More than a quarter (27%) of children in Romania spend over six hours a day online, according to a study by Save the Children Romania. But this number is valid for school days, as the share increases to over 48% if it’s weekend or vacation.

The children who spend a lot of time online are more dissatisfied with the relationship with their parents, friends and teachers, as well as with their lives, the same study revealed, according to local Mediafax. They are also less optimistic about the future.

“Nearly 99% of children between 12 and 19 have profiles on at least one social network, one in two suffers from various types of online bullying. It is important that they also have the right to protection in the online environment, and the parents have to pass the right information to them,” said Gabriela Alexandrescu, executive president of the Save the Children Organization.

Meanwhile, another report on Internet use by children revealed that nearly a quarter of Romanian children say they have been victims of cyberbullying, a phenomenon that has doubled in the last ten years, Mediafax informed. The percentage increased from 12% in 2013 to 23% in 2018, according to Monica Barbovschi, a sociologist researcher who was part of the team behind the EU Kids Online Report 2018. According to her, the number of cases of offline bullying in schools has been on a downtrend while the cases of cyberbullying have been increasing.

“Of those reporting that they have been victims of bullying, one in four is the victim of cyberbullying at least once a month, the most common form being sending malicious or offensive messages,” Barbovschi said.

Romanian minister: pupils can keep their smartphones in schools, but use them right

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