Children online safety

When Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web, he surely didn’t anticipate that children would end up becoming some of its main users. Most start using the internet at the average age of three – and as recent research shows, children now spend more time playing and socializing online than watching television programs. Given this change in habits, it is not surprising that a recent House of Lords report has raised online safety and behavior as an important issue. The report said that for children, learning to survive in a world dominated by the internet should be as important as reading and writing.

The House of Lords Communications Committee also warned that children should not be leaving school without “a well-rounded understanding of the digital world”. It also suggested that the government should think about implementing new legal requirements and a code of conduct companies would have to adhere to, which would help to bring the internet up to “child friendly standards”. Of course, trying to rectify this lack of child-centered design is not an easy task, but one that requires the cooperation and goodwill of many sectors. It will need to involve consultation with technology, education, legal and policy experts. And it would also be a good idea to make children and young people part of the process.