Three Limerick schools unite against smartphones
Knockea NS, Scoil an Spioraid Naoimh and Donoughmore NS are all backing a voluntary code
THREE local schools have united to introduce a new No Smartphone Voluntary Code which came about as a response from the local community to concerns about the negative impact that the use of smartphones and social media is having on pupils in primary school.
The community has come together to support families by providing a platform to have discussions at home about the appropriate age to introduce children to smartphones and to have their own social media accounts.
Knockea NS, Scoil an Spioraid Naoimh and Donoughmore NS along with GAA clubs St Ailbe’s and South Liberties are all backing this charter to protect children's development, health and safety.
Principal of Knockea NS, Niamh Ambrose explained: “Our hope is that together, we can reduce/limit children’s use of smartphones in the present day and ultimately, embed this in our community so that eventually, our children won’t have smartphones while in primary school.
“This code is voluntary in nature, so it is a personal decision for each family whether to sign it. Ultimately, our hope is that it will be helpful for our community... to use as a point of reference when those inevitable conversations happen around getting smartphones. We also hope that by having three schools and GAA clubs on board, the peer pressure to have a phone that comes when meeting other children, will also reduce.
Ms Ambrose added: “Using smartphones at this young age and crucial stage of development can negatively affect the children’s health and can lead to low self-esteem, increased anxiety, poor energy levels, decreased attention span and impaired social skills. There is also the danger of access to inappropriate content online and cyberbullying.
"We are looking forward to turning a new page now and allowing our primary school children the chance and opportunity to enjoy their precious childhoods, free from the negative impacts of smartphones."
South Liberties and Limerick Senior Hurler, Barry Nash commented:
“I understand there is an importance for kids to have phones for parents to contact them. Having said that, I fully support this fantastic initiative by the three schools to bring in a no smartphone code. This code will give children more opportunities to do physical activities instead of being stuck on their phones and encourage more interaction amongst the students.”
Anti-bullying expert and martial arts instructor, Pat Forde added:
"I am delighted to hear that Knockea, Donoughmore and Roxborough National Schools are taking the initiative with this Charter. Parents are giving kids technologies and online freedoms for which they are not equipped. This complacency is leading to massive issues amongst our youth and I am delighted to support this initiative and hope that it will lead to a similar trend amongst other schools and clubs nationally."
The charter has three pillars: No smartphones for primary school-age children, no social media for primary school-age children and to respect the age ratings on video games. The three schools and the two GAA Clubs have taken this step as they have experienced growing concern around smartphones and social media. In addition to bullying, teachers are reporting a decrease in attention levels, as well as a decrease in children’s ability to perform basic motor skills such as holding a pencil or throwing a ball.
The Principal of Knockea NS, thanked all those in the local community who have been involved in formulating the code and helped communicate its message, including Barry Nash, Pat Forde, and especially Niall Shanahan.