Look, we get it - screens have their perks. Screens (electronic devices) are no more useful or useless in childhood development than any other toy or educational technology. It is the way technology is used and the attitudes that surround it that dictate its relevance1… However, in our current climate, screens tend to be more of a hindrance than a help.

More and more mobile games and social media platforms are being intentionally designed to be as ‘addictive’ as possible, at the cost of the health of the player. Screens create a fundamentally different experience from that of a non-electronic experience. This means that an excess of screen time will actually change the way you view the world, and not always for the better. Blue-light from screens can disrupt the production of melatonin in the brain, the hormone that aids in sleep 2. Many popular mobile games use tactics to make it actively difficult to put the game down, like employing bright colors and music, enabling push notifications, and rewarding players for continued play 3, 4. While this kind of repetitive satisfaction can feel relaxing, a so-called ‘screen addiction’ has been associated with “executive skill difficulties, including short attention span, poor language development, difficulties with time management and organizational skills, poor impulse control and frustration tolerance” 5. Simply put, if we want to teach our kids to think critically, we need to encourage them to think critically - and in our current environment, screen-based games are not doing that.