Kollam: Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights issued an order to adopt a ‘digital media literacy program’ to train children on how to safely use the internet, mobile phones and social media platforms for educational purposes.
An order was issued by a bench comprising Chairperson KV Manojkumar, Reni Antony and B Babitha. The director and the secretary of the General Education Department are directed to file a report on measures taken on the matter within the next 30 days.
The project aims to adopt a proper system to teach youngsters how to use social media platforms properly. Even though mobile phones are not allowed in schools, the commission directed authorities to implement a mechanism to keep the phones safe if students carried phones with parents’ permission for any particular need.
The decision was taken following a complaint filed by a parent alleging the school principal in Vadakara refused to hand over the phone seized from a student. The commission resolved the issue and directed the school authorities to hand over the phone to the parents.
However, the commission views that students should not be allowed to use mobile phones in schools. Additionally, it was noted that mobile phone users increased exponentially due to the introduction of online classes. To deal with the situation, the commission suggested adopting a digital literacy program to teach youngsters how to use mobile phones and social media platforms properly.
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