by Kaitlin Edwards
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a very disruptive effect on the daily routines of children. As the virus spread across the country last spring, over 50 million children in the U.S. were affected by school closures. These kids not only dealt with secondhand stress from the strain put on their families, they also lost all of the academic and social benefits of in-person school. And while remote learning may be a temporary fix during closures, new concerns have risen now that classrooms are virtual environments and exposing children to an unprecedented amount of screen time. Policymakers and health organizations need to put in guardrails so that after the pandemic parents and educators understand the impact and appropriate amount of screen time for children of all ages.
Screen time has increased in part because of virtual school, but also because parents are leaning more on devices to occupy their children as they juggle work and parenting. The result is a dramatic increase in screen time for American children. Elementary-aged children, who range between 5 and 11 years old, doubled their hours of screen time per day to over five hours from May 2020 compared to May 2019 levels, according to device-usage tracking company Qustodio. These changes could be especially prevalent among low-income families who lack childcare options, as they may rely more heavily on technology as a way to entertain young kids. Common Sense Media found that children from lower-income families spend 40 percent more time on electronics compared to children from middle-income families.
Before the pandemic, a Pew Research Center study found that 80 percent of parents say that their children (ages of 5 to 11) use or interact with a tablet device. That same study concluded only 60 percent of parents with children under the age of 11 reported having talked about the appropriate amount of screen time for children with a medical professional.
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