Before even learning the alphabet, children in Greece enter into the world of Internet. Many of them have even had profiles on social networking websites – e.g. Facebook – since elementary school, and in some cases since kindergarten!
As evidenced by a study conducted by the Hellenic Center for Safe Internet, two out of every ten children in kindergarten (age 4-6) surf the Internet from home. In some kindergartens this percentage rises to 50 percent of all children. At the same time 1 percent of children in kindergarten have an account on a social network and frequently log in from home.
It is noteworthy that mobile phones have begun to appear in kindergartens which have been given to the children by their parents. Naturally this percentage is very low: 1 percent of children in kindergartens in Greece carry mobile phones.
The advent of Facebook and other social networks among primary school children has increased significantly. According to the survey, 15 percent of students at primary schools in Greece maintain a profile on a social network.
Furthermore, almost half of primary school children (46 percent) surf the Internet outside school. Of course, it turned out that in 19 percent of primary schools which participated in the study Internet use increases dramatically - more than 80% of all students.
In high schools 60 percent of students maintain an account on a social network (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.).
Internet access in these age groups is pervasive, nearly 9 out of every 10 students (88 percent), surf the World Wide Web outside school. However, most students from high schools (80 percent) have a cell phone.
The survey was conducted between May 10 and September and 25 2319 teachers were interviewed from all levels of education in Greece.
Dr. Veronica Samara, Coordinator of the Hellenic Center for Safe Internet did not appear surprised by the conclusion that social networks in the country have entered the lives of children even in kindergarten and primary school. "This is something that we expected. Parents should impose limitations on their children regarding use of these technologies at a young age. They should clearly explain what is permitted and what is not. They must make the Internet a family matter ", she said.
What parents should pay attention to
- Alone or together with your child check the Internet. This is the only way to really understand if your child needs help with something that happened on the Internet.
- Do not forbid your children from accessing the Internet.
- Explain why they are not allowed to enter certain websites or to perform certain actions.
- Put the computer in the living room and turn the Internet into a family matter.
- Find websites suitable for your children with educational and entertaining content.
- Teach your children to trust you and tell you about what they and their friends do on the Internet.
- Teach your children to protect their private lives online as they do in real life.
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