Online Gaming Addiction: A Silent Disaster in Rural Education

Online Gaming Addiction: A Silent Disaster in Rural Education

The uncontrolled addiction to mobile games has emerged as a major obstacle to spreading the light of education in rural communities. In Baburail village, under Tangab Union No. 8 of South Gafargaon Upazila in Mymensingh District it was once a common sight to see children and teenagers going to school together in the morning. However, with the increasing accessibility of smartphones and addictive online games the situation has gradually changed.If we look at my village and several surrounding villages we can see groups of five to seven teenagers wandering around aimlessly.Their primary obsession is playing mobile games together.Once rural teenagers spent their mornings and afternoons attending school and their leisure time playing on the fields. Now, however many of them can be found sitting under trees, in dark alleys or around Wi-Fi zones.They spend hours together playing highly addictive online games such as Free Fire and PUBG.As a result, they are becoming increasingly disinterested in their studies which is negatively affecting both their mental and physical development. In many cases, teenagers become involved in various forms of misconduct and criminal activities in order to obtain money to spend on games.In my village and several nearby villages on average around 10–12 students drop out of education between primary and secondary levels. A similar picture can be seen in many remote rural areas across the country.This is not merely a loss to education rather it is pushing an entire generation toward mental and social vulnerability.This social problem is continuously pushing our rural communities toward deterioration.To protect children and teenagers from this addiction it is essential to block links to harmful and highly addictive online games, discourage personal smartphone use before completing secondary education and increase opportunities for healthy local recreation and entertainment.Therefore, I strongly urge the concerned authorities to take immediate steps to create awareness in villages through coordinated efforts involving local administration, teachers and responsible parents.Collective action is urgently needed to protect our children from the harmful effects of uncontrolled online gaming and to safeguard the future of rural education.

Jannat Akter Shila

Student Eden Mohila College, Dhaka.

Department of Chemistry

Email: shilakhan09765@gmail.com