Digital Discourse Database

Number of Posts: 8
Posts 1 - 8

Ban mobile phones in schools to protect pupils' mental health

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 26.9.2016
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | (mental) health, childhood, school, smartphone, threat
Summary | According to Shannon Turner, schools should ban smartphones to protect their pupils. Screens and social media can have a negative impact on children's health, which is why some schools have already put in place new rules (e.g. give children 6 hours of digital-free time).
Image Description | Photograph of two pupils in a classroom; one of them is showing her friend a smartphone and the other is giggling.
Image Tags | female(s), school, smartphone

Are smartphones really making our children sad?

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 13.8.2017
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | (mental) health, addiction, childhood, smartphone, threat, youth
Summary | Children's relationship with screens has become a contested topic; not everyone agrees with what should or shouldn't be done. Last week, the Atlantic published an excerpt of Jean Twenge's book (the Atlantic article was titled "Have smartphones destroyed a generation?"), which initiated very diverse reactions. Jean Twenge, who is an American pychologist, said that social media have a negative effect on young people. Twenger then answered some of her critics in this Guardian article.
Image Description | Photograph of a group of teenagers all staring at their phone or tablet.
Image Tags | female(s), male(s), smartphone, tablet

Is it wrong to let my child play on my smartphone?

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 10.8.2017
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | (mental) health, addiction, childhood, smartphone, technology-free
Summary | The author of the article sometimes feels guilty when she lets her 2-year old son play on a smartphone. When young children are glued to a screen, they are so captivated by what they're watching. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children younger than 2 should have no exposure to screens; it can hinder their language and social development/skills. The author of the article also claims that her kids already show characteristics of "addicted" behavior. For instance, they scream and are irascible if someone takes their screen away. She also says that what is dangerous is not so much when kids are on screens, but rather when parents are.
Image Description | Photograph of a kid using a smartphone next to an adult.
Image Tags | female(s), male(s), smartphone

Islamic State releases children's mobile app 'to teach Arabic'

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 11.5.2016
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | childhood, smartphone
Summary | The Islamic State released a new app for children where they can learn Arabic. They can learn words such as ‘tank’, ‘gun’ and ‘rocket’.
Image Description | Photograph of a hand holding a smartphone.
Image Tags | hand(s), smartphone

No power or running water - but digital books galore

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 2.8.2016
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | childhood, digitized education, smartphone
Summary | Inside a library in Rwanda, you can see children with e-readers, smartphones, and digital books. John Kanyambo is 12 and likes digital books; children can learn a lot of new words with them. This is what Africa looks like today; parts of it welcome digital innovations, but other parts haven't had an agricultural revolution yet.
Image Description | Photographs of two African boys using a tablet, two people walking somewhere in Africa, and portrait of an African man.
Image Tags | male(s), tablet

How porn is damaging our children's future sex lives

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 10.9.2016
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | childhood, pornography, smartphone, threat
Summary | According to a study, young boys in the UK are first exposed to online pornography at about 11 years old. Consequently, families need to have conversations about sexual behaviour sooner that what they might have thought. Also, because many boys own digital devices and because online pornography exists, it is important to talk to boys about that. There is a risk for boys who are interested in pornography at a young age; such a behaviour can have a negative impact on their sexual sensitivities and future relationships, if they mistake fiction for norms.
Image Description | N/A

'They're collaborating all the time': the schools making the most of mobile

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 13.1.2017
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | childhood, digitized education, school, smartphone, youth
Summary | Some schools are embracing the technological advancements influencing our everyday lives by incorporating them into their classes. Some classes have even become entirely paper-free! Not all, however, the learning tools are chosen so as to to help maximize students' learning. Students are already familiar and comfortable with most of the technology and it makes no sense to ban smartphones from classrooms if they can enhance learning.
Image Description | Two girls looking at a smartphone together.
Image Tags | female(s), school, smartphone

How Silicon Valley's parents keep their children safe online

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Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 2.3.2016
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | childhood, smartphone, social media, technology-free, threat
Summary | Silicon Valley's parents explain how they deal with their children's use of internet. Since parents cannot control everything or spy on their kids, they talk to them and teach them how to use the internet. Some parents have more restrictions; for example, no screens from Friday night to Saturday night. As a result, parents and children spend more time together and do fun activities. Other parents only let ther children go online with an adult's supervision. A psychologist claims that social media have a negative impact on children; they drive them away from family and school.
Image Description | Photograph of a female child sitting on her bed and looking at a tablet.
Image Tags | female(s), tablet

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