Starting Point are pleased to be working with Tameside Council, exploring young people’s experiences of life online. Together, we are working with different groups of young people to explore the good, the bad, and the ugly of being online, from creativity and connection to online harms and digital safety.
This week we held our first exploration session with the LGBTQ youth group, and what a fab group of people to get to work with and get to know.
The aim of the session was simple: start conversations. Where does technology show up in young people’s lives? How does it shape their friendships, creativity and identity? And what impact does it have on the way they experience the world?
We kicked things off with a fun icebreaker activity involving ten mobile phones from across the years. Not smartphones: really old phones. Think classic Nokia bricks, the kind you could play Snake on.
The challenge was to put them in age order. The group did brilliantly, placing the Nokias at the one end and more recent iPhone models at the other end of the timeline. One discovery that surprised people was that only one of the phones had a front-facing camera. This sparked a great conversation about life before selfies, something that felt almost unimaginable to some of the people in the room.
From there the discussion moved onto a deceptively simple question: what actually counts as social media? The group debated whether apps like WhatsApp should be considered social media. While platforms like WhatsApp aren’t included in places such as Australia’s proposed under-16 social media ban, many young people felt it does count, especially since the introduction of features like stories.
We also explored whether dating apps should be considered social media, a conversation that will become particularly important as we continue working with the group and thinking about how young people navigate online spaces and relationships.
We also ran a series of “truth questions”, simple yes or no questions followed by open discussion. One question was:
“Have you ever deleted a post because it didn’t get enough likes?”
Many of the adult in the room admitted this wasn’t something we had ever thought about doing. But nearly every young person in the room said they had.
This led to a really honest conversation about social validation, pressure online, and the different ways young people experience social media compared to previous generations.
We ended the session with one final question:
“If you could tell adults one thing about how you use technology, what would it be?”
The answers were thoughtful, honest and incredibly insightful.
Some of the things the group shared included:
- “Just because I socialise online doesn’t mean I can’t socialise face-to-face.”
- “Just because I don’t want you to see my screen doesn’t mean I have something to hide.”
- “Sometimes adults are transferring their fears about the online world onto us.”
There was also an interesting discussion about the age young people receive their first phone. Many felt that around 13 felt right, even though most said they actually received their first phone around 11.
This session was just the beginning. Over the coming weeks we’ll be spending more time with the group exploring a wide range of topics, including:
- What does someone who works in tech look like? Challenging unconscious bias about careers in technology
- The creative side of being online
- Podcasting and storytelling, giving young people a platform to share their voices
- Silent Disco – exploring music, identity and how we find our communities online
- Defining social media, through the eyes of young people
- Debating online policies, including whether national governments have it right when it comes to potential social media bans
We’re really excited to continue these conversations and learn from young people themselves about what life online really looks like today.
If the first session is anything to go by, we’re in for some fascinating discussions ahead. Thanks to everyone who got involved, and Chloe for bring the snacks!