School Principals Sign Letter Addressing Students' Smartphone Usage
Heads of 14 primary schools in Belfast are asking parents to wait before getting their kids an actual smartphone. These leaders of the South Belfast Primary Partnership stated that "kids are getting smartphones at very young ages." They prepared a letter for parents to express their fears about the increasing use of smartphones by children.
Sophie, a student at Rosetta Primary School, received the phone as a prize after the transfer test. She told BBC News NI that her parents felt it was the right time to give it to her because she was "smart enough to handle it. "
"I just use it to chat and stay close to friends, and if something is up, I reach out to them."Sophie does not have any social media accounts and intends to keep it that way. "I know bad stuff can go there, so I'd rather stay away," she said.
Theo got a new phone after he passed the transfer last year; the boy says most of his mates have had one for "at least a year and a half." He has no social media, thinking that he "probably won't be allowed" one. "I get to use my phone for about an hour on weekdays and for two hours on weekends. Additional time is granted when I talk to my family or on holidays." He isn't scared of social media when put in the right context.
In Northern Ireland, Education Minister Paul Givan gave instructions to schools to keep children off phones during the school day, whereas other parts of the UK have people that claim you should wait to give your kid a smartphone at least till they turn 14.
School heads wrote that "kids in primary school should not use social media apps; all these apps have age rules starting at 13." "While the internet can be good, it also brings many dangers," they added. "Phone use can hook you, change how your brain grows, and has been tied to bad mental health, depression, and low self-worth, especially in young teens."
According to Ms. Crawford for BBC News NI, the internet can serve children well, but principals have all seen students injured by having a smartphone.
Ms. Crawford felt it was a huge issue for parents to decide when to give their kid a smartphone. "Every parent knows the push when all other kids have one," she said. "If you choose to let your kid have one, that's okay, but then there is advice on how to keep your kid safe and make sure they use their smartphone right."
The joint letter advised that controls be placed if kids had a smartphone. "There are other choices than smartphones and groups that help parents wait to give their kid a smartphone," the letter continued. "By teaming up with other parents, you can fight the push until you think your kid is ready to use these adult spaces. As adults, we all have the job of looking after our kids," she went on.
Charlotte Carson has two kids, one at St. Michael's Primary School in Belfast and another in a higher grade school. She backs the group against kids using smartphones and liked the letter from school heads. "They see the dangers, but they also don't want their kid to be the only one without a phone," she said. She notes that some parents give phones as gifts to kids who pass their tests. "We find ourselves in a weird mix of too much control on one side and giving them a way to see bad things on the other. The school leaders get that parents are stuck in a hard spot."
