ChildWise: Children and the Internet

CHILDREN AND THE INTERNET

Introduction

This year sees Internet use reaching a tipping point among children, as among adults. In this article we look at some of the numbers behind children’s Internet use.

The Internet plays a central part in most children's lives. Going online is now very much a mainstream activity, enjoyed by the majority of children, especially once they reach secondary school. But even among primary age children, the Internet is fast becoming the medium of choice, displacing TV in children’s allegiance.

Data from the ChildWise Monitor survey 2005-06 shows that more than three quarters of all children aged 5-16 go online, and that by the age of 11+ almost all (94%) are doing so.

School was the original driver in Internet use, but the days when it was the most likely place for children to have access to the Internet are long gone. As part of the Monitor survey, we asked children where they go online, including whether or not they do so in their own room. A third of children use the Internet at school, but quality and quantity of online use is now closely correlated with having Internet access at home.

Whilst Internet access at home is high and growing, it is still far from universal. Just over seven in ten children (71%) can connect to the Internet at home in some way or another. This rises with age, but some still miss out – whilst more than four in five children aged 11+ are connected at home (84%), this still leaves around one in six who are not (16%).

The main concerns in the past related to what children were doing on the Internet and the dangers to which they were being exposed. As Internet use becomes established, this is increasingly something that parents take in their stride. Attention must now turn to the divide between those who have easy access to the Internet and those who do not. With so much project work being carried out using Internet research and even online teaching tools, children are disadvantaged educationally if they do not have easy access to the Internet. But they are also disadvantaged socially as more leisure pursuits shift online.

Internet use - key sub groups

From the Monitor data we distinguished three groups of online users, based on their ease of access to the Internet. These groups show some interesting differences in online behaviour.

Family Users are by far the largest group. These children access the Internet at home but not in their own room. They comprise almost two thirds of 5-16 year olds who go online (64%), equivalent to almost half of all 5-16 year olds. This group includes children across the whole age range, with a profile similar to the average. The majority go online several times a week.

Around a quarter of online users (26%) are Independent Users, enjoying Internet access at home in their own room. This is equivalent to one in five of all school aged children. This group is weighted towards the oldest children, especially 15-16 year olds, reflecting their increased workload, spending power and desire for privacy. By the age of 15-16, almost two in five of all boys are independent users (39%), and a third of the same aged girls (34%). This group use more frequently than the average – the majority go online every day, and almost all use at least once a week.

Parental guidance on safe Internet use recommends locating access in a shared family space, so it is reassuring that the proportion of Independent Users remains relatively small in number, in comparison with those who are Family Users, particularly for younger children. Economic considerations will also affect this, with parents unwilling or unable to pay the extra costs involved. However, it does suggest that many parents take seriously the need to be aware of what their children are doing on the Internet, keeping Internet access public for as long as possible.

The final group is those children who are Using Elsewhere. Around one in ten online users don't have Internet access at home but are finding ways round this, going online at school, at friends' or relatives' houses or in libraries. This group is weighted towards children of secondary age. On average, children in this group go online just once or twice a week. This will include school-related use, but also recreational.

Those who don’t have the Internet at home inevitably miss out to some extent. As we illustrate below, our Monitor data shows a far narrower repertoire of Internet use among this group than among their home-surfing counterparts. This sense of missing out, not just in their work but also socially, is also reflected in the recent LSE study 'UK Children Go Online', in which one girl comments poignantly:

"We should have time in our computer lesson if we want to find out something, like, the other kids have been talking about … I haven’t got the Internet at home. So if you want to go and see what they’re all talking about, you can go on it then." (Girl, 10)

Many schools recognise the importance of this, and offer the opportunity to use the Internet for fun as well as schoolwork. School libraries are re-born as resource centres, taking on a new role in children’s lives. But the range of sites is generally more restricted, and children can’t enjoy the same degree of freedom or spontaneity as the experience at home.

Online activities and websites

Children's main activities online are games, homework, music and communication (email and instant messaging). Boys are the most likely to play games online, especially at primary age, whilst girls, especially the oldest, are the most interested in communicating –using email and instant messaging. Use of the Internet for homework increases with age among both boys and girls. One in five of all 7-16 year olds spontaneously say that they download music.

Users who can only access the Internet elsewhere have a limited range of activities, mainly games, homework and getting information. Independent Users, surfing in the privacy of their own room, without the need to share, have the widest repertoire of activities. They are especially likely to be downloading music, using email and trading on eBay.

Film and television websites are by far the most popular type of website visited, followed by games websites, then joke and humourous sites. The BBC dominates children's choices of website favourites – the CBBC site tops the list for younger children, whilst the main BBC site appeals to older users. Other TV-related sites such as Cartoon Network, Disney and MTV also figure prominently, as do Google, MSN, Hotmail and eBay.

Family Users are especially likely to name a film or television, humourous or games website as their favourite, perhaps reflecting the shared nature of their online activities.

Trading

As part of the Monitor survey, we asked specifically about use of eBay. We found that a quarter of all 7-16 year olds have bought things on eBay, whilst around one in ten have also used it to sell.

Trading on eBay is closely correlated with having home, and particularly their own, Internet access. Around half of those who have sold on eBay are Independent Users with a connection in their own room. Not surprisingly, very few children are trading on eBay, especially selling, if they can only use the Internet elsewhere (such as at school).

"I have bought and sold clothing, car parts, mobile phones, records, a printer and perfumes." (Boy, 14-15)

"I bought a present for my Mum's birthday. My auntie paid for it and I gave her the cash." (Girl, 9-10)

We know from qualitative research that children appreciate the opportunity to turn their unwanted possessions into cash, but also enjoy the more anarchic and unconventional items offered. Boys we spoke to talk about writing stories and offering these for sale on eBay.

Online Publishing

Children are unfazed by the idea of web publishing, especially as relates to communicating with friends and with music and picture sharing. They are now taking advantage of the increased availability of blogging, messaging and photo publishing sites which need very little technical skill to set up and maintain.

As part of the Monitor survey, we asked all 7-16 year olds with access to the Internet whether they have their own website. One in six said they do, equivalent to 14% of all 7-16 year olds, double the level recorded in 2002.

Children use their websites to share or keep in touch with friends, to express a special interest, to share their pictures or even to showcase their own business. Almost all of those with their own website have Internet access at home, especially in their own room.

“I set my website up because my friends have one, It’s about me – but no personal details. My friends from majorettes come in” (Girl, 11-12 years)

“I set it up so my friends know what’s going on, to socialise. It’s got pictures of me and my friends and events. My friends visit it, and I update it every month” (Boy, 13-14 years)

Conclusion

The Internet is fast supplanting TV as the central axis in children’s lives. It holds no fears for children of school age, most of whom use it as part of their regular activities, if not daily then at least as frequently as other activities in their regular routine. In the same way as for adults, the Internet 'is' many things to them, encompassing work and friends, and for relaxation, as a source of interesting material to laugh and have fun with.

Because the Internet has now become so routine, assumed universal, there is a danger that those without Internet access are left to fall further behind, both educationally and socially, with no encouragement to join in. Much marketing activity now focuses on the fun and speed of online access (for example, adverts emphasising faster downloads on Broadband, or connection packages with digital TV included) and on leisure activities, such as booking cheap flights and holidays.

Virtually no mainstream marketing activity is geared towards families or children. Perhaps what is urgently needed are some more basic but essential messages - and financial support or price reductions - to convince all families with school age children that they need to find a way of getting comfortable and regular online access, or their children will miss out. Whilst extra curricular access at school is going some way to meet this need, it is harder to foster general internet competence and familiarity in the same way that can be achieved at home.

References

ChildWise Monitor, 2005-6

UK Children Go Online, Livingstone, S. and Bober, M, LSE, April 2005

http://www.children-go-online.net

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