A chara, – You report that researchers from the Dublin Institute of Technology have found that 43 per cent of those aged 9 to 16 do not know how to use the "report abuse" button on social media ("Online usage patterns of children suggest they are not equipped with adequate internet safety skills", February 10th). While I am sure that this statistic may be fairly accurate, I suggest that parents, teachers and other responsible adults would wish for more detailed information.
In my view, the age spread is too wide, as those aged 16 can be expected to know far more about these things than almost any child aged nine. The extent of this greater knowledge can only be determined if we are given separate statistics for, at a minimum, two age groups within this spread: 9-12 and 13-16, as 12 years of age is an important milestone in many young people’s development. Better still would be figures for four age groups: 9-10, 11-12, 13-14 and 15-16. – Is mise,
R SEATHRÚN Mac ÉIN,
Baile Átha Cliath 4.