartphones and especially social media for children and young teens. Well done Eton.

Banning smartphones in schools leads to a significant decrease in the need for mental health care among students, particularly reducing the number of consultations for psychological symptoms and diseases. This study by Norwegian Institute of Public Health also shows improvement in educational performance, notably among girls, who experience increases in GPA and externally graded math test scores, and a reduction in bullying incidents for both genders. The study was conducted by collecting survey data on smartphone policies from Norwegian middle schools and matching this data with the Norwegian Registry data on individual student health, educational outcomes, and bullying. The study uses a nonparametric event-study design to causally identify the effects of smartphone bans on these outcomes, exploiting quasi-experimental variations due to the staggered implementation of smartphone bans across schools. https://lnkd.in/gsPY4avS

Parents pushed pause on smartphones for young children Why it matters: An increasing number of parents in Europe are joining forces to prevent young children from using smartphones, citing safety and mental health concerns. Groups in Spain, Britain, and Ireland are organizing both online and offline to encourage parents to delay giving smartphones to their kids until they are older. Supported by government bans and school policies, these movements aim to shift social norms and create safer environments for children. 

Brilliant to see studies coming out on the effect of banning smartphones for middleschools! Also interesting to see how gendered the impact could be. The results show that schools with smartphones bans had: - reduced visits to school mental health practitioners for girls - reduced bullying for boys and girls - increased academic achievemnt for girls https://lnkd.in/e8h2EXsn

Shocking Trend: Children as Young as 3 Receiving Mobile Phones as Gifts Recent research from Ofcom has revealed a startling trend: children as young as three years old now receive real mobile phones as gifts. Key Findings: - Prevalence: 25% of five- to seven-year-olds in the UK own a smartphone. - Social Media Use: Over 40% of children under 13 use social media, despite age restrictions on most platforms. - Government Response: The UK government is considering measures to restrict mobile phone ownership and social media use among children under 16. This trend raises concerns about the impact of early exposure to technology on children's development and wellbeing. Experts have described these figures as "very disturbing," urging parents to delay giving smartphones to children until they reach secondary school age. Implications: - Mental Health: Increased screen time has been linked to rising cases of depression and anxiety among young children. - Parental Controls: There is a growing need for robust parental controls to manage children's screen time and online activities. - Policy Considerations: Potential government actions include banning mobile phone sales to under-16s and enforcing stricter age limits on social media platforms. As this trend continues, parents, educators, and policymakers must work together to ensure the healthy development of children in an increasingly digital world. What do you think about giving a real mobile device to a 3-year-old?

Smartphone Bans, Student Outcomes and Mental Health ~ Research Discussion Paper by, Sara Abrahamsson Abstract How smartphone usage affects well-being and learning among children and adolescents is a concern for schools, parents, and policymakers. Combining detailed administrative data with survey data on middle schools’ smartphone policies, together with an event-study design, I show that banning smartphones significantly decreases the health care take-up for psychological symptoms and diseases among girls. Post-ban bullying among both genders decreases. Additionally, girls’ GPA improves, and their likelihood of attending an academic high school track increases. These effects are larger for girls from low socio-economic backgrounds. Hence, banning smartphones from school could be a low-cost policy tool to improve student outcomes. https://lnkd.in/ecK6N-Ag