Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
It is a debate that has been running for a number of years, is screen time a good or bad thing for young children? Especially with the increased availability of devices specifically designed to be used by toddlers and young children. There are a variety of opinions as to whether or not using screen time with children is a good or bad thing. In this post I will discuss this topic and share some of my own thoughts.
Research
I was prompted to write about this, having recently read an article discussing some recent research in this area. You can read the article for yourself here.
Long story short, the research had concluded that. “Children with a higher ScreenQ had lower structural integrity and myelination in the brain. More screen time, therefore, is associated with decreased language and literacy skills in pre-schoolers.”
With another research study referenced in the article finding similar results. This research stated that, “watching the tube for more than a few hours a day was associated with lower school readiness in kindergartners, especially among low-income families.”
It is a topic that can polarise opinion and at times, be cause for lengthy debate. Research in this area will continue for sure. However, technology is advancing so quickly. I would imagine that it is difficult to determine what the longer term implications are of increased screen use for children. Especially with the increased availability and varying options only being introduced in recent years and changing with every new year that passes. For example, the introduction of virtual reality devices.
Positives
Having worked with a large number of families, I have seen screen time be utilised in a variety of ways. I now also have the added benefit of having a two year old myself and have had to make my own decisions when it comes to how much screen time do we use. As a result, I have been able to witness a number of positives of using screen time with young children.
Firstly, I think many parents out there will agree that it gives them a much needed respite period. A time in which they can take a break, or complete some jobs that need doing. Secondly, there is a huge amount of content that has a positive educational/developmental impact. For example, I feel my daughter’s language skills have benefited immensely from watching programmes that programmes like Peppa Pig, which utilises a lot of repetition and explanation.
Finally, children nowadays are going to be growing up in world surrounded by technology. It is going to be an essential skill to be competent in using technology and screened devices. Many schools now use tablet devices in the classroom for example. Children who have exposure to these devices can very quickly begin to learn how to operate them. I used to laugh at my daughter, as when she was younger we would watch a video on my phone, she would attempt to swipe the screen to move on to the next video. It didn’t take her very long at all to learn that this was a way to start a new video!
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Negatives
On the other hand, there are certainly negative aspects of using screen time, especially when used to excess.
Firstly, I have found that it can be highly addictive for toddlers and young children. Likely due to how stimulating it is for them. I remember having to consciously remove screen time from my daughter completely. She had become very demanding for it and would refuse to do anything else. Thankfully a few days without screen time at all resolved this! I have seen the same in other families too. Therefore, going through this myself, it taught me about the importance of moderation of screen time.
Secondly, whilst it is great for parents to get that peace and quiet for a period of time, this is a period of time in which the child is having no interaction or opportunity to practice or develop their own skills. If a child is consumed in a screen for hours and hours per day, this can quickly total up to a substantial amount of time. Time which may have been used towards a more beneficial activity.
Finally, as the research at the start of this post suggests, the impact of screen time does alter the development of a child. Realistically, these are studies over a short period of time. What may not yet fully understood or known is what the long term impacts are for these children? There may be a substantial impact or there may be little to no impact. It is a question I am sure many parents worry or think about. However, it is a worthwhile consideration to make that if children’s development is affected in the relative short term, could there be longer term implications.
My own thoughts
I am no scientist or expert in this field in any way shape or form. All I can go off is my own personal experiences seeing how screen time is used in other families and my using of screen time with our daughter. My wife and I have tried to maintain a balanced approach to using screen time with our daughter.
We consciously chose to implement screen time from an early age. We used black and white baby videos from YouTube as a source of stimulation and to aid her development. Usually only for 5/10mins at a time! Over time, this progressed to more of the typical toddler videos, involving singing, counting or learning the alphabet. Finally landing us where we are now, in which our daughter enjoys certain films and programmes. Current favourites including; Encanto, Micky Mouse Clubhouse and interestingly, watching home videos of herself or our family.
We have always ensured that screen time is time limited. Moving her onto more creative of physical activities afterwards. However, I think compared to some, she has a lot of screen time over the course of the day, probably a couple of hours at least. Is this or good or bad thing for her long term development? I’m not sure. Thinking about the results of the research discussed above, all I can say, is that her speech is probably her biggest strength. Her language and counting skills are good for her age and I would attribute a large part of that to the content she watches.
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Watching videos of themselves
What I find most interesting when it comes to our daughter, is what the long term impact is of watching herself on videos? She absolutely loves watching home videos of herself on phones or on the TV. Does it help reinforce her memory? Can it increase her comprehension and understanding of the world around her? I have no idea. But her generation will be the first that will grow up and have access to immediate or real time video play backs of themselves. It would be very interesting to hear if other parents have toddlers equally as interested in watching themselves. Either way, I am interested in what the longer term implications are of this type of screen time on their development.
My overall opinion is that when used in moderation, screen time has a lot of positives. The reality of parenting is that screen time can be very helpful in providing respite periods for parents. Periods that are often much needed. If screen time is used in excess, I can imagine it does have a negative impact of certain aspects of a child’s development. However what is excess for one parent, may not be excess for another.
Ultimately, every parent will find their own balance of how much screen time they are comfortable with allowing. But I can see why the positives and negatives are argued so passionately from both sides.
What are your thoughts on screen time and how do you use it? Let me know in the comments!
I believe screening has pros and cons for children. Most important don’t overdo it. Same goes with adults as well.
Screen time needs to be managed as I have seen some parents depend on it as a distraction at meal times. They then avoid social interaction during meals.
Those studies sound quite interesting and I am sure many parents will find this so helpful when looking into how their children use screen time, etc. I can imagine that most of the negative impacts of screen time on children (and adults, in general) can be offset with good usage management. Great post!
Thank you Molly!
This is such an interesting post. Thank you for taking into account the positive side, as well as the negatives. So many of these posts only explore one side of the coin. In truth, while screens can be bad to an extent, think of all the learning opportunities we have from them!
Thank you! It is certainly a topic up for debate, but for me there are certainly benefits if screen time is used in the right way!
Honestly, for me… as long as the child is interacting with others, going outside with friends, and over all being active in life outside of the gadgets, I don’t see it as a problem. On the other hand, if the child is only sitting on the tablet or gadget all day with no other interaction or activity, then that is definitely a problem. Nothing good can come from being stagnate. Great post. Thank you for sharing!
Yeah I agree completely. I think there are some definite benefits and ways screen time can be used productively. However, as with most things in life, it is about moderation. Thank you!