The digital world is changing around us at a dizzying pace; parents want guidance, and pediatricians want to answer their questions with helpful and scientifically valid advice. The American Academy of Pediatrics’ policy on children and media is probably best known for two recommendations: to discourage any screen time for children under 2, and to limit screen time to two hours a day for older children.
As new technologies have transformed many aspects of daily life, new questions have arisen. Did discouraging screen time for children under 2 mean no Skyping with Grandma? Did a limit of two hours for older children mean that if a sixth-grader did her homework on her computer, as assigned, she had used up her allotment? When those guidelines were originally composed in the 1990s, screen time was essentially taken to mean time in front of the television, or time spent playing old-style computer games; by 2013, the policy had changed to limiting “total entertainment screen time” for older children, while still “discouraging” all screens for those under 2.
The children and media policy and guidelines are undergoing review and revision, but in the interim, the academy convened Growing Up Digital, a symposium of experts and researchers last May, and came up with a list of tips — “Beyond ‘turn it off’: How to advise families on media use” — published in September in AAP News, which goes to pediatricians. These suggestions were meant to expand and enhance the existing guidelines by taking notice of new technology and new science.
To continue reading this article by Dr. Perri Klass, go to: well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/03/21/a-reconsideration-of-children-and-screen-time/
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