{"id":51777,"date":"2020-04-10T00:00:18","date_gmt":"2020-04-10T07:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/world.edu\/?p=51777"},"modified":"2020-04-09T15:07:20","modified_gmt":"2020-04-09T22:07:20","slug":"forget-old-screen-time-rules-during-coronavirus-heres-what-you-should-focus-on-instead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/world.edu\/forget-old-screen-time-rules-during-coronavirus-heres-what-you-should-focus-on-instead\/","title":{"rendered":"Forget old screen \u2018time\u2019 rules during coronavirus. Here\u2019s what you should focus on instead"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nCOVID-19 has left parents grappling with the challenges of online learning, entertainment and work. It\u2019s natural the amount of time children spend using screens will now increase.<\/p>\n

But that\u2019s OK. Screen time recommendations we\u2019ve enforced for so long no longer apply to our situation. There are ways to make the best of kids\u2019 increased use of screens.<\/p>\n

More than just screen \u2018time\u2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Screen \u201ctime\u201d has become an important aspect our health and well-being. It relates to measuring how many hours and minutes a person uses a digital screen such as mobile phone, tablet, television or computer.<\/p>\n

Screen time has become a particularly important focus for parents who want to help their child establish healthy technology habits.<\/p>\n

We gain our screen time recommendations from several sources. These are primarily health and psychology authorities. They include the\u00a0World Health Organisation<\/a>, which has published guidelines for children five years old and younger; and the\u00a0American Academy of Paediatrics<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Australian Department of Health<\/a>, which have each published their own guidelines for children up to 18 years old.<\/p>\n

These guidelines bear similarities to each other. They mainly state children under 18 months should get no screen time except for video calls such as Skyping a grandparent. Children aged two to five should limit their use to an hour, ideally watching a screen with an adult.<\/p>\n

Guidelines for school-aged children and adolescents are less definitive. There are no recommended minutes or hours per day. The guidelines depend on the lifestyle of the child, and it\u2019s left to the parent to manage.<\/p>\n

If we dissect published screentime recommendations, there are three factors embedded in what comprises healthy technology use.<\/p>\n

They include:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. time using a screen<\/li>\n
  2. quality of screen content<\/li>\n
  3. who you use a screen with.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Screen \u201ctime\u201d gets all the airplay, but with families confined to home, the other two factors \u2013 quality and screen buddies \u2013 are just as important, if not more, for healthy technology use.<\/p>\n

    Screen quality<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    The benefits of technology on children\u2019s health, well-being, social and emotional outcomes, and school achievement,\u00a0depends less on time<\/a>\u00a0and more on the type of content they engage with when using a screen.<\/p>\n

    Consider a five-year-old watching 30-minutes of early childhood educational content, such as the ABC\u2019s\u00a0PlaySchool<\/a>. Compare this to the same child playing 30 minutes of a highly violent video game.<\/p>\n

    Both involve 30 minutes of screen time, but the experience for the child and the impact on them will be vastly different with each.<\/p>\n

    Quality screen content is defined by\u00a0three combined features<\/a>: it is interactive, educational and age appropriate.<\/p>\n

    But just because something is categorised as \u201ceducational\u201d doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s a good learning experience. The term educational is often used as a way of organising apps in the App Store or Google Play store, or to market apps.<\/p>\n

    Truly\u00a0educational content requires<\/a>\u00a0a child to think, be creative and socially interactive. These kinds of apps don\u2019t have too many distracting bells and whistles but aim to keep the child\u2019s attention on the learning.<\/p>\n

    A great example of an educational app for your children is\u00a0Thinkrolls Space<\/a>. The app has fun, odd-ball alien-themed puzzles that encourage problem solving, as well as thinking logically and strategically.<\/p>\n

    The app design encourages children to persevere to solve the problem. And it doesn\u2019t encourage in-app purchases to easily power up without solving the problem.<\/p>\n

    For high school children the app\u00a0DragonBox Algebra 12+<\/a>\u00a0is an innovative STEM game that helps supercharge kids\u2019 learning of algebra.<\/p>\n

    The game is designed to help kids build a strong understanding, with lots of opportunities to practise new skills and then move through to more complex problems; and it does this is a really fun way.<\/p>\n

    Screen buddies<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    It\u2019s not very healthy for a child of any age to be alone on a device for hours on end. Engaging with your child and varying how a child engages socially when using a screen is important to developing healthy screen habits.<\/p>\n

    This is\u00a0sometimes explained<\/a>\u00a0using the term \u201cco-view\u201d, which is when a child uses a screen with their parent who can explain ideas to them.<\/p>\n

    \u201cCo-engaging\u201d is a much more powerful idea for older children. It simply means using a screen with someone equally engaged (not just an onlooker or explainer). It may be playing an online game with a parent, or another person.<\/p>\n

    It can also mean engaging with the online content with someone virtually, such as Skyping a class friend or taking part in a virtual study group.<\/p>\n

    Tips for parents<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    Healthy screen use is about balancing all three factors: time, quality and buddies. So, if you think your child may be using a screen for longer periods of time because of the changes COVID-19 has brought, then ensure screen quality and screen buddies are in check. You can do this now, by:<\/p>\n