Exposure to educational television has been shown to have positive effects on the social, intellectual, and educational development of children. Is it possible to find truly educational content on broadcast television? Articles below deal with 1) television broadcasters' obligation to provide educational programming for children, 2) efforts to shield children from indecenct programming, 3) advertising aimed at children and 4) children and violence.
Children and Media
Meta and Center for Open Science Open Request for Proposals for Research on Social Media and Youth Well-being Using Instagram Data
Meta and the Center for Open Science (COS) opened a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a new pilot program, designed to support the study of topics related to social media use and well-being.
We Got Millions of Low-Income Students and Families Online Before Funding Expired. Restoring It Is Essential.
It’s a familiar scene in communities across the nation: teenagers lingering outside fast-food restaurants and inside malls with laptops on their knees, surfing for free public Wi-Fi to be able to do their homework. Some 17 million students across the nation don’t have internet service at home, hampering their ability to study and complete assignments and prepare themselves for college and the workforce.
That ‘For You’ page could be harming your health
New York State legislators recently put a stop to personalized social media feeds for the under 18 set, citing mental health harms. The law they passed takes an unusual approach to the challenging task of regulating social media by focusing on algorithms, rather than platforms or specific content. Lawmakers say the algorithms are addictive. Research agrees—mostly.
The no-phone childhood movement
Study after study has detailed the stress and anxiety kids and teens deal with as a result of smartphone and social media use. But smar
The faster the better? Advanced internet access and student performance
Investments in high-speed broadband have received considerable attention from policymakers and researchers. Governments are committing to increasing available internet connection speeds through massive public investments. These policies are motivated by arguments according to which improvements in broadband connections play an important role in fostering productivity, economic growth, innovation, and knowledge.
North Carolina's Approach to Digital Equity and Education
On June 17, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, in partnership with the Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology, hosted a webinar titled The Power of Partnership: State Strategies for Digital and Educational Equity.
Los Angeles School Board approves cellphone ban as Gov Newsom calls for statewide action
The Los Angeles school board set in motion a plan to ban cellphones all day on campus, saying the devices distract students from learning, lead to anxiety, and allow cyberbullying.
Zero laptops per child
When California’s Gov. Gavin Newsom laid out an ambitious, if hazy, plan to remove smartphones from public classrooms in the interest of kids’ safety, it marked a turnaround that would have shocked any hyper-ambitious Democratic politician from a generation ago. “Connecting kids” was once an obvious political winner.
Gavin Newsom wants to take smartphones out of schools
Gov Gavin Newsom (D-CA) vowed to severely restrict the use of smartphones during the school day, a dramatic move by the nation’s largest state amid dire warnings from the Biden administration that social media harms children. Newsom’s decision comes a day after Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy warned the threat social media poses to kids is so acute that Congress should compel apps to include warning labels similar to cigarettes and alcohol. Newsom said he would work with his Democratic-dominated Legislature to pass the restrictions during the current session that ends in August.
Getting Help Online: How Young People Find, Evaluate, and Use Mental Health Apps, Online Therapy, and Behavioral Health Information
Adolescents and young adults are facing elevated rates of mental health issues—and they're also struggling with access to the mental health care they urgently need. When young people express the need for professional help, they often encounter obstacles to seeing a therapist, such as prolonged wait times, limited local access to mental health providers, or financial barriers. In light of these barriers, young people turn to social media and digital mental health apps to attempt to fulfill their needs.