LSE’s (London School of Economics and Political Science) Department of Media and Communications reposted an article from Dongmiao Zhang and Sonia Livingstone discussing digital parenting.
With learning taking place mainly online, children are more exposed to harm and parents find themselves unsure about the best approach.
Zhang and Livingstone found that there is a relation between parents’ socio-economic status and parental mediation as more forms of online support are available to children with parents of higher socio-economic status.
The authors share findings of their research completed before the pandemic by 2,032 parents of children aged between 0-17 across the UK:
- Family background determines what level of support is available for e-learning
- Parental digital skills and attitudes is an important component of e-learning
- Children who use multiple devices and younger children get more support
The authors stress the importance of providing relevant resources and improving digital skills of parents from lower socio-economic status households. Parents want to be involved in the digital parenting but they need guidance.