Connected children and teenagers help parents use the Internet, reveals TIC Kids Online Brasil

According to the survey, Brazil still has 4.8 million children and adolescents living in households without Internet access

Internet use by children and adolescents is increasing in Brazil. Their routine often includes helping parents with online activities – 29% of Internet users aged 9 to 17 helped their parents or guardians do something online every day or almost every day, while another 28% provided support at least once a week. Collected for the first time, the data is part of the TIC Kids Online Brasil 2019 survey, released today (June 23) by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br) through the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) of the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br).

Among the parents or guardians of children and adolescents aged 9 to 17 years, 80% reported talking to their children about online activities, 77% teach how to use the Internet safely, and 55% help with a task on the Internet that the child does not understand. In general, guidance activities are more directed at younger age groups: the number of parents or guardians who accompany activities in person, talking or participating in what the child is doing, was 75% for the population aged 9 to 10 years and 47% for the population aged 15 to 17 years.

“In this edition, besides indicators on parental mediation, the survey provides data on how young people offer help to parents or guardians. In this time of social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, family interaction regarding online activities becomes even more important. Seeking help from children can establish this crucial dialogue between parents and children about safe Internet use.” analyzes Alexandre Barbosa, manager at Cetic.br.

The survey also investigates possible risks to which children and adolescents are exposed on the Internet. The proportion of exposure to violent content was 27% among girls and 17% among boys. Differences were also identified in relation to content about ways to become very thin, reported by 21% of girls and 10% of boys. The proportion of girls who were treated offensively was also higher than among boys, 31% compared to 24%. Among youth aged 9 to 17, 43% saw people being discriminated against online, whether by race, color, or physical appearance.

Connectivity
The TIC Kids Online Brasil indicates that 89% of the population aged 9 to 17 are Internet users in Brazil, equivalent to 24.3 million connected children and adolescents. The percentage is lower among children and adolescents living in rural areas (75%), in the North and Northeast regions (79%), and those residing in DE class households (80%).

Although young Brazilians are intensive Internet users, access limitations still affect a significant portion of this population. Around 1.8 million individuals aged 9 to 17 are not Internet users, while 4.8 million children and adolescents live in households without network access. The survey also indicates that not having Internet at home is the main reason for not using the network – reported by 1.6 million non-users.

Devices for Internet access
The mobile phone is the primary device for Internet access, used by 23 million Brazilian children and adolescents (95%). Of the total users in the investigated age group, 58% use the device exclusively, a higher percentage in DE classes (73%). Internet access via television has increased compared to 2018 – from 32% in the previous survey to 43% now.

The TIC Kids Online Brasil 2019 also indicates that Internet access by children and adolescents is predominantly home-based: 92% of the investigated population accessed the Internet from home and 83% from other people's homes. At school, access was reported by 32% of respondents.

“Exclusive access via mobile phone and lack of connectivity at home are limitations that deserve the attention of public policies, especially in the pandemic context we are facing. These factors complicate, for example, the continuity of distance learning activities,” evaluates Barbosa.

Activities using the network
Multimedia, communication, education, and information search activities are among the most conducted by the investigated audience. The survey shows that the older the age group, the greater the proportion of these activities: 78% of the population aged 15 to 17 conduct Internet searches out of curiosity or personal interest – this rate drops to 46% for children aged 9 to 10.

The TIC Kids Online Brasil 2019 also shows that 40% of the population aged 15 to 17 engaged in video calls – while this proportion for children aged 9 to 10 is 25%. Video calls also vary by social class: 56% in class AB, 34% in C, and 27% in DE. According to the survey, the search for health information was conducted by a larger number of girls aged 15 to 17 (37%), compared to boys of the same age (25%).

About the survey 
In its eighth edition, the TIC Kids Online Brasil surveyed 2,954 children and adolescents aged 9 to 17 as well as their parents or guardians across the entire national territory. The interviews took place between October 2019 and March 2020, aiming to understand how this audience uses the Internet and deals with the risks and opportunities that come from it. The TIC Kids Online Brasil follows the methodological framework of the European network EU Kids Online, led by the London School of Economics, and the Global Kids Online project, coordinated by Unicef.

To access the full TIC Kids Online Brasil 2019, as well as review the historical series, visit https://cetic.br/. Compare the evolution of indicators using the data visualization available at: https://data.cetic.br/cetic/explore?idPesquisa=TIC_KIDS.

Cetic.br provides the microdata from the 8th edition of the survey for download, along with complete tables of proportions, totals, and respective margins of error. Download relevant documents and the survey's microdata at: https://cetic.br/pesquisa/kids-online/microdados.

About Cetic.br
The Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society, of NIC.br, is responsible for producing indicators and statistics on the availability and use of the Internet in Brazil, disseminating regular analyses and information about the network's development in the country. Cetic.br is a Regional Center for Studies under the auspices of UNESCO. More information at https://www.cetic.br/.

About the Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br
The Brazilian Network Information Center — NIC.br (https://www.nic.br/) is a non-profit private civil entity, which, in addition to implementing decisions and projects from the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee, has among its attributions: coordinating domain name registration — Registro.br (https://www.registro.br/), studying and treating security incidents in Brazil — CERT.br (https://www.cert.br/), studying and researching network technology and operations — Ceptro.br (https://www.ceptro.br/), producing indicators on information and communication technologies — Cetic.br (https://www.cetic.br/), implementing and operating Traffic Exchange Points — IX.br (https://ix.br/), enabling the participation of the Brazilian community in the global development of the Web, and subsidizing the formulation of public policies — Ceweb.br (https://www.ceweb.br), and hosting the W3C office in Brazil (https://www.w3c.br/).

About the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee – CGI.br
The Brazilian Internet Steering Committee, responsible for setting strategic guidelines related to the use and development of the Internet in Brazil, coordinates and integrates all Internet service initiatives in the country, promoting technical quality, innovation, and dissemination of the services offered. Based on the principles of multistakeholderism and transparency, CGI.br represents a democratic Internet governance model, internationally praised, where all sectors of society are equitably involved in its decisions. One of its formulations is the 10 Principles for Internet Governance and Use (https://www.cgi.br/principios). More information at https://www.cgi.br/.

Press Contacts:

Weber Shandwick
https://www.webershandwick.com.br/
PABX: (11) 3027-0200 / 3531-4950
Rogério Sousa – rsousa@webershandwick.com – (11) 95129-0037
Ana Jones - ana.jones@webershandwick.com - (11) 3027-0200 ramal: 312
Renata Albuquerque - RAlbuquerque@webershandwick.com - (11) 98415-0345

Communications Office – NIC.br
Caroline D’Avo – Communications Manager – caroline@nic.br
Carolina Carvalho – Communications Coordinator – carolcarvalho@nic.br
Soraia Marino – Communications Assistant – soraia@nic.br 

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/NICbr/
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/comuNICbr/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nicbrvideos
Facebook: www.facebook.com/nic.br
Telegram: www.telegram.me/nicbr
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nic-br/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicbr/

This content was automatically translated with the support of artificial intelligence.