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‘It went nuts’: Thousands join UK parents calling for smartphone-free childhood
(www.theguardian.com)
this post was submitted on 17 Feb 2024
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I'd guess not letting your kids have a smartphone could render them ostracized and bullied in school as long as it's a very uncommon thing.
Most kids nowadays probably won't spend much effort associating with someone that doesn't have an online presence or social media I imagine.
So many group chats, hardly anyone phones or text messages, so even if you supply your kid with a dumb phone they will miss out on a lot of the social stuff going on at school.
Lots of people are quick to snap back with 'Why don't the parents... parent' but as a parent, this is the larger worry. Like, yes, I can stop my kid from having a phone but if everyone in her friend group has one and uses one, am I doing damage in not letting her experience and grow alongside her friends?
The reality is that it's not 2002 anymore, and my children aren't going to grow up in a house with one semi-reliable internet-access point (family PC).
It's significantly more complicated than merely suggesting that parents be better, because...what is better here?
Not talking about you, just some of the other comments seem... incredible snappy.
Which is the point of the group - if you can get enough parents to not give their kids smartphones then it reduces the social pressure to get one.
However, the kid with one would be king of the class.
I saw my brother today and he reckoned my nephew didn't really go out and see his friends - he communicates with them (a lot) on his phone or in games. Now that might not be desirable but him not having a phone won't force him outside as everyone else will be inside on their phones. It just feels an unwinnable situation unless you got an almost complete consensus.
Yep, and then you have the blue Vs green bubble debacle.
As a fully grown adult the amount of shit I get from friends and co-workers for not using WhatsApp is crazy.
You mean they only use voice group chat? Wierd.
They mean group chats as opposed to phone calls or SMS
Obviously. Sending SMS from computer requires jumping through all the hoops.
You were talking about group voice chat?
group chats as opposed to SMS
That's the thing. Most parents aren't giving their children smart phones because they want to. They're doing it because not doing so would make their children social pariahs. At that point it's no longer a choice.
Exactly. Personal experience.