Aureus School in Didcot hosted an event this Thursday, April 24, titled Offline and Safe: Rethinking Children’s Digital Freedom, focusing on the growing concerns surrounding children’s smartphone use. The event brought together parents, school leaders, and experts to discuss the risks of unregulated access to smartphones and the internet for young people.
Beyond School Phone Bans
The event, organized in partnership with Smartphone Free Childhood, emphasized the need for a more comprehensive approach to safeguarding children’s digital lives. While the school has a strict policy that locks away students’ smartphones during school hours, school leaders and experts argued that this policy alone is not enough.
Kirsty Rogers, the headteacher of Aureus School, who has long been an advocate for protecting children from the dangers of unfiltered digital access, expressed concern that children still have unsupervised access to smartphones and the internet outside of school. “This isn’t enough. Children are having unrestricted access to the internet, and we sometimes forget this is a two-way thing,” she said.
The Real Threat of Unsupervised Access
According to Rogers and others at the event, while mobile phone bans during school hours are helpful in limiting distractions, the broader issue lies in the unrestricted access children have when they are not in school. The internet exposes young people to numerous risks, including cyberbullying, inappropriate content, and privacy concerns.
Experts at the event advocated for a more proactive approach to digital education, where both schools and parents collaborate to help children understand the dangers and responsibilities that come with being online. A focus on teaching children about safe internet use, online etiquette, and the risks of oversharing could go a long way in keeping young people safe in the digital world.
Digital Freedom or Digital Danger?
One of the key themes discussed during the event was the balance between children’s freedom to access the digital world and the potential dangers that come with it. The idea of “digital freedom” for children is increasingly being challenged as a significant risk factor for young people’s mental health and well-being.
Aureus School’s event concluded with a call for more support from tech companies, policymakers, and educational institutions to implement strategies that protect children while allowing them to enjoy the benefits of technology.
With smartphones now an integral part of daily life, the challenge for parents, teachers, and leaders is finding a way to provide children with the tools to use the internet safely, while also encouraging critical thinking about the online world.
