Young people and the internet: entertainment is key, information is not so important
The project of the Czech Statistical Office Mini Census, in which nearly 84 thousand students aged 9 to 15 years old participated from almost 1100 home schools confirmed that modern technology plays a crucial role in children's lives. Interest is also increasing abroad. In some countries, however, this is beginning to cause caution - in France or Australia for example, the use of social networks by young people is gradually being banned. And others are preparing for it.
Our children spend three hours a day on the internet most often. According to the research, this is 22 percent of them. More than five hours a day, however, is dedicated to this activity by a fifth of them. Only 2 percent of the children approached did not have their own mobile at the time of data collection. Before starting primary school, just under a quarter of all children owned it.
Children prefer games and social networks
Young people most often use the internet for playing games. This happens in almost a third of cases.
"For boys it's up to 45 percent, but for girls it's only over 10 percent of cases,"
the chairman of the Czech Statistical Office Marek Rojíček said at a press conference.
Another reason for interest is primarily monitoring Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. This is also associated with another area - music listening. The internet is also often used for sending messages via the WhatsApp platform.
Searching for information is only in second place
Only a fraction of teenagers, on the other hand, have the internet to search for information and articles and to shop. At the same time, the survey confirmed that artificial intelligence tools have already been used by nine out of ten children.
"The Mini Census results showed that computer games, videos, social networks, and artificial intelligence tools are taken for granted by children, which contributes to the increase in their digital literacy. Interest in traditional information media, such as books and magazines, has dramatically dropped among them. However, sports and other physical activities still entertain our youngest generation,"
described the situation in the press release Rojíček.
"The investigation was interesting. Thanks to it, parents can at least find out what their children are doing,"
said one of the students of the Jiráskova elementary school in Kladno at a press conference.
Modern technology attracts children. In response to the question of what gift would make them happiest, 22.5 percent of boys immediately answered that it would be electronics. But there were much fewer girls - only 6.5 percent.
Age limits on the internet
Last year's study Czech students in the online world confirmed the trends, prepared by the Safer Internet Centre CZ in cooperation with the Palacky University in Olomouc. It focused especially on research about children's safety in the online environment. The investigation involved over 53 thousand respondents.
For children under 13 years old, as claimed by this document, there is a massive violation of age limits for using certain services, especially WhatsApp, Instagram, and TikTok. In this context, the initiative One World at Schools by People in Need brought the following recommendations.
"The minimum age for setting up a WhatsApp account is 13 years old and in the Czech Republic, parental consent is required for those under 15 years old. For this reason, we do not recommend WhatsApp as a communication tool for students, especially in the first stage; safer school platforms are more suitable. We also recommend parents and teachers to monitor which applications children use, talk to them about the risks, set restrictions and guide children towards polite, respectful online communication,"
the director of the initiative One World at Schools, Karel Strachota, told Mediaguru.
Limiting social networks abroad
However, how sensitive the public is to the use of the Internet by young people is also evidenced by experiences from abroad. The three largest technology companies in the world are currently facing a legal process due to allegations that their platforms - Meta's Instagram, ByteDance's TikTok, and Google's YouTube - are intentionally creating addiction in children, ^CNN reported. It is the first time that these companies will have to defend themselves in this way.
The French National Assembly again approved part of a bill this week that bans the use of social networks for children under 15 years of age. The reason is growing concerns about online bullying and mental health risks. The age of 15, according to the Minister for Digital Technology Anne Le Hénanff, corresponds to the definition of sexual maturity and the transition from elementary to middle school. If the law is also approved by the local senators, it will come into effect from 1st September. Last December, Australia already banned social networks and other platforms, such as TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and the video platform YouTube, for children under 16 years of age. Governments in Denmark, Italy, Malaysia or some US states are also considering similar steps.
Sources: author's article, Czech Statistical Office, Czech News Agency, Mediaguru, CNN
