Educational Minister Norma Foley made a warning statement concerning the detrimental impact of social media on young students. Speaking at the annual congress of the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) in Derry, she highlighted that algorithms designed to prolong online activity are contributing to harmful content distribution, sleep disturbances, and the decline of children’s concentration abilities.
Ms. Foley also unveiled that Coimisiún na Meán, the fresh regulator for media and online activities, shared with her alarming news of a significant increase in self-produced inappropriate images amongst children aged seven to ten. This horrifying phenomenon, she revealed, is as a result of predators exploiting social media platforms to exploit and subsequently blackmail children by pretending to be another child. She described the reality of this situation as an utmost fear for any parent.
She expressed concern over the struggle in safeguarding primary-age children who have the ability to easily register on social media platforms that require the minimal age of 13 years. She pointed out that certain manipulative features such as ‘friendship streaks’ incentivise children to use these apps daily.
The harm of such practices, according to Ms. Foley, are evident in classrooms, where sleep-deprived students with severely affected attention spans are visible. She advocated for more parents and schools to adopt the position of resisting giving smartphones to children until they complete the sixth grade, as a mechanism to keep kids’ smartphone-free. She emphasised that the purpose is to delay the provision of a smartphone to a child, rather than deprive them permanently, insisting “Delay, not deny.”
Additionally, she informed that the government is set to give guidance to schools regarding the safe and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Ms. Foley acknowledged AI’s potential benefits in education, yet warned of accompanying challenges, citing the potential assistance AI can provide for children with hearing difficulties as noted by some special schools.
Officials from the Department of Education are gaining support from Oide, a leading service for teacher and school leader support, in formulating guidelines that shall soon be delivered to schools. Concurrently, the State Examinations Commission is evaluating the potential consequences for evaluation purposes.
These developments come at a crucial time, with staffing concerns commanding centre stage at this week’s teaching union’s Easter conferences. Into’s General Secretary, John Boyle, emphasised the severity of the recruitment and retention situation, calling it a crisis that is touching every aspect of the education system. He also exposed the government’s incapacity to heed teachers’ concerns, leading to many departing for overseas.
Boyle revealed data showing over 2,000 enduring vacancies in schools, along with numerous short-term openings.
Pointing towards a solution, Ms Foley highlighted the recent public-sector pay accord as a potential remedy for issues concerning teachers’ payment and working conditions. She explained the 2½-year wage agreement, endorsed by all teachers’ unions and ratified by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, will heighten a starting teacher’s salary to approximately €46,000 and the top-tier to roughly €85,000.
Moreover, they also forecast a local negotiation system, providing a platform for the Department of Education and the unions to negotiate more changes in the conditions of teachers’ employment in the future.