One expert calls it the great rewiring of childhood, with smartphones and social media taking over and playing a big role in the mental health of young people.
But now, there’s a growing movement to dial back the technology, with doctors pointing to four specific things we can do at home and in schools to help break the cycle.
Kids spend an average of eight hours and 39 minutes a day on screens. The sticky algorithm on social media is designed to keep them glued to their phones and scrolling through content longer.
From apps to games and text messages, experts say constant connectivity is having an impact on a child's brain. It can impact every aspect of their life, including their grades, their mental health and their sense of belonging, with rates of adolescent anxiety and depression rising more than 50% from 2010 to 2019.
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"For kiddos who are on their phones and multitasking in a learning environment specifically, they have a difficult time attending to what's being taught, the instruction, and so it's just difficult for them to retain the information and to learn," said Dr. Ashley Maxie-Moreman, a clinical psychologist at Children's National Hospital in D.C.
Here's what she said when it comes to banning cell phones in schools:
"The research is pretty compelling with regard to the negative impacts on academic performance and the negative impact on enjoyment of social interaction," she said. "And so we know that these are the main things that kids are going to school for: They're going there to learn. They're going there to socialize with their peers. If spending time on their phone and being distracted on their phone are negatively impacting those experiences, then I think that's a compelling argument to consider limiting phone use in school."
It's something New York Times bestselling author and social psychologist Jonathan Haidt agrees with. His latest book, “The Anxious Generation,” is a call to action. It outlines four things we can do to help break the cycle, and it boils down to this:
- Banning smartphones in schools
- No smart phones for kids before high school
- No social media before the age of 16
- More free play to help rewire a child's brain back to more play-based activities and away from phone-based activities
Teachers are weighing in too.
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According to a recent survey of more than 500 school teachers and leaders, 70% of administrators said kids should be 14 or older before they get phones, but the poll shows most kids get their first device at age 10 or younger.
