A rare cross-party initiative in the National Assembly, the special commission on the impacts of screens and social networks launched its work on Thursday, driven by the “urgency” of reaching an agreement to better regulate the use of new technologies among young people… while raising awareness among their parents.
Speaking to parliamentarians, Emmanuelle Parent of the Centre for Online Emotional Intelligence outlined the most common comments children make about screen time. “Tell my parents to put down their phones. To not pick up their phones when I’m talking to them,” she said.
Parents’ screen time may be a predictor of higher screen time among young people, Ms.me Parent. “In every classroom we visit, kids mention that they want their parents’ attention. It’s really obvious.”
As the day went on, the example given by adults to children became a central part of the discussions. “We are the first to use [nos écrans] excessively. We give ourselves very little time to disconnect,” stressed Mélanie Laviolette, from the Fédération des comités de parents du Québec.
The members of the special commission on the impacts of screens and social networks also insisted on the urgency of acting on this issue. “I think the consensus is that there is an urgent need to do something, to look into it. […] But what exactly? That’s what we’ll have to find,” said Solidarity MP Alexandre Leduc.
“Since 1984, there have not been many special commissions. […] “Across all parties, we all agree that we have a societal problem and that we need to have a collective awareness,” also declared CAQ member Amélie Dionne, who chairs the commission.
Besides Mme Dionne and Mr. Leduc, MPs Enrico Ciconne of the Liberal Party and Pascal Bérubé of the Parti Québécois, sit on the commission. The MPs are to publish their recommendations in May. In the meantime, they will meet with nearly forty stakeholders, in addition to touring schools in Quebec. They have not yet revealed the budget allocated to their commission.
For parents, for children
In front of the parliamentarians, Ms. Parent gave numerous examples of exchanges she had with young people about digital technology. Elementary school children looked for ways to avoid seeing videos on TikTok of school shootings, armed conflicts or methods promoting weight loss.
The solution to such situations may not lie, however, in imposing a numerical majority, she warned. “What they want [les jeunes]it’s not necessarily about not having TikTok. It’s about it being less addictive and being able to control the content,” she summed up. Mme Parent stressed the importance of education and awareness, but also of an interesting offer in sports and leisure, to give young people options other than screens.
Mélanie Laviolette, from the Fédération des comités de parents du Québec, also encouraged parents to set an example. “We are the first to use [nos écrans] excessively. We give ourselves very little time to disconnect,” she said. Her organization has issued a warning about a national directive that would ban cellphones everywhere in schools. “There may be guidance that is provided by the ministry,” but schools should be able to choose what is best for them, Ms.me Laviolette.
Like CAQ MP Mario Asselin, the Federation has put forward an approach of support, rather than banning. “We have the impression that teaching proper use of screens and social networks will have more beneficial effects in the long term than simply banning them,” said Mme Laviolette. “If [les jeunes] don’t know how to use them, we just postpone the problem. We don’t solve it at the root.”
Mme Parent went along the same lines. Digital majority, this minimum age to have access to certain content, can give “a false sense of security,” she said. She also said companies like Meta or ByteDance, owners of Instagram and TikTok, should be “ashamed” of their practices. Representatives of these two multinationals are to participate in the work of the special commission, whose work continues until September 26.