Setting Limits on Screen Time

According to the 2010 Kaiser Family Foundation survey, American youth ages 8 to 18 years old spend more than 7 hours on entertainment media in an average day. Four of those hours are spent in front of a TV.

Nearly half of all kids say that the television is left on “most of the time” when they are home. Seventy-one percent of kids have a TV in their bedrooms. And half of them also have a video game console in their rooms.

Experts advise parents to remove all digital devices from their children’s bedrooms, especially at night. Without rules or supervision, many kids pull out cell phones and text under the sheets for hours. The Kaiser Foundation found that when taking the time to set limits, kids spend three hours less on electronics than those without restrictions.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a maximum of two hours of screen time a day for school-age kids.

Harnessing the Power of Technology Today, technology is completely integrated into young people’s lives. Despite all the dangers of the Internet, cell phones and gaming, it can be a productive way to learn and connect. “Technology is one of many tools that are available, and it’s all about how you use it that will determine success or failure,” says Maya Crosby, technology educator at Lincoln Academy in Newcastle, Maine.

Last year, Lincoln Academy began a one-to-one computing program. Each student was given his own netbook to use for the entire school year. Crosby says she was impressed with the way students took ownership of the laptops. And how they harnessed the technology “We have seen a lot more in the way of creativity. In the way that the students are able to show that they know something. Whether it’s a presentation that they make, or a movie, or an animation,” she says.

While Crosby embraces the technology, she believes it’s a parent’s job to monitor students’ online activities. “We cannot make the technology be a good parent. Whether we have parental controls or filtering software, or any of that, it does not replace the human. And it doesn’t replace somebody watching out for the student,” says Crosby. “With all things, it’s about using the tools in the most positive way that we can and using them in moderation and balance.

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