‘Parents Must Correct Themselves First to Break Children’s Mobile Addiction’: Educationist’s Advice

Kathmandu. The growing addiction to smartphones and digital devices among children and adolescents has sparked widespread concern and debate in recent times. In this context, senior teacher Woeser from Lhasa’s No. 5 Secondary School has shared his important views on mobile addiction among children and its solutions.

According to teacher Woeser, most students at the school can easily navigate various digital platforms and spend a large portion of their free time on their mobile phones. He expressed serious concern that children of young ages are becoming immersed in platforms like ‘TikTok’ in the absence of adequate regulatory and control mechanisms. “At a stage when children’s values and worldviews are still forming, their thinking can be easily influenced,” he said.

Serious Impact on Studies and Health

Teacher Woeser voiced concern over the negative impact of mobile addiction on students’ regular studies and lifestyle. “Some students stay up late at night glued to their phones, as a result of which they cannot concentrate during daytime classes. The habit of looking at the phone has become part of students’ daily routine; the tendency to spontaneously read books, exercise, or contemplate as soon as free time is available is disappearing,” he said.

He noted that while the two-day weekend break has scientific significance, most students do not rest properly during that time but spend it on their phones, leaving them tired and disheartened when they return to school. “Rest is meant for a better start, but when students hang on to their phones even during rest periods, they do not get proper rest, and this affects their studies for the entire week,” he said.

Decline in Classroom Concentration

Teacher Woeser’s experience suggests that mobile addiction has also severely impacted classroom performance. “Previously, students could listen attentively in class for long periods, but now many students lose focus after listening for just a short while, and some even fall asleep. This could be a result of being accustomed to the fast-paced screen of short videos,” he said. Comparing residential and non-residential students, he inferred that the relatively better academic performance of residential students may largely be attributed to controlled mobile usage.

Psychological Causes of Addiction

According to teacher Woeser’s analysis, academic pressure and the disappointment caused by results in real life are major reasons behind the rise in mobile addiction among children. “In digital games, they are hailed as ‘kings,’ and on social media, they receive plenty of praise, which gives them a sense of self-esteem,” he said. Additionally, since most topics of discussion in today’s student community revolve around mobile phones, students who do not use a phone risk becoming socially isolated.

Parents’ Role is Crucial

Teacher Woeser pointed out that the root cause of children’s mobile addiction lies in family education. “Some parents do not pay enough attention to their children, some stubbornly hold that everything apart from their own views is wrong, while some, busy with their own work, simply hand a phone to their child for their own convenience,” he said. “Although this problem among children outwardly appears to be a habit issue, in reality, it is a psychological, educational, and ideological problem.”

Offering advice to parents, he said, “First, the relationship between parents and children is more important than education itself. The problem cannot be solved by scolding or forcibly snatching the phone away; rather, a relationship must be built where the child feels comfortable sharing their thoughts with the parent and the parent is able to listen. Second, parents themselves not hanging on to their phones is the first step toward changing a child’s behaviour. Third, to make good use of a child’s free time, parents must participate together with them in activities like hiking, museum visits, and sports, so that they realize the real world is far more fascinating than the screen of a mobile phone.”