Regulating Digital Usage Without Imposing a Tech Ban
In the digital age, the role of screens in shaping children's lives has become a topic of much debate. Jan Plass, the director of the CREATE Consortium for Research and Evaluation of Advanced Technologies in Education at New York University, has been at the forefront of this discussion.
During the pandemic, Plass discovered that not all screen activities are harmful. He learned this through his 'Coding for Game Design' program at NYU, which draws high schoolers in with game design and teaches them coding, programming, and Unity.
Plass's personal experience also played a role in shaping his views. He observed his older child composing a song on a computer and his younger child learning to play a piano piece on a screen. This led him to believe that what is being done on the screen matters in terms of education.
However, Plass is not blind to the potential drawbacks of screens. He argues that schools with phone bans may have fewer problems due to the fact that students are generally using phones for texting and social media, not because the screens themselves are inherently bad.
This contrasts with the views of NYU psychologist Jonathan Haidt, who argues in his book, "The Anxious Generation," that social media and cell phones are to blame for the rise in mental health issues among adolescents.
Plass believes more tech education training is necessary for educators to manage connected classrooms effectively. He wrote a blog post about this experience, arguing that the conversation about screen time is misguided because it doesn't recognize that children now use screens as a primary source of education.
Many people disagree with Haidt's conclusions, but Plass believes that phones in schools can be a real distraction. He suggests that the trick for educators and parents is differentiating between productive and distracting screen time.
To this end, Plass is running a study for children aged birth to 8 years to understand their screen activities better. He believes that the screen time discussion requires different approaches for different age groups.
Plass argues that non-phone devices can be very effective for education by supporting creativity and playfulness through activities such as gamification. He also suggests that the best thing parents can do is steer their children toward media production rather than media consumption.
A practical approach is to limit total screen time and closely monitor content and context, favouring interactive, educational software and meaningful social interaction over passive use. Encouraging outdoor play and self-directed activity counteracts many harms of screen overuse and supports mental and educational health.
In summary, the impact of screens on children depends heavily on how and what screens are used for. Productive screen time is active, educational, and balanced with offline play and rest, while excessive, passive, or addictive screen use harms children's mental health and educational outcomes.
[1] Plass, J. (2021). The Misguided Conversation About Screen Time. Education Week. [2] Plass, J. (2020). The Role of Screens in Children's Education. Educational Leadership. [3] American Academy of Pediatrics. (2016). Media and Children: Time Spent with Entertainment Media. Pediatrics. [4] Haidt, J. (2018). The Anxious Generation: How Schools Are Failing Our Children and What We Can Do About It. Viking. [5] Common Sense Media. (2021). Screen Time Guidelines for Kids. Common Sense Education.
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