Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley’s call to regulate young people’s use of social media and artificial intelligence has come in for high praise from the island’s secondary school principals, who are warning that such guardrails are now needed as a matter of urgency.
President of the Barbados Association of Principals of Public Secondary Schools (BAPPSS), Robin Douglas, said educators on the frontlines were already seeing the consequences of unregulated digital exposure among teenagers, making the Prime Minister’s intervention both necessary and overdue.
“This is extremely necessary . . . an extremely necessary step for us to take in an effort to safeguard our youth and their development,” Douglas said.
Speaking against the backdrop of growing concern about the impact of social media on adolescents, he said schools were increasingly dealing with the emotional and behavioural fallout from what students were exposed to online.
“All research indicates that social media exposure for developing minds . . . can have some serious negative effects and within the school system, we see this persistently,” the Combermere principal said.
Mottley, speaking at the launch of the Young People’s Village at Holder’s, St James last Saturday, warned that young people across the world were becoming increasingly shaped by what they consumed online, often comparing themselves to unrealistic images and standards.
She said many were left feeling “rudderless and not rooted”, as technology blurred the line between reality and illusion and chipped away at their mental well-being.
The Prime Minister also cautioned that social media had, in many cases, turned children into “addicts of the screen” rather than empowering them, adding that Barbados had already started to take steps at the national level, with Cabinet engaging in discussions and training on artificial intelligence. “Our Government is very, very clear . . . regulation is absolutely necessary to ensure that there is balance and fairness in this space,” she said. Douglas painted a picture of conflicts that no longer ended when the school bell rang, but instead followed students home and back again, fuelled by constant interaction on digital platforms. “We do see these negative results in our schools, with children using these devices as an avenue to maintain conflict or continue conflict outside of the guidance and the guardrails of teachers,” he said.
He added that young people were now navigating a complex online world where they were exposed to harmful influences and competing value systems, often without the maturity to process them.
“Our children now have access to other value systems that may go against what we want for society or what we want in our schools,” Douglas said.
Learning and research
While acknowledging that technology had its benefits for learning and research, he said it was unrealistic to expect young people to always use it responsibly without guidance.
“It is human nature . . . especially for youth,” he said, noting that many gravitated towards less constructive uses.
Douglas was quick to stress that the conversation was not about banning technology but about putting structure around how it was used.
“We’re not talking about reducing technology access whatsoever. We’re talking about having the kind of guidelines . . . so that it is a controlled exposure that develops our youth in the correct direction,” he said.
He also called for wide consultation before any policy was implemented, bringing together educators, parents, policymakers and other stakeholders to ensure solutions were grounded in research and local realities.
“We need to consult with everyone involved . . . and make the right decision,” he added.
Immediate past president of BAPPSS Stephen Jackman agreed, saying schools were already seeing clear evidence that social media was fuelling disputes among students.
“The evidence suggests that a lot of the conflict is fuelled by what happens in the social media space,” Jackman said.
He explained that many physical altercations among students could be traced back to online exchanges that escalated tensions.
“The fights between teenagers, a lot of them start with things that are posted and comments that are made in the social media space,” he pointed out.
Jackman said the solution was in striking a balance, allowing young people to benefit from technology while protecting them from its downsides.
“We have to be able to counterbalance it by giving them the tools to discern how best to use that social media space,” he said.
He suggested that any framework should include “strict guardrails”, age limits, parental involvement and clear rules governing online content.
Both educators acknowledged that Barbados’ young people must be prepared to compete in a global, technology-driven economy, while insisting that early, unregulated exposure could do more harm than good.
“That does not mean that they should be allowed to have unfettered access at an early age,” Douglas said.
For him, the issue ultimately came down to guidance, ensuring that young people were not left to navigate the digital world alone.
“We have to find ways to help them navigate these spaces so that they are better at conflict resolution and better at interacting with each other,” he said. (CLM)
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