Don't forbid, but accompany your child.

Ms. Nguyen Phuong Linh, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development Management (MSD), commented that the influence of the Internet on children is like two sides of a coin.

Two sides of the coin

Nowadays, with just a phone or computer connected to the Internet, people have unlimited access to resources from knowledge to entertainment of humanity. However, the easy connection feature of the Internet has potential harm to users, especially teenagers.

It is no longer unusual for students in big cities to own their own Internet access devices. According to a UNICEF survey, 87% of children aged 12-17 will use the Internet at least once a day in 2022, averaging 5-7 hours a day. One of the consequences is that they do not have the ability to prevent, combat, and protect themselves from potential risks online.

Discussing this issue, Ms. Nguyen Phuong Linh, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development Management (MSD), commented: “The influence of the Internet is like two sides of a coin. On the one hand, teenagers are empowered to explore and proactively learn in the 4.0 era with endless tools. On the other hand, the Internet has dark areas that make it easy for children to access fake news, toxic content; have their privacy and security violated; have their information stolen, defamed, and scammed online, etc.”

Meanwhile, the Voice of Vietnamese Children Report said that more than 30% of surveyed children felt uncomfortable when adults in their family knew they were using the Internet. When encountering problems online, many children choose to solve them themselves.

According to Ms. Nguyen Phuong Linh, this situation increases the gap between parents and children: "Parents always want the best for their children. But sometimes with extreme measures such as prohibition, control of privacy... makes children feel suffocated, tend to stop sharing, avoid".

Join the kids

Teenagers often have a vulnerable mentality, so communicating and educating children is always a difficult problem for society. “At times like this, parents should not forbid, but accompany. The openness but still seriousness of parents will be the best attitude to become a companion with children.

Accompanying requires parents to listen, be willing to share problems with their children, be willing to learn from them and discuss solutions with them. From the perspective of being open and accompanying like a friend, children will be more likely to open up and listen, confide in each other rather than having to accept harsh demands or being imposed on them…”, Ms. Phuong Linh said.

According to Ms. Phuong Linh, in addition to sharing knowledge or supporting children with safety features, parents will further shorten the gap when they understand their children's preferences when using the Internet as well as their favorite platforms. "It is more ideal when parents directly participate in fun trends and experience the platforms with their children," Ms. Phuong Linh shared.

Besides accompanying, parents must first improve their own knowledge to become a reliable "source of information" when their children need help.

Mr. Minh Hai (HCMC) noticed his daughter's interest in lip-syncing since she was little, and together they filmed funny videos and posted them on the Internet since 2017. This was also the opportunity for Mr. Minh Hai and his daughter to receive widespread love.

According to him, filming funny videos with his children on TikTok is a way for him to understand and accompany his children in the digital world .

“Only by trying it will I know that there is always interesting and useful content on the internet for my daughter and myself. However, I used to be afraid and limited my child's use of the internet. Parents should start using their children's platforms, listen and talk to them; start participating in useful trends when they have time... Gradually, parents can both support their children to live safely and strengthen family ties" - Mr. Minh Hai shared.

In addition to being accompanies, parents must first educate themselves to become a reliable “source of information” when their children need help. Understanding the safe use and settings of platforms will support the process of parents accompanying their children.

Some platforms have special features like TikTok with Smart Family. When activated, parents can help their children manage their time, filter keywords, limit inappropriate content… even when they are not physically present.

In addition, according to Ms. Phuong Linh, on the Internet there are always official information pages for parents to equip themselves with knowledge: “Social networking platforms also have propaganda campaigns for parents to discuss or participate with their children such as: #TryItWithTikTok, #LearnOnTikTok - two campaigns spreading useful information and tips that have reached billions of views on TikTok; #VaccineSo, #CreateKindness - where parents and children raise awareness of safety when using the Internet...”.

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