We are at a crossroads with social media – this must be a wake-up call | Politics | News
Shortly before Charlie Kirk’s murder… it soon began to be streamed online by British children (Image: AP)
Teachers across Britain are aware of the crossroads we are at when it comes to social media. We have the chance to be one of the first countries in Europe to protect our children from Big Tech; but the government’s consultative commitment to raise the age of access to social media is a slow response to the daily threat to their safety.
We know that tech companies are stealing childhoods. Our members in schools see this every day. Students’ identities and attention are being manipulated by social media apps long before their GCSEs are taken; they are fed extreme perspectives and obscene content before their brains have a chance to develop.
If an adult approaches a child on the street to show them the videos they are exposed to on a daily basis, they will be arrested; instead this content is beamed to them without any consequences. This drip feed of dangerous content is eroding the critical skills our children need to develop. Their ability to focus and concentrate in class is harmed by loops of addictive, short-form videos.
Read more: In the update, social media ban and ‘night curfew’ for those under 16 were discussed.
Read more: Kemi Badenoch says Conservative Party will ban under-16s from social media
Daniel Kebede, right, in Parliament with headteacher Damian McBeath and parent Kelly Carolan (Image: PA / Matt Alexander)
Their minds are being hacked by companies that will do whatever they can to keep them scrolling obsessively to find the next dopamine hit. Children spend hours on their smartphones every night, coming to class exhausted and overstimulated. Social media platforms are designed to keep children addicted; The longer they stay online, the more data they generate and the more profit is made. It is their education that pays the price.
Beyond the school gates, the damage continues. Our children do not play in the park after school, they go home and play alone. They lose real-life connections, the ability to develop interpersonal skills and socialize. A public health crisis is unfolding before our eyes, and parents and teachers need help to stop it.
Australia’s social media ban on under-16s should be a wake-up call for British ministers. Being one of the first in Europe to take steps to restrict social media use for children will not only be pioneering, but will also be widely supported.
The survey, conducted on behalf of our Big Tech’s Little Victims campaign, found that more than 70% of Brits are in favor of raising the age of access to social media to 16. Even older youth are expressing their support. They saw the harm they were inflicting and asked why adults didn’t stop it. Tech companies claim they help our kids connect with like-minded peers. The truth is that they push them into isolation and loneliness, distorting their vision of real life. While they increase anxiety, depression, cyberbullying, harassment and radicalization, they also deprive them of well-being and contribute to the mental health crisis.
Big Tech has shown no interest in protecting children from excessive or harmful content. The power and wealth they gain from ensnaring this vulnerable group of consumers is too great for them to act responsibly. Teachers widely reported in the fall how students viewed the sensational assassination of Charlie Kirk on social media. Our educators are expected to teach children who witness murder on their way to school. But violent or sexually explicit content is only half the battle.
Social media platforms are designed to keep children addicted (Image: Getty)
Teachers report a rise in misogyny in the classroom, driven by waves of content designed to be ever more extreme to attract attention. These represent reckless attempts to manipulate children who are still developing their perspective on the world.
A year ago, the country came together in a conversation about the harms of social media, inspired by Adolescence, the Netflix series about a child being driven to radical hatred and violence through his phone. The show revealed that managing this impact can’t be up to parents and teachers alone. Ministers at the time were voicing the facts targeted by the series, but their reactions were inadequate.
An Australian-style ban would put the UK at the forefront of a movement to block exploitative social media companies. The consultation is a step in the right direction, but it opens the door to powerful lobbying and risks being put into the long grass. It should focus on providing an immediate pathway to raise the age of access to social media to 16, drawing on the experiences of frontline people, teachers and parents. Until we act, children will remain threatened by the excessive, manipulative powers in their hands.
- Daniel Kebede Secretary General of the National Education Union
