- Overall, did you enjoy the event? Did you find it useful?
Yes, thank you, I had a really good day.
I have a teenager who isn't yet interested in social media & a soon-to-be teenage son who will
definitely want to get involved; I now feel more prepared, even if that means I am more aware of what I
don't know, iyswim.
- What did you learn from the At Home With Instagram event?
As someone very new to Instagram, I was interested to learn about the features of this particular social media platform & the aims of those at Instagram to make it a kinder, safer & supportive place, particularly for teenagers. The Parent's Guide is a useful prompt & will be a good conversation starter with my son when the time comes.
- Do you feel you now know how to keep your teenagers safer online?
I am now more aware of some of the features that will
help to keep my teenager safer online, but I think it would be unrealistic to say that I can definitely '
keep them safe online' after this. The day felt like the
start of a conversation...
- Do you feel any differently about your teenagers using Instagram?
Having listened to the panel of teenage Instagramers, I can see how having a
purpose to an Instagram account (beyond communicating with friends etc.) can be empowering & provide users with a voice.
I still have some reservations around some of the features & filters & there were contradictory messages during the day (e.g. it's age 13 & above for users, yet one panel member mentioned their 12 year old using Instagram; the 'no nudity' rule for Instagram, yet nude images can evidently be uploaded, etc.).
- What is your top tip that you either learnt at the event or from reading the parental guide that you would like other parents to know?
The 'Managing Time' chapter in the parental guide will be particularly useful for when my son starts to inevitably allow time to disappear on Instagram, however knowing how to find & use the privacy features, manage comments & how to block is crucial.
- Which part of the event did you find most useful and which part did you find the least useful?
Listening to the overview of features (although for me it was just a little too fast-paced) was very useful & the teenage Instagramers were inspiring.
Not being able to log on to the exhibits at the back meant that this aspect was not at all useful for me. Whilst it was interesting to listen to Justine & to the panel discussion, there was some repetition here & perhaps it wasn't necessary to have both.
The day was really enjoyable, the goody bag was great, the food & hospitality lovely & the opportunity to meet other Mumsnetters was a real treat. I do feel, however, that without sounding horribly greedy, I would like the chance to follow-up & look more closely at some of the issues raised...