Anyone invested in the healthy and holistic development of children is constantly navigating a sea of conflicting information about screen time. It’s the big, scary "S"—a topic loaded with contradictions. For every study warning that excessive screen use can hinder a child’s physical, emotional, and cognitive growth, there’s another highlighting the opportunities it offers, especially with immersive technologies like AR, VR, and XR becoming more sophisticated. Research suggests that too much screen time can negatively impact social, language, and motor skill development in young children. At the same time, other studies argue that screens can foster mental well-being by helping children find like-minded communities.

So, what should we believe?

As an educator, I’ve found that when research offers no clear-cut answers, common sense is the best guide. We all recognize that too much of anything—even good things—can be harmful. And while the debate over screen time rages on, some facts are undeniable. Certain screens, like blue-light-emitting ones, can disrupt sleep by reducing melatonin production, cause eye strain, and even contribute to long-term vision problems.

We also know that children’s screen usage is steadily increasing, especially post-COVID. A comprehensive analysis of global studies suggests that nearly 60% of children aged 6 to 14 now spend more than two hours daily on screens. Another estimate places the average screen time for kids aged 8 to 12 at 5.5 hours per day. Screens are no longer an optional part of life for Generation Alpha—they are a fundamental reality.

As parents and educators, we have two choices: lament this shift or treat it as a challenge to navigate thoughtfully.

Personally, I find this era of technology exciting. Consider this: Suppose you tell a child that the human heart beats around 100,000–115,000 times a day and that women’s hearts beat faster than men’s. Before you even finish, they’ll likely fire off a stream of questions—why does the heart beat? What happens if it beats too fast or too slow? Why the difference between men and women?

I once explored this topic with a student working on a health app, and we spent hours watching YouTube videos and reading medical research summaries. In those four-plus hours, we learned about tachycardia (when the heart beats too fast) and bradycardia (when it beats too slow), how both conditions affect oxygen supply to vital organs, and why women’s smaller heart size leads to a higher resting heart rate. We even uncovered how early medical research overlooked women, leading us down a rabbit hole on gender bias in science. For a month afterward, my student was determined to become a medical activist technologist.

The lesson? Blanket judgments on screen time miss the bigger picture. Three hours on Instagram or Snapchat isn’t the same as three hours watching documentaries or TED Talks. Even time spent on social media can be valuable if it fosters learning and expands a child’s worldview.

Our tendency to fear new technology is deeply ingrained—it’s a survival instinct. At one time, books were seen as a threat to memory skills, and later, telephones were criticized for discouraging letter-writing. History repeats itself.

But as parents and educators, we don’t have the luxury of resisting change. We must engage with the technology our children are growing up with and play an active role in shaping how they interact with it.

Concerned about passive video consumption affecting language development? Watch content together in a foreign language, activating multiple senses as you read subtitles, hear new words, and observe cultural nuances.

Worried that too much screen time might hinder motor skill development? Complement online learning with hands-on activities that bring digital lessons into the real world.

(The author is Educator, BrightCHAMPS)