It is undeniable that we are living in the age of connectivity and that we need to prepare our children and teenagers to live in this world, but at the same time, we also need to protect them from the harm caused by excessive exposure to screen time—and, in particular, to social media !

Amid the debate over the addiction that screen use has caused in children and adolescents—and, let’s not forget, in adults as well—a Datafolha/2024 survey found that 93% of Brazilians agreed that our children and young people are becoming addicted, and a TIC Educação/2022 survey found that 72% of students admitted to using social media during school activities.

The discussion here will not question the educational use of technology—which is essential—but will instead offer reflections on premature and addictive screen exposure and on the need to take action within families, schools, and government agencies to curb excessive exposure and safeguard the mental health of children and adolescents.

To begin with, I’d like to share some ideas developed by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt in his book*The Anxious Generation: How the Hyperconnected Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Disorders*.

The book presents a wealth of research conducted in recent years, which clearly and objectively demonstrates the harmful effects that excessive screen use has caused. The book illustrates how much the removal of children from face-to-face interactions and real-world play has compromised their emotional and social development throughout their lives. Furthermore, it highlights the significant impact on the developing brain and the behavioral changes observed in boys and girls exposed to screens.

In general, it can be concluded that childhood and adolescence influenced by cell phone use have had—and continue to have—significant impacts on social relationships and mental health, leading to a sharp increase in cases of anxiety and depression among adolescents, especially since 2010. Excessive screen time has caused some very significant harm to learning:

• Sleep deprivation: leads to loss of concentration, impaired memory, difficulty retaining information learned, and irritability;
• Attention problems: These lead to difficulty concentrating and focusing on tasks, wasted time, and impaired development of executive functions.

In addition to these two types of harm, it also leads to social deprivation, which increases the risk of anxiety and depression, reduces the quality of social interaction, and, as a result, leads to superficial relationships; and last but not least, it causes addiction.

In addition to these problems closely linked to learning, excessive screen time leads to obesity and a sedentary lifestyle, as well as vision problems and low self-esteem—issues that have led to anxiety and depression in girls and increased aggression in boys.

Given all of this, learning has been further compromised by a lack of focus and concentration, difficulties with information processing, and the impact on memory retention.

Collaboration between schools and families is essential in the debate over cell phone use. Photo: Freepik.

In addition to these difficulties, excessive screen time hinders the development of social-emotional skills, such as resilience in the face of challenges and setbacks, empathy in the face of conflict, self-control, cooperation and negotiation skills, and the ability to manage one’s own tasks or social commitments.

Well, we know that ever since smartphones came along, we parents have believed that as long as our children are at home, they’re safe from other external risks—and as a result, we’ve become increasingly lenient about their screen time in the name of supposed protection.

Today, in light of so much research and reflection, we know that, on the contrary, we have exposed our children to other risks and, moreover, limited their opportunities for life-long learning, in addition to putting them at risk of physical and mental health problems.

Therefore, we need to develop a more critical perspective on the use of these technologies and ensure that we can use them more effectively and in a way that reflects their importance to the critical and reflective development of learning. After all, technology is here to stay and offers significant benefits, but now is the time to use these resources in a more balanced way.

How should we handle this right now?

At the federal and state levels, we are facing bills that propose banning the use of cell phones in schools, including during breaks and recess. How should we handle this right now?

If we want an education for life that prepares students to critically and reflectively construct their understanding of reality, a ban would certainly not be the best approach; however, since we are facing a health problem and dealing with a rampant epidemic of screen time, this may be the most appropriate course of action: to ban it under legal protection in order to buy time to work on raising awareness about what research and studies reveal, so that our children and adolescents understand the measures taken and can feel empowered by new resources to learn and interact in society.

Certainly, a ban can and should be just one of the steps, but schools and families must work together to bring about a cultural shift and ensure that everyone receives the necessary education.

We need to start using the school as a learning environment for children, youth, and adults (parents and teachers). Everyone involved must understand the reason for the ban and reflect on their roles in this major shift.

See also:

• What's Left for Education After the Metaverse Hype?
• The ban on cell phone use at school
• What We Need to Do to Make Progress in the Use of Educational Technology by 2025

Parents need to understand the risks associated with hyperconnectivity andtake a more active role in their children’s lives, providing a variety of opportunities for outdoor play, board games, and peer interactions so that children can learn skills that can only be developed through face-to-face interaction.

Teachers need to focus on the balanced use of digital platforms in the classroom so they can incorporate into their teaching practices strategies characteristic of active learning methodologies—strategies that can often be analog in nature. And our children and young people need to be challenged to build relationships with their peers and guided to solve various problems in a healthy and independent manner.

Given this, what is the school administrator’s role?

To begin with, it is up to the manager to reflect deeply on these studies and bring them up during meetings with their teams to involve everyone in raising awareness about this new approach to managing screen time and classroom time.

From this point on, the administrator needs to involve their teams in the awareness-raising process and ask their groups how the school should act to foster this change. From there, they should assess the infrastructure and human resources available to foster a playground environment where free play can take place—spaces for group games, traditional games, and interactive playgrounds—in short, to create playground spaces with controlled risks that allow for students’ motor and socio-emotional development, the formation of healthy relationships, the ability to face challenges, and decision-making.

By creating spaces like these, we will contribute to the development of what Jonathan Haidt calls “Discovery Mode,” where students can engage in enjoyable activities, individuals can experience happier, more sociable, and more open moments, and greater learning and growth for life can be ensured.

It is also the manager’s responsibility, within the family context, to organize educational sessions to raise awareness about the new internal policy in order to foster a community of learning parents at the school, by bringing in internal and external professionals who can guide families on how to change their approach. We know that many parents feel at a loss about how to proceed, and this is where the school can help by providing guidance and tips, such as:

• Communicate openly: talk to your children about the risks of excessive screen time, encouraging communication and the development of healthy habits;
• Set limits: delay giving a cell phone to your child, and when you do, give them the simplest model—the younger the child, the simpler the phone should be. In addition to establishing cell-phone-free mealtimes, set specific times for use and create clear rules regarding access to the devices;
• Encourage offline activities: promote activities such as playing outdoors, reading, playing sports, and playing board games to stimulate creativity and social interaction. Examples: Free Friday, Play Club, Reading Club, at-home activities, etc.;
• Bringing families together with shared goals;
• Monitor: Use parental controls and filters, and establish a routine that includes a variety of activities, including chores.

And we mustn't forget to emphasize the importance of SETTING AN EXAMPLE!

In the field of education, administrators should:

• Incorporate digital technologies in a responsible and educational manner, using them as tools for learning and research;
• Encourage discussion about establishing appropriate screen time limits and specific schedules for the use of devices in the classroom, ensuring that lessons are interactive and engaging;
• Offer digital education programs for students and teachers, addressing the impacts of screen use and the importance of responsible use;
• To breathe new life into school libraries by balancing classroom instruction with reading books and printed materials, thereby fostering the development of concentration and reading comprehension;
• Collaboratively develop a plan rich in strategies characteristic of active learning methodologies to ensure interaction and collaboration in the learning process, and discuss rules of conduct, as well as ensure compliance with them in the event of a violation of the agreed-upon guidelines regarding cell phone use.

Thus, by building a support network where everyone involved comes together to work toward common goals, awareness-raising will be more effective and the results will be tangible!

And what about you—how has your school been handling this issue?

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