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What teens say they want to know about social media

Published: 2 July 2026

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Teenagers want education, not just warnings

Photo by gpointstudio from iStock.com

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Author

Jennifer Rubin

Senior Researcher, foundry10

Partner

foundry10

foundry10 is an education research organization with a philanthropic focus on expanding ideas about learning and creating direct value for youth. In collaboration with a wide range of partners, we surface, evaluate, and share opportunities to better support youth learning both inside and outside the classroom. Building on more than a decade of impactful work, our unique approach blends applied and experimental research, philanthropy, and education programs rooted in evidence-based best practices.

Today’s teens are surrounded by warnings about social media. They are told that their phones are addictive, their feeds are harming their mental health, and the platforms they use every day may be changing what it means to grow up. In schools, phone use is increasingly restricted, while at home, caregivers struggle to decide how much access is too much. Rarely do these conversations move beyond warnings toward helping young people understand how to navigate social media thoughtfully.

While public conversations often focus on whether social media is good or bad for adolescents, far less attention is paid to how young people learn to engage with it in the first place. In our lab, this gap led us to ask: What are adults teaching young people about social media, and what kinds of support do young people want? 

“Rarely do these conversations move beyond warnings toward helping young people understand how to navigate social media thoughtfully.”

To explore these questions, we surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,027 US high school students aged 14-18. We asked them about the conversations and learning experiences they had around social media at school and at home, and what they wished adults better understood about their online lives.

The young people in our study want more dynamic conversations. They value guidance that acknowledges both the challenges of social media and the meaningful role it plays in their lives. That requires caregivers and educators to appreciate what teens enjoy online, including the friendships, creative outlets, and communities they find there, while also engaging in honest conversations about risk.

How young people learn about social media 

For many teens, conversations about social media happen in fragmented moments with their families—during car rides, at the dinner table, or after something upsetting happens online. In our study, 61% of teens said informal conversations with parents are their primary source of social media education, yet only 19% have those conversations weekly or more often. School-based instruction was even less consistent: just 14% of our respondents have ever taken a course on digital or social media literacy.

When guidance does arrive, it often centers on the dangers of social media. Indeed, 72% of teens reported learning about risks such as cyberbullying and privacy breaches, while only 57% reported learning about the potential benefits of social media, including opportunities for creative expression and community. Teens who learned about both the risks and the potential benefits of social media were more likely to feel confident and empowered online. A more balanced approach is better able to prepare adolescents for digital life. 

Young people aren’t asking adults to ignore the risks of social media, but many want something more nuanced: support that acknowledges both the challenges and the meaningful role social media plays in their lives. Instead of treating social media as a single internet safety issue, families and educators may benefit from approaching it as an ongoing conversation woven into everyday life. Many young people in our study value conversations with trusted adults about their digital experiences over guidance focused primarily on rules or restrictions. 

“Many young people in our study value conversations with trusted adults about their digital experiences over guidance focused primarily on rules or restrictions. “

What teens want from social media education 

Many of the young people in our study feel that social media education is arriving too late. A substantial share—63%—said these conversations should start before age 13, which tracks with the reality that most young people are already navigating social media well before high school. Waiting until adolescence can mean missing the window when habits and expectations about technology are still forming.

Teens also want guidance that feels connected to their actual lives. The topics they prioritize, such as privacy settings, healthy technology habits, and the algorithms that shape what they see, are rooted in the everyday decisions they face online. Teens have more positive perceptions of social media education when it includes interactive discussions, project-based learning, or other participatory approaches. 

Caregivers and educators need to start these conversations early and stay curious. Initiating conversations before high school and returning to them regularly may be more helpful than a single intervention in preparing teens to navigate digital life. This means engaging with the platforms young people use, asking genuine questions about what they see online and how they make sense of it, and treating those conversations as opportunities to think together. 

What teens know about algorithms 

Every time a teen opens TikTok or Instagram, an algorithm shapes what they see. These systems track what users watch and search for, constantly adapting to keep their attention. Yet most teens in our study had only a limited understanding of how these systems work. When asked which factors influence what appears in their feeds, respondents correctly identified fewer than half, on average. Only 19% reported receiving any instruction on algorithmic literacy as part of their social media education. 

That lack of understanding matters because algorithms do more than organize content. They influence what young people repeatedly encounter online, including beauty standards, political information, social trends, and advertising. With a limited grasp of feed curation, they may struggle to recognize how platforms shape their attention and online experiences over time. 

This suggests the need for a broader understanding of what social media literacy can include. Conversations about digital life should address not only what teens see online, but also why certain content keeps appearing in the first place. Questions like “Why do you think this showed up in your feed?” or “What kinds of posts seem to get amplified over and over?” could help young people develop a more critical understanding of the systems shaping their online experiences. 

The young people in our study want honest conversations to help them think critically about the digital spaces shaping their lives. Teens may benefit most from adults who stay curious and learn alongside them.