Children’s participation rights are a core topic for Project Participate.
From classrooms to dinner tables, conversations around children and smartphones are everywhere. Children today are growing up in a digital world- not as passive recipients, but active participants. They learn, connect, express, and play online. Yet, when it comes to decisions about digital technology, their voices are too often left out in shaping the digital world they are part of.
Despite global recognition of children’s participation rights, particularly through the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the policies and practices frequently reflect adult concerns more than children’s lived experiences. Take, for instance, the recent smartphone ban in schools. The ban came in as a way to deal with concerns about school performance, too much screen time, online bullying, and children’s mental health, and many parents were on board with the idea. But beneath this well-meaning effort lies a critical oversight: children’s right to participate, express themselves, and have agency in digital spaces. Were their digital experiences, needs, or insights even considered?
Children’s Participation Rights Are Not Optional
The UNCRC Article 12 clearly states that children have the right to express their views freely in all matters affecting them, and that those views should be given due weight. This isn’t a symbolic gesture; it’s a legal and moral obligation. Article 13 goes even further: children have the right to seek and receive information through any medium of their choice, including digital ones. That doesn’t mean every child needs TikTok. But it does mean we shouldn’t make sweeping decisions without engaging the people they affect most.
And yet, when it comes to digital policies, whether about phone use, screen time, parental control, or online safety, adult voices dominate. Children are frequently framed as vulnerable, impulsive, and in need of protection, while their capacities for agency, self-regulation, and reflection are downplayed or ignored. This mindset, deeply rooted in developmental assumptions and moral panics about youth and technology, undermines children’s rights to participate, to be heard, and to influence decisions that shape their everyday lives.
Digital Opportunities: Why Access Matters
When we remove devices without providing meaningful alternatives or guidance, we limit children’s chances to develop digital literacy that is increasingly essential in modern life. While much of the public debate focuses on the dangers of children being online, it’s important not to overlook the vast opportunities the digital world offers. Children use digital media to learn new skills, collaborate with peers globally, and explore their identities. Whether it’s coding a game, creating art on a tablet, joining climate activism on social media, or finding a supportive community, the digital world allows young people to be more than just consumers- they can be creators, problem-solvers, and active citizens. To truly uphold children’s rights, we need to ensure that they can benefit from the full spectrum of digital opportunities.
Yes, There Are Risks Online – But Exclusion Is Not the Solution
There is no denying that the online world presents genuine risks for children, including exposure to harmful content, cyberbullying, privacy violations, and screen overuse. However, shielding children by limiting access without building their capacity to understand and navigate these risks does little to help them in the long term. It also sends the message that children are passive recipients rather than active digital citizens capable of learning, adapting, and making informed choices. In fact, excluding children from digital spaces as a form of protection may actually increase their vulnerability by denying them opportunities to develop digital citizenship and agency. Rather than prioritizing protection through control alone, we need to balance it with participation and empowerment, teaching children how to manage risks and giving them a voice in decisions that shape their digital lives.
Phone Bans Alone Fall Short, Says University of Birmingham
A recent study by the University of Birmingham sheds light on the limited effectiveness of blanket phone bans in schools. While these policies may support classroom concentration in the short term, the research found no significant benefits for academic performance or overall well-being.
Smartphones are not just tools for distraction. They are also tools for creativity, self-expression, social connection, and learning. In other words, banning them wholesale isn’t just about screen time. It’s about removing a child’s access to public space in a digital age. What they need is guidance, not exclusion. Dialogue, not silence. And most importantly, a seat at the table where the rules are made. Let’s stop framing digital childhoods solely in terms of risk and start recognizing the importance of rights, agency, and participation.
Instead of asking “How do we keep children away from harm?”, perhaps the better question is “How can we support children to navigate risks while building their participation rights?”
More from Project Participate
Rethinking Childhood in the Digital Age
Unpacking Digital Authority: Are Adults Always Right?
Children’s Voices in Online Safety: Moving Beyond Protection
Digital Literacy as a Right: Empowering Young Digital Citizens
