When we talk about the negative aspects of the internet, the national conversation almost always gravitates toward teenagers.

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We picture the moody adolescent locked in a bedroom, scrolling through TikTok or falling prey to Instagram’s filtered perfection. But as a Headteacher in rural Herefordshire, I am all too aware that the frontline has shifted. The digital tide has reached the feet of our youngest children and it is reshaping their reality before they’ve even mastered their times tables.

Since the pandemic, the hybrid working revolution has brought the world into our living rooms. While this has offered flexibility for families, it has also quietly extended the "connected hours" of our children. At Bosbury, we see the results of this every single morning.

The benefits of technology are undeniable and as educators, we embrace them. From AI-driven speech-to-text tools that empower our SEN pupils to the way rural isolation is bridged by online communities, the "digital classroom" is a marvel. But there is a heavy price to pay for this progress.

We have begun to notice a........

© LBC