The number of families who want to delay the purchase of their children's first mobile phone keeps increasing with each passing minute. It is as it is reflected every time the page of the Telegram group “Adolescence free of mobile”, created only three days ago, in which thousands of mothers and fathers have joined together to postpone, in a consensual manner, the delivery of the smartphone until the age of 16.
This group is the one with the most followers, but not the only one. WhatsApp and Telegram groups have already been created for each district of Barcelona, as well as in localities outside the city, such as Sant Cugat, Cardedeu or Sant Feliu de Llobregat, among others. The interest has gone beyond the province of Barcelona and there are already the same initiatives in other geographical areas, such as Girona and Lleida.
"Following the Telegram group, families have started to spontaneously create more local groups and to replicate the initiative," explains Xavier Casanovas, father of three and one of the spokespersons for AFA Poblenou, to La Vanguardia. The WhatsApp group in this neighborhood was what sparked the movement, which other families from other cities had already started some time ago, and it grabbed the attention of the entire media agenda.
Now, this group has turned into a Telegram group - with almost 7,000 participants - in which families from all over Catalonia have come together to question the real need to give minors a smartphone, join synergies and propose joint actions.
"There are many more people concerned about all this than we could imagine", Casanovas expresses with enthusiasm. At the same time, this parent also states that there is a lot of debate about the learning methodology using screens in classrooms. However, they want to continue to emphasize their main goal: to delay the age of the smartphone.
For this reason, the Poblenou AFA committee is just preparing a survey aimed at families in the district to find out how many would be willing to avoid buying a mobile phone for their children at the age of 12, when it coincides with the change of educational stage and, often, school center.
The coordinator of AFA de Gràcia, in Barcelona, has prepared a meeting on December 11 at Espai Jove La Fontana, after a survey was distributed at the end of October to find out the opinion of families. As Marta Hernández, a member of the coordinator, told this newspaper: "70% of families in the neighborhood are in favor of delaying mobile phones until the age of 16".
"It will be a talk in which we will announce the results of the survey and specialists such as the psychologist Francisco Villar (expert in suicidal behavior and supporter of extending the age) will come, as well as families with children aged 14-15 who have not succumbed to social pressure to explain their experience", explains Marta Hernández. This mother has two daughters, the eldest is 11 years old and next year she will have to change schools to start secondary school. "I hope that next year we will be able to reduce this social pressure and work together so that no minor feels excluded or the rare one in the class because they don't have a mobile."
After the outbreak, aFFaC – federated associations of families of students in Catalonia – aims to help and accompany these self-managed proposals. "We must listen to these movements, and make political and legal decisions on the matter. Without regulation, the debate will always be open", explains Lidón Gasull, director of the federation, to this newspaper.
In turn, Gasull evaluates these movements very positively, given that families are "raising awareness of each other and have managed to put the debate on the table". In addition, the director said that they have already received the first reactions from the Barcelona Municipal School Board on this issue.
At aFFaC they are clear that any decision that is taken, at an institutional level, must be applicable to all. "First of all, we have to regulate from what age we think teenagers are capable of having a mobile phone and, once we are clear, we will be able to see from when educational centers can use them", explains Lidón Gasull .
For this reason, awareness, training and support are key, also from educational centres. "If teenagers can have mobile phones from any age, it makes no sense to ban them from schools, because these are precisely the places where we can sensitize them and teach them about responsible use. We would lose a great opportunity", he concludes.
