Blunt instruments won’t solve the social media challenge
Parents are absent from the picture as politicians skip science to enact bad laws that create some nice feelings but do nothing to solve real problems.
I’ve tried a few times over the years to run some educational content for parents on how to manage technology in the home. How to safely introduce tablets and phones. How to encourage positive engagement with online platforms.
I’ve stopped trying. After a few explorations and conversations with parents I came to the conclusion that many are, yes, deeply concerned with what their kids do online and how they use tech too much. But the second you start offering suggestions they quickly arrive at the same set of thoughts again and again.
“Oh, it’s too hard.”
“I can’t imagine doing that.”
“Do you know how they’d react?”
“It’s not worth the argument.”
Again and again, I have been shown that parents want to worry but do not want to act.
Now my arguments are generally about doing pretty standard parenting things…
- Set boundaries, like no phones after 9.00pm and no devices in bedrooms
