The 6 Point quick guide on dealing with teenagers in the Facebook Era

If parenting and rocket science were competing as to which of them is tougher, rocket science would lose by a really large margin. Almost every parent would agree to this, especially parents with unmanageable hormonal teenagers living under their roof. Parenting has so many precious moments but it can also get difficult at times. In such moments wouldn’t you love to fall back on a manual or a handbook?

With the advancements in technology particularly the web and freely available knowledge of anything and everything it has become much more complicated to bring up a child.  But it also works in your favour. You can know more about your children and stay connected to them. Another brighter side to this Social media wave is a considerable reduction in the rate of the viewing of explicit material on the internet. At least now you know your child is just socializing and making good use of the internet.

But you are an adult and you know or in the least are expected to know how to use internet and social media responsibly.  But we cannot say the same about teenagers. Facebook use has increased drastically in the last few years.  Facebook Use by Teenagers in India has also considerably increased.

So, here is your quick guide to dealing with teenagers in this Facebook era.

1.       Have “the talk”

It is important to educate your children about Facebook and about whom to socialize with and where to draw the line.

2.       Educate yourself

First you need to know of it yourself. Read about Facebook or ask someone who is using it. Better yet, use it yourself.

3.       Assign hours

It is very easy to while away time when you are on Facebook. So depending on their age you can assign particular hours or timings for internet usage.

4.       Keep a check

It is important to keep a check on your child’s use of Facebook. This does not mean stalking them!! It only means being careful and cautious

5.       Stranger Alert

Tell them about privacy settings on Facebook and make sure they turn up the privacy settings to an all-time high at least till they are big enough to take care of themselves.

6.       Be Active

Be active on Facebook yourself. This way you will know that Facebook is not a child eating monster and you can be updated on your child’s life.

Facebook Use by Teenagers in India is sometimes detested by a lot of adults. This could be orthodox and baseless to some extent. But the teenagers need to know the difference between use and addiction. As parents all you can do is divert their spare time energy in the right direction and be friendly and not forceful.

Good Luck. Happy Parenting!