EDITORIAL: Should towns in Ireland ban smartphones for young children?

Should towns in Ireland ban smartphones for young children? Tipperary Live takes a look at the pros for banning the technology for kids under 12.

Recently in the news was a story about how one town in Ireland made a bold move to ban smartphones for all young children in the town's primary schools.

Greystones in County Wicklow recently agreed to ban smartphones for children under 12, encouraging a delay in ownership until secondary school. The cause is backed by the ‘It takes a village’ initiative and the eight primary schools located within the town.

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For many teachers reading this, it must feel like much awaited welcome news. For the past few years of smartphones getting more and more popular with young children, it has been obvious that their increase in use has a direct impact on a child’s ability to concentrate.

Studies have also shown that frequent smartphone use is linked to higher impulsivity, and a reduced ability to concentrate and complete simple real life tasks.

While critics of the ban may argue that children need to be digitally-literate, the argument can be made that that can still happen at the age of 12.

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While the ban is not a legal one, but a voluntary, community-led agreement between schools and parents, Greystones is paving the way forward with regulating the digital aspects of its children’s lives.