| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children 10:09 - Mar 3 with 4833 views | Blueastheycome |
Is that today I can keep these beautiful little angels safe, but in the future, in some way or another, I won’t be able to keep them safe (ranging anything from bullying, the internet, illness to climate change, threat of or actual war etc)
Its truly phenomenal how they turn your world upside down, and in those anxious feelings you have about the future, it really reflects what it really means to be a father/parent.
Anyway, not really sure why I’m really posting this on here. I think sometimes this feeling just unexpectedly creeps up on me in a really big way, as it has done this morning.
Kids, hey.
[Post edited 3 Mar 10:17]
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 13:43 - Mar 3 with 969 views | Swansea_Blue |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 11:13 - Mar 3 by Jasper |
I think a lot of parents are now taking the initiative to encourage change within schools. This was something that seems to be getting some momentum:
https://smartphonefreechildhood.co.uk/
Feels like there needs to be a collective pushback because its challenging to tell your child they cannot have a smartphone if everyone else at the school has one. |
And it’s not just peer pressure. Our high school requires them to have them, as they use various apps for things (ordering lunch, messages, assignments and marking results, report cards, etc).
I agree we need to push back. They would be far better off without them.
Luckily our get the occasional residential school trip where they are banned. But then all the parents complain that they can’t track and keep in touch with their kids! |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 14:06 - Mar 3 with 911 views | StokieBlue |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 13:29 - Mar 3 by itfcjoe |
Restrictions are not easy to apply at a parental level, often children will be better at tech than their parents and have been able to pull the wool over their eye. I could when I had parental controls on the internet as a kid. It's very naive to suggest there is - there a hundreds of videos TikTok showing people how to get round controls
Social media is not supposed to be used by U14s, it's incredibly easy to get around this - kids are resourceful and will find ways to get around things if they want to.
Good luck staying ahead of your children and their tech savviness, I hope one day you don't realise how naive your postings on this matter sound |
That's a fairly insulting post to honest.
Entirely judgemental whilst knowing absolutely nothing about the context. It also implies that all children are the same.
I've clearly been talking about older kids near or over the age limit you've said but in your hurry to be judgemental you've not really read anything I've said properly. I've not said primary school kids should have a phone or be on social media or even young high school kids. I definitely don't think they should. In reality I don't think anyone should have social media.
I will be leaving it there, I've no desire to have an argument about this because in general I'm supportive of the cause.
SB [Post edited 3 Mar 14:17]
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 14:58 - Mar 3 with 837 views | Kropotkin123 |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 14:06 - Mar 3 by StokieBlue |
That's a fairly insulting post to honest.
Entirely judgemental whilst knowing absolutely nothing about the context. It also implies that all children are the same.
I've clearly been talking about older kids near or over the age limit you've said but in your hurry to be judgemental you've not really read anything I've said properly. I've not said primary school kids should have a phone or be on social media or even young high school kids. I definitely don't think they should. In reality I don't think anyone should have social media.
I will be leaving it there, I've no desire to have an argument about this because in general I'm supportive of the cause.
SB [Post edited 3 Mar 14:17]
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I think you are finding insult where it doesn't exist.
Also, the thread title says "as a parent of small children". It is completely reasonable for them to define and talk about U14 in this context. It is not clear that "small children" are 14+. |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 15:08 - Mar 3 with 817 views | StokieBlue |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 14:58 - Mar 3 by Kropotkin123 |
I think you are finding insult where it doesn't exist.
Also, the thread title says "as a parent of small children". It is completely reasonable for them to define and talk about U14 in this context. It is not clear that "small children" are 14+. |
I think some of that is fair, perhaps I should have been clearer but my first post was actually in response to the campaign website which is for 14+ and my point was there are contexts and situations where kids younger than that but still at high school might have a phone and that a blanket ban might not be appropriate.
All his posts towards me after that should have been with this context but they aren't and the last one was clearly nothing to do with that context and pretty rude (to be honest the one before about guns was rude as well). It's an emotive subject which Joe clearly feels strong about so that's understandable to a point but I think it was a bit far.
Anyway, I will leave it there as it's a sensible debate for parents of younger kids to have and one I agree with for those age groups.
SB [Post edited 3 Mar 15:23]
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 15:23 - Mar 3 with 759 views | itfcjoe |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 14:06 - Mar 3 by StokieBlue |
That's a fairly insulting post to honest.
Entirely judgemental whilst knowing absolutely nothing about the context. It also implies that all children are the same.
I've clearly been talking about older kids near or over the age limit you've said but in your hurry to be judgemental you've not really read anything I've said properly. I've not said primary school kids should have a phone or be on social media or even young high school kids. I definitely don't think they should. In reality I don't think anyone should have social media.
I will be leaving it there, I've no desire to have an argument about this because in general I'm supportive of the cause.
SB [Post edited 3 Mar 14:17]
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There's no insult in that - but talk of nuance, children being different etc is what I'd expect social media and smartphone lobbyists to use.
Sometimes a tipping point is reached, and something to protect everyone is the way to go - then people can argue from the other side about the nuance etc in an attempt to reintroduce them rather than a few more years go by of more and more children being badly affected by technology that is designed to corrupt them engineered by people who are nothing but benign influences in the world.
The genie is out of the bottle, but it doesn't mean we just have to give up. |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 15:43 - Mar 3 with 722 views | jontysnut |
I still worry about mine and she's 23. She did a long drive for a weekend away and I couldn't stop myself from checking traffic bulletins all day. She, of course, was absolutely fine. |  | | |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 16:00 - Mar 3 with 678 views | blueasfook |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 15:43 - Mar 3 by jontysnut |
I still worry about mine and she's 23. She did a long drive for a weekend away and I couldn't stop myself from checking traffic bulletins all day. She, of course, was absolutely fine. |
he he! You never stop being a parent. BlueasJr is 23 also now, and whenever he goes somewhere I always text him to make sure he got there OK. |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 16:28 - Mar 3 with 632 views | Reuser_is_God |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 12:46 - Mar 3 by itfcjoe |
We let them watch YT in the morning, but they just watch people playing computer games at the moment and it hasn't led to 'wanting' stuff, and ensure it's somewhere central rather than holed up in rooms or on tablets so we can see if it is anything they shouldn't be......but I know I should have set up parental controls etc but don't know how to effectievly!
I always make them stick other bits on though if I'm there as can't stand the noise in proper old man style |
It’s the teenage Americans that make me want to throw the tablets out the window! |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 17:23 - Mar 3 with 551 views | textbackup |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 16:28 - Mar 3 by Reuser_is_God |
It’s the teenage Americans that make me want to throw the tablets out the window! |
My dad wouldn’t let Kennan and Kel on the TV in our house as kids |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 17:36 - Mar 3 with 519 views | NthQldITFC |
| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 15:23 - Mar 3 by itfcjoe |
There's no insult in that - but talk of nuance, children being different etc is what I'd expect social media and smartphone lobbyists to use.
Sometimes a tipping point is reached, and something to protect everyone is the way to go - then people can argue from the other side about the nuance etc in an attempt to reintroduce them rather than a few more years go by of more and more children being badly affected by technology that is designed to corrupt them engineered by people who are nothing but benign influences in the world.
The genie is out of the bottle, but it doesn't mean we just have to give up. |
I think you're right about a tipping point and a universal block of some kind (how the hell that would really work I don't know) followed by a re-introduction of much more tightly locked down tech would be the way to go.
In terms of the latter, a spec for a simple phone with speech and SMS or some other limited messaging protocol, plus basic apps only like location and standard issue national curriculum type school requirements, ought to be easy to put together with a single supplier (no profiteering capitalist free market competition here please!  )and no requirements creep. A locked down OS and fixed repositories for apps is not difficult to achieve, and could allow for controlled upgrades and new apps as approved.
In terms of the former, a national ban on smartphones at school once the above is in place might be tough to police but could be aspired to in a pragmatic society (which we currently are not).
There would probably be a very anti faction (as with the practical yet contentious idea of identity cards) but things have to change. |  |
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| One thing that a terrifies me as a parent of small children on 17:39 - Mar 3 with 506 views | DJR |
! was born in the 1959 and have come to the conclusion that the 60s and early to mid 70s were the best time to grow up in.
As well as avoiding pre-War poverty and post-War austerity, and being a relatively prosperous and optimistic time with much less inequality than now, I was blissfully unaware of much of the nastiness in the outside world, and could really enjoy being a child.
In addition, parents in those days were much less protective of their children and I, for example, used to go to the football as a 9 year old without my dad and with only the company of other 9 years olds.
That at a time when there was football hooliganism, but things like that made me much more streetwise and independent, something invaluable for later life. [Post edited 3 Mar 17:41]
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