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Using AI in schools is a betrayal of children. Great piece - Resisting AI Mania in Schools - Part III open.substack.com/pub/annelu…

Big decision imminent for @10DowningStreet and @lkendallysi Whether to back children or big tech.

Adults should be raising our adolescents, not algorithms. In every school I’ve been to that’s banned phones in the classroom, we have seen material improvement in kids’ social interactions with other kids. That’s why I support banning social media for kids under 16. Australia has done it. Spain has done it. France is doing it. Germany is on their way. Now, the UK is moving to implement it. It’s time we do the same. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

"We must learn from what is happening around the world and build the tightest regime we can.” - Powerful words from Lord Nash in The Times today. The debate is not a platform ban or a feature ban. The point is to raise the age for harmful social media by tackling the addictive features that make these platforms unsafe for children: algorithmic feeds, infinite scroll, autoplay, stranger-pairing and engineered notifications. thetimes.com/article/afd4149…

AI chatbots are a disaster for children, particularly the very young who can’t tell the difference between AI and reality. Human interaction is essential for children’s development and wellbeing. @HP4SaferScreens @safe_screens @LauraTrottMP

I mean they are standing by…

Councils have duties to educate, safeguard and promote children's welfare. Suggesting parents who are concerned about the impact of tech in schools to "home educate" isn't an answer - it's an abdication. @LauraTrottMP @scotborders scotsman.com/education/counc…

🚨 BREAKING: A huge win for our children. The Government has committed to raising the age limit for harmful social media to 16. Thank you to every parent, teacher, health professional, police officer and supporter who spoke out, stood firm and helped make this happen.

Health professionals are required to engage in evidence-based practice. The same should be true in education. There is no evidence that digital devices improve learning outcomes. Screens certainly don’t belong in Early Years settings. @HP4SaferScreens

"I'm aching to write with pencil again" "The learning feels impersonal and robotic." "Teachers are constantly competing with their Chromebooks for attention." 4–6 hours on screens at school. 3–4 more at home. UK children are living the same reality. It must change. @CommonsEd

The Education Select Committee Report 2024 concluded: "The overwhelming weight of evidence submitted to us suggests that the harms of screen time significantly outweigh the benefits for young children". Why then are screens still used throughout the day in most EY settings?

'Parents simply don't know how serious the harms are... It affects whole child health.' Early Years Speech and Language Therapist Sandy Chappell applauds the Government's new advice on limiting screen time for children.

Labour have chosen inaction. Their consultation asks whether to ban social media, not how to implement one. It fails to meet the scale of the challenge & gives the Govt a blank cheque to do nothing or weak responses like curfews. If MPs want change, then they should vote for it.

Strongly agree. For months the Education Secretary has dismissed a phone ban in schools as a “gimmick”. This feels like a move to head off backbench unrest next week. MPs should just back teachers and support a proper ban by voting with us next week.

The anti-Ed Tech and pro-book movements are gaining momentum, especially for elementary grades. Let's get the memo to the nation's curriculum selection committees, pronto. They're making curriculum choices right now that schools will live with for the next 5-7 years. My latest for @CurriculumIP: Feat. @JonHaidt @natwexler @mark_bauerlein @KelseyTuoc

Short-form videos are literally rotting kids’ brains—and the science is stacking up fast. A major new meta-analysis (covering studies over the last decade) shows heavy TikTok/Reels/YouTube Shorts consumption is strongly linked to: - Shorter attention spans - Reduced logical & analytical reasoning - Weaker memory - Poorer impulse control - Increased anxiety Dr. Cheryl Ziegler (mental health expert): “These are quick dopamine hits with shallow, mindless content. For developing brains (ages 10–18 especially), it conditions kids to find books, deep thinking, and anything slow ‘boring.’ It’s not defiance—it’s rewiring.” She stresses: We can’t yet prove causation (long-term studies needed), but the correlation is strong enough that parents should treat it like a major red flag—right up there with proven harm. Bottom line: Endless scrolling isn’t harmless entertainment. It’s training young minds for instant gratification and shallow processing at the exact age when deeper neural pathways should be forming. Parents: How bad is the short-video habit in your house—and what (if anything) are you doing to push back? Source: 9NEWS (YouTube)

Final chance to write to the consultation to try and stop the government taking school exams online. This is the address to write to. consultations@ofqual.gov.uk And here’s what I wrote.

US corporations are knowingly harming our children to enrich themselves. Let’s force this government to grow a pair. No more consultation bullshit. Great campaign from ⁦@MumsnetTowers⁩ #supporthesocialban (And no, none of my children have smartphones.)

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Neuroscience proves what you already suspected: