TALLAHASSEE, Florida

Florida schools would be required to teach students about the benefits and risks of social media under a bill unanimously approved by the Senate Committee on Education on Tuesday.

If adopted, a curriculum would be developed and school districts would be required to implement it into existing courses. The program would also be made available to parents. The bill would also define social media in state law for the first time.

“The things our children are exposed to are troubling. Kids are losing their innocence more and more every day earlier because of the things you can just see by pulling it online, even if they’re not looking for it, ”said Republican Senator Danny Burgess, sponsor of the project. law.

And although he said parents should be involved in this discussion at home, many are unaware of the variety of social media platforms that children have access to.

“All these different platforms that exist, I don’t know them very well. I have my government stuff that I use. But other than that, I don’t have a personal page, so it’s hard for me to tell my growing kids about these risks, ”said Burgess.

The bill received enthusiastic support from Democrats and Republicans.

“You are watching how social media is transforming itself, and some of the things and the content that comes along is dangerous,” Democratic Senator Shevrin Jones said.

Republican Senator Jennifer Bradley encouraged Burgess to consider expanding the wording of the bill to include other online activities.

“I love this bill,” Bradley said. “I almost think the bill could even be a little broader, there are definitely your social media platforms, but there is a lot going on online with websites.”

The bill has two more stops in committee before it reaches the full Senate. An identical House bill has not yet been heard in committee. The Legislative Assembly begins its 60-day annual session on January 11.