A new study draws attention to the fact that the time children spend in front of screens makes it harder for them to develop their language. The more time I spend in front of screens, the fewer words I hear.
More screen time, less overheard conversations – Photo Archive
Scientists in Australia have shown that a three-year-old child can miss hundreds of opportunities to talk to adults every day because of the time spent on the phone, computer or in front of the TV.
Devices distract children and can make them learn fewer words, Australian researchers say, according to ABC News.
Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association of Pediatrics, the study claims that screen time could deprive the three-year-old of 1,100 adult words, 840 vocalizations and 194 conversations per day, according to the source cited.
To reach these conclusions, researchers from the Telethon Kids Institute analyzed 7,000 hours of footage, captured in the homes of more than 200 families in Australia, which were followed for two and a half years. The children were fitted with a device to record 16 hours a day of sound in the family home. Thus, the scientists discovered that the little ones spent an average of three hours a day on the screen.
“For the three-year-olds in our study, we showed that during one minute of screen time, they heard seven fewer words from adults, spoke five fewer words themselves, and engaged in less conversation in every day. What we know from previous research is that the more words and conversations children can have, the better it is for early language development – so we want to see these numbers as high as possible“said Mary Brushe, principal investigator.
On average, a child hears between 5,000 and 35,000 words a day. The researchers made no link between learning loss and the speech delay that affects a quarter of Australian students starting primary school.
What is “Technology”
Therefore, the authors of the study urge parents to avoid “technolence“. The term represents how screens and devices prevent little ones from developing key educational skills.
“We may have underestimated how much screen use – and the associated 'technoference' – is around children, as we failed to capture parents' quiet screen-related activities, such as reading email, texting or browsing silence of websites or social networks”said Dr. Brushe.
This should also be taken into account by Romanian parents, considering that 80% of parents say that their children spend around 3 hours online a day, according to research by the Save the Children organization.
How we limit access to screens
According to experts, parents need to carefully choose the content that the little ones watch, to reduce the disadvantages. For example, they can choose educational programs to learn about things they are interested in.
In fact, adults can replace the TV with music, stories or even a podcast. When the TV is on in the background, it prevents the little ones from concentrating on the activity they are doing.
“This (the fact that the TV is on) can be very distracting for very young children, so they really struggle to pay attention to two different things at the same time. So even if you think your little one is playing or reading while the TV is on in the background, they're actually not getting the full benefit of either of these activities“, draws the attention of the author of the study.
At the same time, psychologists advise us to replace the time spent in front of gadgets with quality time.
“First of all, the parent should show the child an activity that will develop other skills, the intellectual side, to learn something, to do things with the child, not to have a passive activity. It is not possible to completely restrict online access, in the times we live in, nor is it desirable“, previously explained psychologist Keren Rosner.
Criticisms of the study
However, fewer words heard by toddlers does not necessarily mean long-term literacy problems.
“We cannot say for sure that hearing fewer words it is bad for a child's literacy and long-term development. The assumption is that by hearing fewer words, children will develop less quickly, and there is some evidence to suggest that this matters – but if you follow the WHO guidelines, then the children in this study heard 4% fewer words than under other conditions. We are not very sure that this would translate into a significant decline in literacy over time.“, said Michael Noetel, senior lecturer at the University of Queensland, according to the cited source.
recommendation
According to the WHO, three-year-old children can spend a maximum of one hour a day in front of screens. Conversely, according to the Australian Institute of Family Studies babies under the age of two are not allowed any screen time at all, and children between the ages of two and five should not exceed the limit of one hour a day. Those between the ages of 5 and 17 can stay in front of the screens for a maximum of two hours.
But how smart devices are used also matters, experts point out.
“Some screens do different things than others. Passive TV viewing doesn't seem to be great for children's development or health, but other things seem to have different effects. Things like educational apps help kids learn.”, added Dr. Noetel.
In addition, he advises parents to talk to their children as much as possible, especially when they are young.
The Australian research team wants to expand the study and return to monitored children as they grow, according to the source cited.
“We really want to make sure that this isn't just another thing to add to the guilt that parents feel in their day-to-day lives. We just want to highlight that this is something that happens to a lot of people. of Australian families and encourage conversation and put the phone down when you can and talk more with your child“, mentioned the author of the study.
