WHY PARENTS MATTER PART 4: SCREENTIME AND LEARNING
SCREEN TIME, OVERSTIMULATION AND EFFECTS ON LEARNING
Children are surrounded by digital screens that minimize quiet time and reading time. Tablets, smartphones, games, and TV are everywhere, often replacing traditional reading and face-to-face interactions (social communications).
A recent study found that 40% of children have a tablet by age 2 and nearly 1 in 4 has a personal cellphone by age 8. Another finding was that over time screen time has remained the same at about 2.5 hours per day. (Common Sense Media)
The same study found that the percentage of parents who read daily to children younger than 2 has increased by nearly 10% since 2020. In 2024, 55% of parents of children under 2 reported reading to their child every day, up from 46% in 2020 and from 43% in 2017. This reflects similar studies mentioned earlier.
For older children ages 5 to 8, the trend is reversed. In 2024, 52% of parents said their child reads or is read to daily, down from 63% in 2020.
In another study, too much screen time was found to impact executive functions in preschoolers. (National Library of Medicine) Educators have noted that many children appear over-stimulated by fast-paced digital media. For example, one teacher observed that some children “...can sit still and focus for hours on YouTube or [videos], but when you sit them down with a book, they move, wiggle, or run away.” (theguardian.com)
Research has shown that even short periods of fast-paced, high-energy entertainment can reduce children’s ability to focus right afterward. Preschoolers who watched just nine minutes of a fast-moving television cartoon performed worse on tests of attention and self-control (executive functioning) than those who watched a slower moving show or, who instead, spent time drawing. (Lillard et al.)
Not surprisingly, because children have limited experiences with slower-paced activities, the constant stimulation from screens has made reading or even listening to a story about an unfamiliar topic feel “boring.” Simply put, they don’t have practice with or know how to engage in or stay focused on slower paced activities.
Excessive screen-time is not only a concern for building reading stamina but has also been found to have direct impact on developing cognition. For example, studies have found that too much screen time (especially when switching quickly between applications, videos, etc.) is linked to both weaker skills of executive functioning and academic performance. (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
In effect, repeated screen use is training the brain to expect instant gratification or fast paced visual stimulation. This makes it more difficult to remain focused on a textbooks, decoding words and other “slower” activities found at school and home.
Neurological research in 2023, concluded that heavy screen time can harm children’s “cognitive, linguistic, and social-emotional growth,” Those are all area skills necessary for successful school experiences and life. (Cureus)
Further, because screen time can replace one-on-one interactions, children may miss out on learning and practicing conversational rules of turn-taking and storytelling, as well as, on language development. Doctors are also advising strict limits on recreational screen time for young children in order to safeguard brain development. (theguardian.com)
As discussed earlier, evening screen time can lead to disrupted sleep patterns. Digital activities coupled with bright screen light stimulate children’s brains. That, in turn, lowers the production of melatonin, the hormone that regulates sleep-wake cycles. When children use these devices close to or at bedtime, they often fall asleep later and have a poorer quality of sleep.(pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
As we know, sleep and the ability to focus and develop executive functioning skills are deeply connected. Limiting recreational screen time and replacing it with quiet time (especially before bedtime) can improve children’s cognitive skills and learning.
Read Part 5: How and what to replace screentime with.