By Olabode Hamzat

Social media are online platforms and websites that allow people to create, share, and interact with content with other people in real time.

Viewing it in the context of unrestricted access to social media nowadays, my answer or reaction to the question would be affirmative because social media has its merits, demerits, contributions, and effects in a positive way and the other way round, which is negative in shaping or influencing the life and way of life of children.

Children in a generic sense are supposed to be watched over, pay close attention to their behaviour and activities done, and make amendments where necessary and compulsory as a parent because it is what they learn at that early stage of life that probably become part of their life for life, whether it is the right or wrong thing, and as a parent, paying close attention and making necessary corrections will really shape who they become in the nearest future, as they would also become parents one day and verily pass the good and valuable knowledge onto their wards too.

These are all what parents must watch out for and pay close attention to, to make amendments where necessary in children. Social media is a world on its own where different people of different worlds, views, principles, activities, and engagement all collide or come in contact to gain from one another, and all these are found in the form of right and wrong as not all things found on social media are right, infact, majority of what are found on the media nowadays are totally wrong in all spheres in which it is very easy for children to grasp more than the right ones.

Children do not even know what is right or wrong on social media, but as parents, enlightening them on the pros and cons of social media will really go a long way in having a positive impact on their lives, especially children in their primitive or early stages of life.

All sorts of negative activities, such as promoting immorality and all, are the things that are very much easily adaptable to children because of the entertainment and short pleasure that can be derived from them, and how they are being displayed and portrayed for pleasure and pleasurable act ar easily emulative to children than educative or other necessary act that could really benefit them to stand out in the nearest future. In other words, they could not achieve that with pleasurable acts because that one is for short-term joy and satisfaction, and it reduces brain capacity reduces the level of their intelligence quotient as time passes by when not changed to the right and necessary ways.

All in all, parents and guardians should be actively available to watch, guide, and correct children about the ins and outs of social media.  In other words, children should have restricted access to social media and be fully monitored so as not to become addicted to social media by seeking pleasurable acts that are easily accessible.