OPINION: We are putting lethal weapons in children’s hands

CONNECTION is a mark of modernity apparently, and in the digitally driven world of the 2020s, mobile phones are clearly ubiquitous. Seamlessly integrated into the fabric of daily life, their omnipresence offers a world of convenience and amusement at our literal fingertips, 24 hours a day.
But what about the children?
Discourse is growing around the risks of mobile-phone usage for children and young people, and while the technology is still relatively new, more and more evidence is pointing towards a slew of negative effects.
Research consistently shows a correlation between excessive screen time and increased rates of anxiety, depression and stress among young individuals. Both the curated images of perfection on social media and the unregulated toxic, misogynistic messaging to which our young people are being relentlessly exposed can be damaging, leading to cycles of comparison and discontent among impressionable young minds. Smartphones have also been shown to have a disruptive effect on sleep, leading to fatigue and exacerbating mental-health problems.
Socially, face-to-face interactions are suffering in favour of unnuanced digital communication, meaning that young people are struggling with the simple arts of maintaining eye contact, interpreting body language and expressing empathy. This is making real-world social situations difficult to navigate for them.
Ironically, these devices that claim to connect us end up exacerbating feelings of isolation and alienation. Concentration spans are diminishing by the second, and the ability to retain information in the memory is compromised.
And we haven’t even talked about the silent, hidden scourge of online bullying, which has made its way into bedrooms all over the world and is inescapable at any hour of the day or night. We haven’t talked about the use of cameras on phones, and the compromising situations in which they can land young people, frequently without their consent.
So far, so grim.
But hardly surprising. The human brain does not finish developing until people are in their mid to late 20s. During adolescence, young people’s brains are still undergoing significant development, with crucial cognitive skills such as attention, memory and decision making evolving rapidly. Prolonged exposure to smartphones, characterised by incessant notifications, rapid, relentless information consumption and multitasking, disrupts these vital processes.
When the mind is constantly being stimulated, where is the time for the thought and reflection that contributes to self-development? How can a human brain be expected to successfully compete with these challenges? It is futile, frankly.
In the recent words of a colleague, we are putting lethal weapons into the hands of children. The owners of the tech companies don’t care. But we really should.
However, an acknowledgement of the negatives of smartphone usage is finally beginning to spread at grassroots level, and both parents and educators are recognising the need to take preventative action.

TAKING ACTION
GREYSTONES in Co Wicklow made global headlines last year when – under an initiative spearheaded by school principal Rachel Harper – 95 percent of the entire 22,000-strong community there and in neighbouring Delgany committed to withholding smartphones from their children until at least the age of 12. Harper reported receiving calls from all around the world seeking information about the initiative, demonstrating the global nature of the problem.
In the UK, Andrew O’Neill, Head teacher at All Saints Catholic College, is offering students at 12-hour school day, providing extra-curricular activities like art, drama, dodgeball, basketball and cookery classes after lessons. The aim is to break the cycle and reverse a ‘100 percent addiction’ among young people to their phones and social media.
In the UK, Smartphone Free Childhood is a growing, parent-led movement on a mission to protect millions of children from the dangers and distractions of smartphones, supplying resources for use at home and in schools, as well as templates for lobbying politicians, though the absence of such material for lobbying tech companies is absent – an unconscious admission of the futility of such an approach, perhaps.
As is so frequently the case, once the grassroots have done the heavy lifting, politicians jump on the bandwagon, and several government TDs have since issued watery statements endorsing the banning of mobile phones in schools.
Education Minister Norma Foley, from whom one might expect some leadership on the issue, has said she would back primary schools banning smartphones. She also claims to have committed to introducing a range of Government-backed initiatives – though details of these, unsurprisingly, remain vague.
Ultimately, however, it is the responsibility of parents and guardians to educate themselves about the negative effects and very real dangers of mobile phone usage and take strong action in their own households to mitigate against those risks.
But will this generation really be willing to commit to lead out on this?
It’s relatively simple to put rules and regulations in place for young people, but the cat is outside the bag now, and if we expect our young people to adhere to new restrictions, then it seems only right that our generation should rightly lead by example and step away from our own phones a bit more. Will that be too much to ask?