At the chalk face: Are schools ready for the social media ban?

Will a social media ban really make schools safer? Or is it just the beginning of a whole new set of challenges?

With social media restrictions for young people moving closer to reality, schools could soon face some difficult questions. If mobile phones are already banned in many schools, will anything really change? Or will safeguarding, teaching and student wellbeing become even more complicated?

In this episode of At the Chalkface, Craig and Dave explore the practical implications a social media ban could have on schools, teachers and students.

💬 We discuss:
Will safeguarding responsibilities increase?
Could students become less likely to report online abuse?
How should schools prepare pupils for social media if they're not allowed to use it?
What happens when students suddenly gain access at 16?
Could educational content on platforms like YouTube be caught up in the ban?
What support will schools need from government?

As experienced Computer Science teachers, we look beyond the headlines to explore the real-world impact on classrooms and school leaders.

What do you think? Will a social media ban make schools safer, or could it create even bigger challenges? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

👉 Explore hundreds of Computer Science teaching resources at https://craigndave.org

👍 If you enjoyed this discussion, please like, subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss a future episode.

#ComputerScience #Education #Teaching #Schools #Safeguarding #DigitalCitizenship #OnlineSafety #SocialMedia #EdTech #TeacherCPD #CraignDave #TeamCompSci

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

So phones are banned in schools. So there'll be no implications for social media ban in schools then.

SPEAKER_01 0:10

Hello and welcome back to another At the Chalk Face with myself Craig and my colleague Dave. We've taught computer science in the county of Gloucestershire for far too long. And we now run an educational resource company providing you with everything you need for the subject of computer science. So if you are new to us, please head over to Craigandave.org and check out everything we've got, loads of free materials. And if you're a returning customer, thank you very much for listening. So last week, obviously, we spoke about the um ban of social media that's coming in. And we've spoken a lot before about mobile phones in schools. So this is a hot topic at the moment. We're going to follow on from that episode. We're not focusing so much today on the ban itself and what's going to be in. That's still up for debate. At the time of recording this, we've got one Prime Minister going out, another one coming in. Who knows what will change? But it seems likely that some kind of social media ban will be in. Exactly what that will and won't include, and if there'll be any educational exemptions, uh, we'll see. The question is though, um, are you ready as a school to actually implement it? What does that mean? What are the implications? Um, I mean, you have to access social media through some kind of device, and phones are already banned in schools, right? So presumably there's actually nothing for schools to do, Dave.

SPEAKER_00 1:36

What do you think? Well, you would think, right. I mean, you know, when we first thought about this episode, I did think, well, there aren't really any implications for schools, are there? Because as you say, if if phones are banned, then it doesn't really affect schools. Um, and then I thought to myself, yeah, but fights are banned and fights happen outside the school gates, and schools still get involved. So it's like, right, okay, let's think about this a little bit more deeply. And if social media is banned for young people, but they are still accessing social media um outside school, and I think the general consensus is particularly from the evidence in Australia, that uh some students will still be accessing social media um outside school, even though um they shouldn't be. Um and even if they aren't, they might be using tools that are not part of the ban or applications and software that are not part of the ban. Um, and they're still sort of using those in inappropriate ways or getting inappropriate communications and the cyberbullying and all the other things, the inappropriate material, it's all kind of still happening. It's just not happening on the major platforms because those have been banned. So I think there's perhaps some deeper things to think about here, Craig.

SPEAKER_01 3:06

Um so what you what you're getting at here is safeguarding, aren't you? It's it's not sufficient for a school to turn around and say, well, mobile phones are banned, therefore we don't have to do anything. You there's already exist plenty of situations where things happen beyond the school gates, but they have implicate implications for the school, and the school gets involved, and that schools have a safeguarding requirement. And quite often that does you know extend beyond simply saying, well, they they left the gate, so we can put our hands up and say there's nothing. So you really you're talking here about you know making sure that schools sort of cover themselves from a safeguarding point of view and and what it is they can do and should do, what do they already do that's in place that would extend to this. That kind of stuff, I guess, is is what you're saying.

SPEAKER_00 3:50

It is, and I just want to interrupt you there, because I don't want to give the audience the false impression that it's not about schools covering their back. Um safeguarding is not about yeah, safeguarding is not about you know schools um you know covering themselves, it's obviously acting in the best interests of the child. Um, so yeah, I just want to sort of interject there and just uh and just make that really clear. We're both on the same page with that. I just don't want the other of the audience to to misinterpret what you're saying. Um but yeah, so you know, let's think about current safeguarding issues. You know, what are the implications for schools? What do they actually have to do? And we're talking about safeguarding because social media is being seen as a safeguarding issue, right? If it if it weren't, then perhaps different things would apply. But at the moment, we're thinking about social media in terms of it being a safeguarding issue. So schools have obligations under safeguarding to take some action. And so, what should happen if something happens outside of school? Well, at the moment, they should be recording and assessing the information. Okay, so perhaps there's now an increased burden on administration in school for somebody to actually be recording some of these things. You could argue they probably do that already, so maybe there's not a big burden there. Um, they have to pass on their concerns to the designated safeguard lead. That happens at the moment. Implications for DSLs, does it mean that their case workload is going to increase quite significantly? Because now we have to sort of deal with all these social media um violations and situations that they become aware of. I'm not sure. Um but who do they report that to? I think for me, this is the big thing where people haven't really given it a huge amount of thought. Because at the moment, if there's a safeguarding issue, then your DSL is going to make a judgment call and they're going to refer that to um social care. Um, it might involve the police. Well, the police aren't going to be interested in you know violation of social media, are they? I mean, their caseload is always already way too high. Children's social care, unless it's something severe, they're probably not going to be interested in violations of social media. So who should the DSL be reporting any of this stuff to? That's that's really unclear. Um, and then of course, you're having to take disciplinary action on pupils. Well, what does that look like? You don't you don't really want to be increasing um you know disciplinary action in your school because of violations of social media that might spill over into school. You know, we're talking about this happening outside school, but often these things spill over uh into school. So questions, Craig.

SPEAKER_01 6:43

I've got an even bigger concern than that because obviously, you know, if this sticks in and it it works and the government puts clever tooling in to prevent students easily getting around it, then a generation or two from now, maybe it will be, you know, it is what it is. Very much like we're going with a smoke-free country, and I'm sure a couple of generations from now it will just be what it is. But we're going to enter a stage where all these students being banned, or an awful lot of them, are actively using it anyway. Uh, so it's a real jolt. And I'm wondering, Dave, the bigger question is if a is a ban simply going to make it less likely that students are even going to report these incidents? So it it's now we just don't mention it because we're getting around social media and we probably shouldn't, but my friends are all using it and they've shown me how to get around it. And of course, this is the big concern and the big argument all the tech giants are making. It's just going to drive social media underground, drive them to less safe sites, you know, sites that are maybe less reputable and don't have the same controls that tech companies have been implementing. And of course, tech companies will say this, um, but it is a genuine concern. You can put a ban in place, and we can I won't I won't get all historical, but we only have to look through history and look at all the bans, you know, prohibition in America and everything else. It it doesn't stop it. And of course, this is the whole argument around all sorts of things that are banned or or legalized or delegalised. Um, it still happens um that there are bigger questions. So I do worry about um the fact that maybe students just will now not even report the sort of stuff that's happening because they don't want people to know them on social media, so that's a concern as well. Um and oh, hang on, before I go jumping off onto other points, let's say there is a complete ban instantly. What happens when the kid turns 16? You come off a cliff and all of a sudden then boom, you're in social media. So, where is the responsibility for schools? You know, presumably this doesn't mean we don't start teaching about it. Right, I've touched on like four or five different topics here, Dave. I am so sorry. There's so much more to this than simply coming out and making a statement we're gonna ban social media to keep kids safe. Because of course, no one will argue with that. I think the reality is a bit more tricky.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

I I think the point that you make about are students less likely to report issues because they know what they're doing is wrong, they shouldn't be doing it. So if they know they shouldn't be doing it, then they might not want to report any issues that they come across because for for fear of them being the one getting into trouble that you know they're innocently reporting something that's happened or things that are happening with their friends or other people in the school outside of the school, all happening through uh various social uh media and and other avenues. And they're frightened to report it because they're the one that's well, why are you on social media in the first place? You know, you wouldn't know anything that's any of this was happening if you weren't on social media, and that you know, you end up sort of going down that that road. Um we've got to be really careful that uh the victim is still the victim, right? Yeah, you've still got that situation where uh children, because that's what they are, children feel comfortable reporting things to adults. So I do think I do think you raise a very serious concern there that it's completely unproven as to exactly what's going to happen in a situation where where you do ban these things. And and I got a fear that it will drive all this stuff underground. And we talked in the previous episode about ways around it, not that we were trying to encourage students to find ways around it, but we gave all sorts of situations where the legislators are probably not thinking very deeply or not deeply enough about the technology. And while their aims uh and their goals and their heart is in the right place, and I do think there are genuine issues here to be resolved, whether the blanket ban, the way that it's proposed, is just you know a sledgehammer to crack a nut, uh, I it needs a lot more thought. So I absolutely agree with you. And and you sort of went on to talk about um these young people being prepared for social media. And one of the big concerns at the moment is that there will be a cliff edge. Uh so as you say, let's imagine a scenario where we're a couple of generations down, it's kind of just accepted. This is what happens in our society. These things exist, but you don't get access to them until you're over 16. I mean, you know, we have that with driving, we have that with drinking, we have that with smoking. Yes, you know, it's not like we can't do these things. Of course we can. And as you say, it just kind of folds into societal norms eventually, where the children don't try and do those things because they know that it's not expected of them and no one else is doing it because it's not expected of them either. And so um, you know, that that kind of thing happens. But it's then what is the schools then have to educate, you know, in the same way we've had this discussion before, in the same way they educate about sex, even though the children, you know, don't have sex. They educate about uh drink and drugs, even though the students aren't expected to be, you know, drinking and using drugs. We still have to educate the young people. So we're still gonna have to educate people about um about social media so that they are prepared for the world that they go into when they turn 16. But I I wonder, and I'll hand back to you, but I I wonder whether what will that be like for a 16-year-old that suddenly gets their hands on social media? And and all these young people turn 16 at different times, obviously. Um, and then you've got some that have got it and some that haven't got it, and the pressure on those that haven't got it to have it. I mean, maybe none of this will come to pass because social media will kind of phase out in the young people's minds and they won't care about it. I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 12:57

I would be amazed if that's the case, but who knows? As I said, we're going to be in a transition period for a long time, aren't we? It it's very difficult to say, but you definitely hit on something there. Schools simply aren't just a place to teach you purely about academia. You know, here's how you do algebra, here's what the Romans did, you know, here's the difference between an Oxbow Lake and an interlocking spur. Sorry, it's my geography degree kicking in. But we also have this responsibility to prepare young people for the world they will enter. And that has never been more clear than in the newly revised curriculum that's coming in. There's a lot more emphasis on preparing people for the world they enter. So I think this is one of the biggest things that will come on schools. Yes, we're most likely to get a ban of some sort, but what the schools then do, well, that doesn't mean we then ban the teaching of social media or the implications or how to stay safe online, how to be responsible, what online communication should look like, the issues with trolling, how to report abuse, places you can go, the source you can find. That's our we have an ethical, moral, and indeed a legal responsibility when the new curriculum comes in to teach this stuff. And of course, this has got implications for ourselves because right now we're writing um a modern key stage three curriculum for the uh 2028 curriculum, and um we have units on being a digital citizen, um, safety and well-being, uh, all that sort of stuff. And um, we can't just suddenly pretend it doesn't exist. So schools really have to think about this. Um, you know, how are you going to teach it? Um, you know, what's going to happen when they turn 16? The the Cliff Edge approach is always quite um quite a serious concern. And I know there wasn't a lot of detail, and that was criticized, and I'm sure that will come. There wasn't a lot of detail, but they did talk about this transition period between sort of 16 uh and 17. Um, this idea of curfews as well. So we'll have to see how that comes. Some idea that they don't want a cliff edge, but it's all very woolly. Lots of questions for schools at the moment, and uh not a lot of answers. And of course, I'm not being selfish here, Dave, but what about ourselves and all those other educational content that is out there on social media? Uh, interesting, that's actually picking up some traction in the news at the moment, like the blunt hammer approach may not be uh the way to go. We're gonna cut kids off from genuine, useful, modern um platforms for learning and revision.

SPEAKER_00 15:31

Yeah, absolutely. And you know, as we're making our new key stage units, we're having to adjust slightly because we might have used examples of social media posts in our activities that we would expect pupils to be sort of familiar with. You know, if they're immersed in social media and using social media, then they know what these posts are like and they know what it can lead to because they've got lived experience of it. If they no longer have a lived experience of it, then the focus on our resources needs to change slightly to reflect the fact that they shouldn't have been exposed to this, and now we are kind of exposing them to what it will be like as opposed to what it is like, even though we probably know in the back of our minds that a lot of these students are accessing it anyway. But of course, we can't take that approach in school. We can't just say, well, they're all using it anyway, so we'll just we'll just carry on as if they're all using it anyway. That that would be irresponsible, right?

SPEAKER_01 16:29

It would be irresponsible, but I'm worried, sorry to interrupt you, it would be irresponsible. You're right, but I'm worried about the disconnect. I really am, and obviously, we will develop responsible resources that are fit for you know the laws that are in place and everything else, but I'm worried about the disconnect. If if this ban is not implemented well and there are proper tools and it is easy to circumvent, then we're delivering a scheme of work that we know know is not fit for purpose because we can't deliver it through this lens. What I need to be telling students is XYZ, but I'm telling them about ABC and how they need to be prepared. And I I worry you end up seeming out of touch. Oh, look at look at the blessed computer science teacher. They're teaching us about what we need to do and how we need to do it when we get there. We've all been using it since we were 12, and they don't even know. Of course we know, we're just pretending we're not seeing it. I dep I am genuinely worried about that disconnect as well, because we have to develop schemes of learning, uh you say, that are responsible. We can't assume everyone's using it and say, Lo, we all know you're using it. Here you go, kids. That wouldn't that wouldn't be ethical of us. But I'm genuinely worried about that disconnect. Schools are already criticized as being woefully out of touch in some of the things they teach and the way they teach. Academia is not the same as real life, you know. Prepare them for the world of work. Why are they not coming in with these skills and this knowledge? I I have a fear that this may exacerbate that issue in in regards to social media.

SPEAKER_00 17:55

Yeah, that's right. And you know, you talked about the transition period um before it all becomes a norm in society. And I wonder if another impact on schools will be a change in behavior. You know, I I wonder if some of these young people will have genuine withdrawal symptoms because this social media is like a drug for them, you know, they're so used to doing it, they they check it morning, noon, and night. Um, you know, some of them are on there for like hours. Well, you know, I don't know how they manage to be on there for nine hours a day, given that they should be in lessons in school, but you know, it this this is happening. If you suddenly take that away from somebody, uh, you know, a bit like any other drugs, really, you just suddenly take it away, then they are going to have withdrawal symptoms of that. And what how is that going to manifest itself in schools? Are we going to see a spike in behavior problems? Now, it'd be really interesting because those schools that have already implemented a very hard mobile phone ban where the students literally have to kind of put it into a pouch on their way into school and they have no access to the phone. So it's not a case of, you know, it's in the bag switched off and you might take a sneaky peek. No, they physically cannot get access to their devices. I mean, from what I know, um, actually a lot of schools have found that it hasn't been the big issue that I'm suggesting that maybe it might be, and that many uh young people are relieved to no longer have this burden that there's an expectation from their peers that they're checking this thing 24-7. So it might well play out the other way that actually uh during the transition period, uh maybe some students will find it, you know, a little bit awkward and they'll resent the fact that the government have done this to them. But we may find that very quickly they they adapt and um they actually feel better for it. It's it's hard to know. But the point of the episode really is schools need to be prepared. Uh they need to be prepared for the eventuality that some students are going to be quite severely affected by having this um privilege taken away from them. So uh I don't know how that's going to manifest itself. It'll be interesting. And you touched on uh before I went back into all that, you touched on um sort of the implications of uh educational use of social media and content, yeah. And the the key thing, yeah, I guess the key tool here is YouTube, and uh sort of you know, we were holding our breath thinking, okay, we're quite happy for you to ban Facebook and X and um Instagram and TikTok and those sort of things. You know, we're more than happy with that, and we were kind of holding our breath for the YouTube because a lot of our educational content is on YouTube, and they mentioned YouTube, and at that moment we were like, oh no, you know, all that educational content. But of course, it's not just us that uh are saying this is a problem, because a lot of schools out there, not just computer science, uh, not just those using Craig and Dave resources, but a lot of teachers use quite a lot of YouTube content because apart from all the dross and the comedy and everything else, there is some also some really good educational content on YouTube. It's just you have to know the channels and you have to go and find, you know, where that good really great educational content is there. And it is there. And a lot of educators are saying, this is terrible because you know, we've got some really great lessons, we've got some great activities, we've got some great interactions and conversations that we have with students, and the stimulus material is a video on YouTube, and there's nothing wrong with that because we've been showing videos to kids for donkey years, you know. It's not that video is the problem, it's that the tools in the platform are a problem. So people are suggesting that YouTube for kids is the answer because it's YouTube for kids, Craig. So, you know, just tick the box in YouTube. With a content creator that says this is suitable for kids and it'll appear in you.

SPEAKER_01 22:04

We looked at that though, didn't we, Dave? Not quite that easy. It's not. I mean, why why isn't it easy? Uh well, we one of the first things we looked at. Like, okay, they've mentioned YouTube, kids will be exempt. Brilliant. Oh, hang on. It's for up to 12-year-olds. Right. Brilliant. And it requires parents to set up profiles. Oh, um, okay. So it's just like that this is not working. I mean, our content starts at currently at Key Stage 4. Um, so 14, 15, 16. If we put an extra barrier past, I mean, even that's not the solution. It is worth saying here that there's been quite pushback on this particular issue of YouTube and educational content. And uh the government did last say, Oh, there'll be a narrowly defined list of exemptions. And it was, I mean, I'll just tell the story you you sent me. Uh, I spend my evening uh watching Netflix and playing computer games. Dave spends his evening reading the Times Educational Supplement. And um last night you were reading there, and our name popped up. Uh, this wasn't a paid ad from Craig and Dave, and it was talking exactly about this ban. It was actually a uh an English, an international English school in guitar, I think. And they said this is a terrible idea. Our students, for example, access all sorts of educational content. One popular channel is Craig and Dave that covers exam board-specific material, and we're like, hey. So this is very actively being talked about. And uh, I do hope some common sense will prevail here, Dave, and the sledgehammer approach may um become a bit of a scalpel, and there will be some educational exemptions because again, you know, we live in the 24th century, we're in 2026, blocking all sensible learning and revision content from sites like YouTube. Uh, I just I think that's ridiculous when students find it much easier to consume information that that way, but uh we'll see. We are watching with bated breath, aren't we?

SPEAKER_00 24:06

And you YouTube for kids is very babyish. I mean, I um it is it is for kids, not for teenagers. Of course. I'm not criticizing it in that sense, but I created a parent profile, um, I attached a student account to it, I had to look at it from the student perspective because you know, at Craig and Dave, we are thinking what should we do with our video content, and maybe YouTube for kids is the answer. So I had I had to look at it, but I can I can imagine a 16-year-old looking at that and saying, I'm not using that. It is so babyish in in its interface and the videos that it's putting forward to students. Well, I say to students because it is intended for the kids, right? For younger children, and so you would expect it to be to be very babyish. Um you know, I think there's an opportunity here, Craig, without kind of spinning off into a completely new uh topic. One of the things that people have been criticizing the government for recently is that um, you know, companies in China and companies in America are holding all the cards. And we were so influential in the invention of computers and the World Wide Web and everything here in England that we have just we're now losing out uh in terms of being the you know, holding this technology in our own country. So why should we be at the whim of YouTube, which is um Google, which is in America, and they've got no incentive to change YouTube for kids to go past age 12, because you know their rules and regulations mean that um a child, in terms of you know, accessing that kind of media is up to the age of 12. And once you're 13, you off you go. So what we're finding is that legislation in the UK that has to be enforced here in the UK is dependent on the technology in companies in China and America, um, not exclusively, but broadly. And wouldn't it be so much better if we invented an English version of YouTube? And then we can do the things that we want to do with it to ensure that it is safe for kids, but it doesn't uh prevent educational content and all the rest of it. I mean, come on, government, you know, let's make our own versions of these tools. And there's a big argument at the moment about AI, because of course, here in England, we don't hold any cards with AI either. That's also in China and in America, and it's like, come on, we should be one of the big global players for AI here in England, and we're not.

SPEAKER_01 26:48

Yeah, I I know, very true. We could really talk about this and spin out, yes, how we kind of invented the the the internet and led on so many things, and now we seem to be taking a back seat, and indeed it's it's less governments now and more corporations. But of course, this is why governments are now pushing back as well, isn't it? Because they're saying, well, the corporations had too much power, we gave them plenty of chances, they didn't, so we're gonna come in now and legislate. But uh oh, so many problems and issues.

SPEAKER_00 27:15

Yeah. My point is the innovation and the and the financing, it's not here in England. You know, we're talking about trying to build our economy. Well, yes, I accept that we maybe we don't want to nationalise social media and YouTube and things like that. I'm you know, I fully accept that maybe that's not the greatest idea, you know, to create a a BBC of social media, for example. Um, but we can still attract the investment into UK companies to create some of this stuff and become a market competitor here in this country. That's what I'm saying. Anyway, look, we're going well off the point now. I know we are. So I'm gonna stop there.

SPEAKER_01 28:01

Yes, this is what Dave does, but it's fine, it's because it it has so many implications. I do want to finish with with one question though, Dave. And you know, schools and school leaders will be sitting there thinking about what do I need to do in CPD sessions and insets for teachers here? What training do I need to deliver? And we're gonna have to wait till the dust settles a little bit and have a look. But there's already people speaking about the sort of things which staff are gonna need to become aware of in in order to keep students safe. And there's an interesting quote here I want to read you uh by I actually can't pronounce the first name. I think it's Dia Dugbridge, safeguarding specialist on the education. Dia Debridge, I think. Oh, thank you. At the law firm Brown Jacobson, and they say banning specific social media channels will likely lead to children finding new online environments to spend their time in, with unregulated virtual game channels, already prominent spaces, and having potential for even greater popularity. So you can ban a list, but but students will still find ways to interact, and they could be less regulated platforms. So, you know, this safeguarding, which I very foolishly glibly earlier said we're covering our backs, of course it's not that. This is a real thing, and the training for teachers will need to shift, and you know, um senior leaders and safeguarding leaders will need to think about it's not it, this has never just been on a computer science teacher. Every teacher's gonna need to be uh aware of where the stuff will move. I think the utopia, Dave, if I'm being really honest, that the day the social media ban comes up, we can open our windows and see millions of children running outside in the fields on their bikes and playing football and meeting their friends outside. Uh and um, you know, it will stop. I don't think that will happen. It's going to be a lot trickier. We live in an age where this stuff is here. Um, so I think there's going to be a lot of friction to come and a lot of difficult decisions for governments to make and um a tough time again for schools implementing this and keeping young people safe. I don't think this is going to be smooth, is what I'm trying to say. Any final thoughts from you? Otherwise, because we could talk about this as we do on most topics for hours.

SPEAKER_00 30:16

Well, schools are going to need clear guidance from the government, they're going to need to know what is expected of them and what they should do in certain situations so that there isn't unnecessary workload, uh, particularly on designated safeguard leads, but also on tutors and uh all the teachers in the school. We need to know what we're doing, we need to know how we're doing it, we need to be uh well supported without um increasing our workload. So that's what needs to happen. Let's see what actually does happen. In the meantime, what do you think? Do you think this is going to be a challenge for your school? Um, what are going to be the implications in your school? Or do you think actually we're just overblowing the whole affair and it won't be a problem at all? We're interested in your comments as always, so uh please put them in the video below.

SPEAKER_01 31:05

Well, as always, we'll keep an eye on this topic as it involves, and we always have an opinion, and we will bring it to you. We'll see you at another at the chalk face soon. Bye bye for now, everyone.