Kuldip Maity

It had started much before the COVID-19 pandemic, escalated during the lockdown, and is still rampant. Irrespective of age group, it is time to accept that the silent social media addiction pandemic has already started showing its harmful effects on and around us.

Over the past two decades, social media has revolutionized how we connect, communicate, and consume information. Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and WhatsApp have become integral to our daily lives, providing instant gratification and an endless stream of content. The long-lost friend can now be found through a single search on any one of the platforms. In short, social media has become an integral part of our daily lives, connecting us with friends, family, and even strangers worldwide and going the extra mile to create our persona in front of them.

Unfortunately, after the initial fascination, social media is turning out to be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it brings people closer, allowing them to share their lives, experiences, and opinions. But, social media is addictive and has detrimental consequences for our mental and physical well-being. The desire for likes, comments, and followers leads to a relentless pursuit of validation, fostering feelings of inadequacy, anxiety, and depression. This growing dependency on social media is becoming a new, uncontrolled menace that has silently crept into our society.

The compulsive behavior toward the use of social media is a grave concern that demands our immediate attention. Studies on the issue point out that, like all sorts of addiction, scrolling through the endless feed of posts and eagerly waiting for likes, shares, and comments on our own is often an addictive experience triggered by the release of dopamine, the brain's pleasure chemical. This cycle creates dependence, leading users to crave more time online, often neglecting real-life interactions and responsibilities.

We need to acknowledge that the impact of social media addiction can be far-reaching as it touches every aspect of our lives. Excessive screen time and sedentary behavior result in sleep disturbances, eye strain, and back or hip pain. The lack of real-world social interactions leads to feelings of isolation and a decline in overall health. Mentally, the constant comparison with idealized lives, sometimes even falsely portrayed on social media, erodes self-esteem and breeds dissatisfaction with one's life. This erosion of self-esteem often leads some people, especially children, to hurt themselves.

The worst part of this silent pandemic is that it is not confined to a particular age group: children often follow the examples of addicted parents or peers and slide down the slippery slope.

This trend disturbs me a lot. I am sure that many others like me also worry. Like me, maybe they are also left wondering what needs to be done. After all, we cannot ignore social media, but we must find a way of getting the best out of it without letting it control our lives.

Going back a couple of blogs, you will find me referring to a kid who had returned to India and used to put away chocolate wrappers in his pocket instead of littering the road. After a few years, the same kid started dropping the wrappers on the road with no feeling of guilt.

While writing the last two blogs on teaching cleanliness to our kids, I could not help wondering at the broader aspect of developing civic sense in them. Checking the secondary board syllabus of the two popular boards of India, I was disturbed to find only a few chapters hidden in Social Science in CBSE and History, Civics, and Geography in ICSE, that too mere narration of the structure of our governance system and our rights and responsibilities. A few quick calls disclosed that most of the time, the history teacher teaches the chapters! This is disheartening because irrespective of the stream the kid takes for higher studies, the child must develop a civic sense.

Civic means city or town and the word sense means being aware. Civic sense is thus an awareness of the norms of our society, like respect for the law and other members of the society, maintaining etiquette while dealing and interacting with others, and discharging our duties as citizens of the country. Only through our responsible behaviour and awareness can the nation achieve collective well-being. By instilling these values early in life, our schools will play a crucial role in grooming responsible citizens who contribute positively to their communities and the nation.

Let me take a few examples here.

One of the basic aspects of civic sense is to respect public infrastructure. Unfortunately, despite the Swachch Bharat campaign, littering, vandalism, and graffiti are common in India. Improving the civic sense lessons in schools can help children get a sense of ownership and responsibility towards public spaces.

India has a high rate of road accidents. Improving road safety is an urgent priority. But how many of us, even those with driving licenses, know the rules? Imparting knowledge about traffic rules, pedestrian safety, and responsible driving practices will teach these values from an early age. Our next generation will learn responsible behaviour on the roads and have respect for fellow commuters. Students who understand road safety regulations become careful drivers and pedestrians, contributing to a safer traffic environment.

While I mentioned that the school boards have a few chapters on the nation's governance structure, I am not sure if they are taught in the spirit in which they were framed. A strong democracy requires active citizen participation. Teaching civic sense in schools empowers students to grow and actively participate in the processes. Initiatives taken in the schools can encourage students to participate in social initiatives, community service, and local governance programs.

Education in developing civic sense should also include nurturing ethical values and social responsibility. Honesty, integrity, empathy, and respect for diversity, thus encouraging inclusivity and tolerance in schools, will lay the foundation for a harmonious society where individuals coexist peacefully.

But the responsibility does not end in school. Parents also have an active role to play here. After all, children primarily follow the example set by their parents.

In my last blog, we discussed the collective role of the sculptors of the next generation and today’s society in making this world a better place to live. As promised, this blog will be focused on how we may achieve the goal.

First, let us discuss leading by example. Children are highly observant and tend to mimic the behavior of their role models. Parents, teachers, and community leaders are crucial in setting an example. Without demonstrating responsible behavior, such as proper waste disposal, using public amenities with care, and respecting public spaces by not littering, we can never leave a lasting impact on cleanliness in young minds.

In schools, lessons and activities that teach students about environmental stewardship, waste management, and the importance of keeping their surroundings clean will help nurture young minds. Hands-on experiences such as organizing cleanliness drives within the school or maintaining a school garden can instill a sense of pride and responsibility in students for their environment. Making them a long-term engagement rather than a one-off event will help instill good habits in the young minds and nurture a lifelong commitment to civic responsibility.

Building awareness of cleanliness and civic sense requires a supportive environment reinforcing positive behavior. It is also essential to foster a sense of community ownership, where children participate in decision-making and are encouraged to voice their opinions, ideas, and concerns. Schools and communities can organize awards and certificates to celebrate their achievements.

Education on cleanliness and civic sense may be integrated into the school curricula. Incorporating these into subjects such as science, social studies, and moral education can help reinforce the importance of values in different aspects of life. Using case studies on successful cleanliness initiatives and responsible citizenship can inspire students to take similar actions. By emphasizing the real-life impact of efforts like helping the elderly, respecting traffic rules, or assisting in clean-up drives, children can see how their actions contribute to a larger positive change.

Children are naturally curious and eager to explore the world around them. Encouraging them to take part in initiatives that build a sense of ownership and pride in their surroundings is the best way for them to learn. While schools can try and build awareness on such aspects, let us also keep in mind the limited time they have in their already rigorous curricula.

Parents must involve their children in segregating household waste, watering plants or keeping their surroundings clean.

Share any ideas you have. We need ideas that can be implemented.

Let me share a story. Around ten years back, I had gone to meet a friend who had returned to India after a long stint in the USA. Their six-year-old son was born and brought up there. We went out for an evening, and I bought the kid a chocolate pack. The kid was well-behaved and opened the pack to share it with all of us. But that is not the story. What amazed me was his searching for nearby dustbins and putting the wrapper in his mother’s handbag because he couldn’t find any. To test him, I asked him to throw it away, on which he got very offended, saying that it would be littering our city.

Unfortunately, a few days back, I saw a kid throwing a packet in a garbage heap by the road. When I asked him why he had done that, he replied that everyone does it. He asked where to discard the trash if he was on the road.

The incident got me thinking. While government initiatives such as the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and events organized by NGOs and schools are extremely welcome in grooming our next generation, are we doing enough to nurture awareness and cultivate positive habits from an early age? Because only then can we empower the future generation to take pride in their surroundings and contribute to a more hygienic India.

Cleanliness and civic sense are mandatory for building any sustainable and progressive society. As the future custodians of our nation, children play a vital role in shaping India’s destiny. Only by instilling a strong sense of responsibility towards cleanliness and civic sense in young minds can we pave the way for a brighter and cleaner tomorrow. We must explore and highlight effective strategies to create a cleaner and more responsible generation.

But where do we start? Is it the responsibility of the government, the schools, and parents, or is it a collective responsibility of all of us as a society? Revisiting the story narrated earlier, imagine that the government ensures urban areas will have a dustbin every 100 meters, categorized by the type of waste. Are we sure we will take that few extra seconds to put the trash in the appropriate bin? The bigger question is, if we are caught between two bins, will we walk 10 meters to throw the trash in a bin? A bigger question will be how many days the bins will last before someone steals them.

Yes, we know that we have problems in our system and society. But should the children also suffer from these? How will change come? My approach would be to start doing things in parallel, i.e., create awareness and instill good habits in the children while we also take measures to fix the issues of society.

In the next blog, I will list a few ideas for cultivating a cleaner tomorrow and ask for your input/ideas on the topic.