‘Generation COVID’ attention spans are shorter thanks to TikTok

Thanks to the proliferation of screen time during the pandemic, the kids of “Generation COVID” have limited attention spans.

A survey of more than 500 school teachers in England revealed the devastating effects that social media platforms had on their impressionable students, claiming “pupil inattention” has significantly worsened since the onset of the pandemic.

The instructors lamented the “needless chatter, shouting and laughing inappropriately” that occurs in their classrooms, reporting that “bored” students move around the room or provoke their peers during class.

Instructors are pointing fingers at platforms like TikTok, which skyrocketed in popularity during COVID lockdowns and is used by an estimated 67% of teens.

In fact, 85% of teachers surveyed are blaming kids’ unruly behavior on the uptick in social media usage and the “ever-swiping nature of social media,” according to the Guardian.

The new survey, which was conducted by Kapow Primary between April and May this year, inquired about students’ behavior changes between pre-pandemic and now.

A startling 84% of teachers said their students’ attention span is “shorter than ever,” forcing educators to spend less than 10 minutes on any given subject just to hold the kids’ interest.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents also reported an increase in daydreaming or inattention from their pupils.

Tiffnie Harris, who works as a data specialist at the UK’s Association of School and College Leaders, said that teachers are witnessing “a long-term impact” of pandemic disruption.

“On top of this is the rising incidence of mental health and well-being problems among children, which is exacerbated by the impact of the cost of living crisis on families and the pressures created by social media,” she told the Guardian.

Social media use in teens has been linked to mental health repercussions, such as depression and anxiety.

Just last month, the US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy released a report claiming that adolescents who spend more than three hours online every day are at double the risk for deteriorated mental health.

The ramifications include body images problems, disordered eating and decimated self-esteem. A February report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention claimed that teen girls specifically felt more hopeless or sad in 2021.

“We have seen an increase in anxiety, depression and addiction, including digital addiction, among our youth since the start of COVID,” Dr. Gregory Jantz, a mental health expert, previously told The Post, arguing that social media has prompted “emotional abuse, toxic relationships and the sexualization of our youth.”

“Social media use and mental health should be a topic for ongoing discussions in families,” he added. “Start regularly talking about safety in digital communications, time boundaries and which apps should be avoided.”