According to a study, the time spent in front of a screen does not necessarily make children go to school

According to the latest research, the time spent on the screen is not equal.

Time spent in front of the screen is one of the hottest questions today about parenting. It seems that a new study is published every month with new recommendations on how long children should have access to the technology and its potential impact. It's confusing to say the least. On Monday, a new journal of studies published in JAMA Pediatrics was published, deepening the way in which time spent in front of a screen has an impact on the school performance of children. Surprisingly, many forms may not be. The researchers found that different types of screen time are not created equal for academics.

In fact, the only type of screen time that negatively affected them was television and video games.

The study analyzed the school results of 106,000 students aged 4 to 18, examining the time spent on the Internet, mobile phones, television, video games and other media used on the screen. Overall, their meta-analysis revealed no link between time spent in front of a screen and school performance. However, when they are broken down by type of screen, they find that the details are important.

For example, watching television had an impact on skills such as language and math skills for teens and young children, and on the academic composite in general for teens. Teenagers who watched more television were more directly affected than younger children, who spent more time stuck to the tube. With regard to video games, among teenagers, this only seemed to affect their academic composite score.

So what does this mean for parents? The researchers hope that their findings on the impact of each type of screen time on children will give parents and educators a glimpse of how they are allocating and controlling time spent in front of a screen. In their conclusion, the authors write that "each on-screen activity should be analyzed individually to determine its association with academic performance" and that "education and public health professionals should consider supervision and reduction in order to to improve the school performance of children and adolescents exposed to these activities. Activities. "

If you are concerned about your child's screen time and want to develop a solid plan to monitor it, the American Association of Pediatrics has created an extremely useful tool. Their online family media planner is a very easy way to design a specific plan for your child. You can enter their age and this will guide you through all the steps to create a healthy schedule, giving you tips on when to avoid the time spent in front of a screen and, more specifically, what types to avoid in general.

Another sensible approach to the screen debacle is to choose Anya Kamenetz's book, The Art of Time on the Screen: How Your Family Can Reconcile Digital Media and Real Life. The journalist, an expert in education and technology – and especially a mother of two young children – interviews more than 500 parents in the book and a group of experts. There are so many great tips and innumerable suggestions on how to maintain balance in your home.