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The Digital Habits Among Tweens and Teens - A Report By NexSchools

Digital Habits Of Teens and Tweens - A Study Report by NexSchools Research Center
The study was conducted during NexSchools launch of the first Cyber Safety Awareness Week 1-7 December 2021 dedicated to Schools in India. Read all about - Impact of Cyber Safety Awareness Week 2021

Research study on The Digital Habits Among Tweens and Teens released by the NexSchools explores the use of the internet, device sharing within a family, screen time and online life by 8 to 18 years old.

The study was conducted in two age groups- tweens 8 to 12 years and teens 13 to 18 years. The objectives were to know more about their digital lives surrounding online classes, gadget use, social media and online safety know how.

The findings of this study will be used by NexSchools for developing educational resources and projects for empowering schools, parents, educators and children for the ever evolving challenges from the cyber world. The research is open for everyone to use and will be available on NexSchools.com. For more details or queries contact us

Summary of the Study

Findings show that young children and teens relationship with technology is positive, yet complicated.

Our children are confident users of the technology, they understand the crucial role of online safety and use of technology responsibly yet there is a clear gap in execution.

The study also shows that tweens and teens know less about creative ways to spend time online and mostly they are absorbers of information.

Their online activities revolve around online school work, YouTube video viewing and online games.

80% tweens are not using social media but most teens enjoy being on the social media and report feeling happier while using it.

Only 14% of tweens prefer in person communication while it is slighly higher at 34% of teens.

WhatsApp is the favourite communication app among teens and tweens.

Most children are sharing smartphones with their parents and among the two - mothers’ smartphones are mostly used by tweens and teens.

“Children show a positive relationship with the technology, they are enthusiastic to reap benefits from digital lives but they still need right foundation and support to do so,” said Mradula Singh, Founder of NexSchools. Responses on safety questions and social media use show the awareness about digital citizenship, but a lot more work is required when it comes to equipping them with the right knowledge to use safety tools, self-expression and engage in more creative ways to spend time on technology.”

What does our survey say?

When it comes to online safety this is what children said:

49% turn on the location services option

45% do not mind meeting online acquaintances in person

20% share their email address on social media

70% of children use WhatsApp and YouTube making them the most used online platforms

11% have been stalked in chat room, messenger or WhatsApp

14% experienced cyberbullying or harassment online

Privacy Setting

Teens and tweens both reported positive attitudes towards safeguarding their personal information.

Teens reported having control over privacy settings on social media and messaging apps. 80% of teens have a private account on Instagram and teens control privacy settings in messaging apps like Discord and Twitch.

It is important to distinguish that children care more about social privacy than in the context of the rapidly growing of third-parties linking of apps and websites, big data information privacy and ever evolving modern vulnerabilities and risks to privacy heightened in recent times.

NexSchools asked several questions to understand how much they know about privacy settings and their impact on their online lives.

Do You know about privacy Settings?

72% of teens know about privacy setting

17% don’t know

11% say they don’t need it

Favourite means of communication

53% prefer WhatsApp

8% Social Media

8% Texting

31% In person

Photo Sharing on Social Media

6% share photos weekly online

19% share photos only monthly

23% have shared less than 10 photos online

There is a strange spike in cyber grooming and stalking along with cyberbullying during the pandemic outbreak. Wide-scale protection against such activities relies on cultivating deep understanding and awareness of cyber security, a foundation for cyber safety best practices and continuous development pathways to educate children on the part of all the stakeholders – parents, schools, community and government.

In the survey Tweens and teens showed an inclination to learn more about how to stay safe online and the best ways to utilise their time on screen.

100% of teens and tweens want to enrol for Cyber Safety Courses

80% of children found NexSchools online safety sessions excellent and 95% of children want to learn more or join Cyber Warrior Student Ambassadors’ community.

The study was conducted during NexSchools launch of the first Cyber Safety Awareness Week 1-7 December 2021 dedicated to Schools in India.

18 in 1000 schools responded to the awareness campaign.

The Campaign got an overwhelming response from parents, children and youth, some corporate, educators and community leaders which has got it listed as top of the Google Search Results and as a category in the Google Image Search in the Category – Cyber Safety Awareness Impact in Schools.

Mradula Singh, Founder & CEO of NexSchools and Conceptualiser of the Campaign #HSIWeek2021 and Happier & Safer Internet -A Project, says:

All of us are dependent on the cyber world today, the pandemic outbreak has completely changed this landscape. Everyone regardless of age, are exposed to various security risks when spending significant time online on the internet.

Happier and Safer Internet Week gives us this exceptional opportunity to collectively endorse online safety, respect and empathy, empower young people together to reap the benefits as well as be creative and support them to build positive online experiences for everyone.

It is incredible to see this reflected on the first Cyber Safety Awareness Week with so much support from everyone to raise awareness and empower young people.

It will be invigorating to see every child and youth feels equipped and empowered to make the right choices online- be it on social media platforms, online gaming websites or messaging apps. We invite everyone to come and join hands with #HSIWeek2022.

It is a great opportunity for schools to work with students to educate, empower them to lead and participate in the Happier and Safer Internet campaign and help create a positive environment in schools and communities. If your school wants to be a part of this campaign then do not hesitate to contact us.