ABOUT COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: Community Connections is a lesson collection designed for adult learners and community colleges, with the goal of inspiring student civic action. This might be respectful debate or conversation about a local issue, planning a community event, or a creative project that helps connect local, national and global issues.

To use this lesson: First, watch the video and answer the questions below as a warm up. Next, choose one or more of the activities under "Take Action" that best fits your classroom. Or, use the segment above to inspire your own original classroom activities — the spirit of these lessons is to connect current events to actions that make your community a better place for everyone!

SUMMARY

The debate over social media use by teens is raging on. In the U.S., Meta and Google were just handed back-to-back losses in lawsuits against them. Germany is looking to ban social media, or at least make it harder to access, for young people, something Australia did last year. From Berlin, special correspondent Malcolm Brabant reports on warnings from psychologists for the younger generation.

View the transcript of the story.

News alternative: Check out recent segments from the NewsHour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.

WARM-UP QUESTIONS

1. Where (what country) does this segment examine?
2. Why do some teens feel sad or depressed after using social media, according to the three girls interviewed for this story and their teacher?
3. How many hours do under-14s spend online each day in Germany (see here for stats in the U.S.)?
4. What are some of the arguments for and against social media bans for children and teenagers included in this story?
5. When did Australia ban social media for young children and teens?

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

• Do you support a ban on social media for young children and teenagers or think these age groups should be made to use it less? Why or why not?
• What do you think would be the most effective measures for limiting the harms of social media on young children and teens?
• Do you think more legislation (i.e. fixing the algorithms or how the companies feed you certain content) needs to be passed that make social media companies take more responsibility for how teens use their platforms? Explain.

Media literacy: News Hour's Malcolm Brabant states: "This 21st century version of prohibition is a timely subject for the English class of teacher Dhara Chaikh." Why do you think Brabant makes the analogy of social media bans to alcohol bans of the 1920s? Do you think it's an accurate comparison? Explain.

TAKE ACTION

Use these guidelines to discuss the Constitution and the First Amendment — should social media bans by states be allowed, or do they violate the First Amendment?

You might also use this guide for a debate about the subject.

Watch the video below to learn more about how Australia's social media ban is impacting young children and teenagers and their families. Australia was the first country to implement a ban last year, setting an example that other nations are now closely monitoring.

• How has social media has impacted your life or someone you know?
• What do you think could be done to prevent teens from workarounds that still allow them to access social media sites?
• What should the role of parents/guardians be in the social media use of their children?
• Do you think programs teaching families about media literacy or digital literacy would be helpful?

This project was funded under the 2024 Leonore Annenberg Civic Mission of the Nation Initiative, sponsored by the Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics. LAIC is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.

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