PM Wong launches initiative to help parents support kids' digital journey, warns of 'harmful' online content

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has launched a national initiative - Screen Smart from the Start - to support parents in fostering healthy digital habits with their children.

Speaking at National Family Festival Family Carnival at Singapore Expo today (May 31), PM Wong said that the national movement by the Ministry of Digital Development and Information will help families foster healthy digital habits from young.

He said that new challenges will naturally emerge as society evolves with developments such as digitalisation, and this will influence how people interact with one another and how families raise children.

Pointing out that although digitalisation creates new opportunities for both parents and children to access knowledge at their fingertips, this also creates new challenges as excessive screen time could affect children's development and socialisation skills. 

This, in turn, causes kids to gradually grow distant from their families.

PM Wong also noted that managing technology and screen time has become a "more intense" challenge today due to addictive features, harmful content, and toxic online interactions.

Sharing that the government will continue to do their part in managing these challenges, including removing the use of smartphones during school hours and tighten safeguards around access to social media, he acknowledged that the campaign was launched in response to feedback from parents who wanted to do more, but don't know where to start.

No screen time for babies

As part of the movement, the Be Screen Smart portal provides tips categorised into three age brackets: 0-6, 7-12, and 13-18.

Parents, for example, are advised not to have screen time for babies under 18 months. 

They could, as the child grows older, limit their their usage of electronic devices by watching it together with them and discuss what they are seeing while connecting it with the world around them.

Parents are also recommended to practice healthy digital habits with their children, including no phones during family meals, preferably no phones in the bedroom and holding back from giving them smart phones for as long as possible.

@asiaone Speaking at the launch of the National Family Festival and "Screen smart from the start" campaign on Sunday (May 31), PM Lawrence Wong, noting that some countries have banned social media for their children, set out how Singapore will instead manage the issue by supporting parents to cultivate healthy digital habits in their children from young. #sgnews #Singapore #Online #Safety #SocialMedia #Children #Family ♬ original sound - AsiaOne

"With these strong foundations, hopefully it becomes easier to manage screen time when children grow older. Eventually they will have their own smartphones, but we want to instil in them the confidence and values to navigate the online world responsibly and safely," PM Wong said.

He emphasised that safeguard over screen time should go hand in hand with spending quality time together as a family, and the government will continue to encourage more family-friendly activities to make it easier for families to spend meaningful time together.

PM Wong added: "We must, together, collectively create new social norms for the digital age. It must start with all of us working closely with parents, schools and community groups so that together, we can build healthier habits from young."

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yeo.shuhui@asiaone.com