The Jill Bennett Show · CKNW / Curiouscast

Should we ban social media for kids under 16?

March 31, 2026·35 min·2 clips

Jill Bennett reveals 75% of Canadians support banning social media for under-16s, while BC students' math scores plummet and a former mayor tackles a drug crisis.

The show opens with a practical question: if Canadians like the idea of keeping kids under 16 off social media, who would actually police it? The first turn comes from the numbers. Angus Reid Institute president Shachi Curl says 75% support a ban whether or not they have children at home. Among parents or guardians of 10-to-18-year-olds, support dips a bit to 70%. Then the conversation moves into schools. BC students are described as slipping in math and reading, and the show asks whether curriculum changes had anything to do with it. The guest does not overclaim. He says the study cannot prove causality, but it can compare curriculum changes with the test-score results now being argued over. COVID stays in the picture too. The guest notes that pandemic disruption falls inside the testing period, so the decline cannot be blamed neatly on one thing. Then the curriculum talk gets more pointed. Before the reforms, he says BC had a more prescriptive system with clear skills, plans, and teaching approaches across core subjects. Modernization changed the tone. The newer model is described as more experiential and hands-on, with less focus on fundamentals and basic skills. The host brings it back to the classroom. If math is the concern, she asks how those broader changes square with students learning the material. Indigenous perspectives come up directly. The guest says the BC curriculum includes Indigenous perspectives and reconciliation, while questioning expectations for indigenization across every subject area. He asks how traditional knowledge would help with complex math or scientific reasoning, and the host notes that others may be asking the same thing. The conversation keeps circling back to results. The issue is not whether the goals sound decent. It is whether the changes help students learn what the tests are measuring. A local file closes the lineup. Larry Campbell, described as a former mayor, former chief coroner, and senator, has his downtown east side role extended. The show asks what is working and what he plans to do with the next six months, keeping the focus on consequences, not titles.

As heard by us

A careful look at social media limits, BC test scores, and Larry Campbell's extended downtown east side work.

The episode starts with a straightforward question: should social media be banned for anyone under 16, and how would anyone even enforce that?

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want the real-world case for a teen social media ban, not a slogan.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from The Jill Bennett Show