South Korea, Iowa, New York, Finland Address Child Exploitation and School Cellphone Use

In South Korea, the number of child and teenage victims of sexual exploitation increased by 24.7% last year, reaching 1,187 individuals, with 1,169 being female. The age of victims is trending younger, with the number of children under 10 years old receiving support rising from one in 2023 to eight last year.

A significant portion of these victims, four out of ten, were targeted through online chat applications, highlighting a growing trend of digital sexual exploitation. Over the past five years, the number of victims who encountered perpetrators online has more than doubled. Notably, 64.1% of the perpetrators were known to the victims.

In Germany, a UNICEF study revealed that two-thirds of the population reject corporal punishment in child-rearing, yet one-third still consider a slap or a smack acceptable. This indicates a persistent challenge in changing societal attitudes towards physical discipline.

In Japan, approximately 20% of children with smartphones have interacted with strangers through social media or gaming platforms, according to a survey by Tokyo. Among high school students, this figure rises to 23.6%, marking a 9.4 point increase from last year's survey. This interaction has led to incidents where children have been threatened or felt the need to escape.

Several countries are implementing or considering policies to restrict cellphone use in schools. Finland has passed a law banning mobile devices during school hours starting next academic year, with exceptions for educational purposes. In the U.S., Iowa's Governor Kim Reynolds signed a law requiring public schools to ban cell phones during class time by July 1, following similar policies already in place in some districts. New York is also set to implement a 'bell to bell' cellphone ban in public schools starting this September.

In South Korea, over 60% of teachers reported conflicts with students over cellphone use during class, with 61% experiencing such conflicts. The majority of teachers believe that these conflicts are increasing, with 84.1% noting more disputes when students manage their phones autonomously. Additionally, 68.7% of teachers observed that students communicate more actively with peers when phones are collected. However, 67.7% of teachers have faced verbal abuse, 76.8% fear physical violence, and 22.9% have experienced physical violence during student guidance.