Barack Obama sings ‘Call Me Maybe’, Snoop Dogg reads tarot cards, Break bad starring Donald Trump: these are all films that can be found on the internet. While it is quite clear that these bizarre ideas have been made ‘reality’ using AI, even for adults, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between real content and deepfakes, let alone for children and young people. And that’s just one of the many risks associated with prolonged and uncontrolled exposure to online content.
Children experience the adverse mental health effects of constant exposure to – usually unfiltered – online content, which can hinder their performance at school, their outlook on life, social relationships and much more.
Hungary has taken action by banning smartphones from classrooms, a choice that sparked outrage on social media. However, UNESCO has called for these measures as early as 2023, emphasizing that while learning technology skills is necessary, unlimited internet access leads to loss of focus, poorer learning outcomes and little to no data privacy for children.
For these reasons, countries like Denmark and Greece are also trying to combat over-reliance on smartphones by requiring students to keep their cell phones in their bags during classes. In the US, most Americans would support banning cell phones from the classroom, and New York Governor Kathy Hochul plans to propose a similar ban. Even Ursula von der Leyen expressed concern about the growing addiction to social media among young people.
However, we must recognize that 92 percent of jobs now require digital skills, which are often developed through the daily use of modern technologies rather than something learned in school. To improve European competitiveness and economic performance, a strong digital economy is necessary, supported by an abundance of professionals.
‘Research shows that longer screen time has a huge negative impact on learning’
So shouldn’t Hungary also strive to equip citizens with digital skills to boost the country’s economic landscape? Well, it does just that! Studies show that increased screen time has a huge negative impact on the learning process, and that banning its use for the duration of classes will at least lead to better social and other soft skills for students.[1] In addition, the Hungarian National Social Inclusion Strategy 2030 is in force, which aims to improve the digital literacy of students, parents and teachers alike.
So yes, while digital skills are critical to today’s workforce, other soft skills, especially human relationship development, cannot be left out of students’ lives either. Taking away smartphones from class doesn’t mean students shouldn’t focus their energy on improving specific skills that will serve them as adults. On the contrary, it is vital that classes are dedicated to them to learn how to separate reality from the waves of fake material online, how to foster healthy relationships with other people and how to understand technology. This is especially important in today’s day and age when all social media platforms are filled with misinformation and misinformation.[2]
My suggestion would be to help children get the education they need in all areas of life. A small part of that, something that Hungary has tried to achieve through the above measures, is improving young people’s concentration – which is much needed, considering their average attention span is 47 seconds.
Artificial intelligence (AI) literacy will undoubtedly be of paramount importance in the future. Therefore, teaching them, rather than allowing children to find harmful, addictive, or otherwise destructive content online on their own, will be the biggest challenge in protecting our youth. AI literacy includes knowledge of the basic functions of AI systems, and how to use them ethically in everyday life to prepare homework or work. Computational thinking can be developed from early childhood,[3] but it must be done while keeping the emotional and mental well-being of children top of mind.
‘AI is a powerful tool that can be used to benefit children, but we must be careful’
In some educational institutions, AI is even used to teach small children all kinds of subjects. In June 2021, a social robot was used as a learning tool at a school for autistic children, with positive results. The robot carried out 330 interactions with a small group of children over three weeks, and its presence helped them learn.[4] Therefore, integrating AI technology to teach children with special needs can lead to better learning outcomes for them and help promote inclusive learning. For blind students, tools such as Ask Envision and Be My Eyes are now available, which can record everything and explain it to the student. For deaf children, SLAIT, a real-time sign language translator, can be a game changer. Inclusivity could even extend to underprivileged children, who could use large language models in their classrooms to learn different topics even if there is no internet connection at home.
AI is a powerful tool that can be used for the benefit of children, but we must be careful. It is not yet reliable and trustworthy enough to blindly listen to the results. Human supervision is absolutely necessary; just as human-to-human interactions should be encouraged alongside the implementation of these solutions.
The way I see it, more and more countries are likely to see bans on smartphones during class in the near future, but this needs to be complemented by helping young people acquire the necessary skills to navigate the online world. A balanced perspective will be needed, linked to promoting traditional values, both in developing AI literacy and digital knowledge, and especially in what AI can never fully replace: building relationships.
[1] Oluwafemi J Sunday, Olusola O Adesope, Patricia L Maarhuis, ‘The effects of smartphone addiction on learning: a meta-analysis’, Computers in human behavior reportspart 4, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2021.100114
[2] Esma Aïmeur, Sabrine Amri & Gilles Brassard, ‘Fake news, disinformation and disinformation on social media: a review’, Social network analysis and miningPart 13:30, 2023.
[3] Jiahong Su, Weipeng Yang, ‘A systematic review of the integration of computational thinking in early childhood education’, Computers and educationpart 4, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeo.2023.100122
[4] Séverin Lemaignan, Nigel Newbutt, Louis Rice & Joe Daly, ”It is important to consider Pepper as a learning tool or resource outside the classroom”: a social robot in a school for autistic children’, International Journal of Social RoboticsPart 16, 1083–1104, 2024.
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